Insomnia involves difficulties falling or staying asleep. All of us experience insomnia at times, but for the person who experiences it frequently or chronically, insomnia can take a major toll in quality of life, mood, energy, and productivity.

The cognitive-behavioral model of insomnia emphasizes the roles of dysfunctional thoughts about sleep, maladaptive sleep habits, physical arousal, and the daytime consequences of sleep loss. Cognitive-behavior therapy helps the insomniac improve sleep quality, quantity, and consistency by optimizing cognitive, behavioral, biological, and environmental factors known to affect sleep. Treatment components include education to correct misunderstandings about sleep, learning to challenge thoughts (often anxiety-related) that interfere with sleep, modifying the sleep schedule to maximize drowsiness at bedtime and alertness in the morning, removing disruptions in the sleep environment, relaxation training, and changing habits that interfere with sleep. Sometimes insomnia is part of another disorder, such an anxiety or mood disorder; when this is the case, treatment for these problems may be needed in order to overcome insomnia.