Sleep disorders
Dependence on sleeping pills
CBT-I is the evidence-based support for gradual withdrawal — always in collaboration with the doctor who prescribed the medication.
What it is
Hypnotics were designed for short-term use. With long-term use, tolerance often develops: the same dose does less, and insomnia returns.
Alongside it, psychological dependence takes hold — the belief that sleep is impossible without the drug. That belief alone produces anxiety and sustains the insomnia.
On stopping, rebound insomnia is common: temporary but intense. Without preparation, it is read as proof that the drug was necessary.
How it shows up
- Taking a hypnotic daily for months or years
- Needing a higher dose for the same effect
- Intense anxiety at the thought of a night without the drug
- Failed attempts at stopping
- Morning grogginess, fogginess or memory problems
How it is treated
- 01
CBT-I is established first and sleep is stabilised, while the medication stays unchanged.
- 02
The taper is planned and carried out solely by the treating physician. A psychologist does not intervene in medication.
- 03
Preparation for rebound insomnia, so that it is recognised as temporary and expected.
- 04
Cognitive work on the belief in dependence, and a gradual recovery of confidence in sleep.
Important
No change to your medication happens without your doctor. Abruptly stopping certain classes of drug is dangerous.
Let's find out whether this is what is happening to you.