Our featured article this month in Austin Fit Magazine, “Improve Your Sleep With CBT-I”, comes from Katie Strickland, PsyD. Katie draws on her extensive training in evidence-based behavioral therapies such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), and mindfulness-based Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). Katie utilizes CBT, mindfulness-based approaches, and developing an understanding of the mind-body connection to treat clients with a variety of mental health needs including mood disorders, sleep, chronic pain, and trauma.
One of the criteria for insomnia is experiencing sleep disturbances at least 3 nights per week for at least 3 months. The National Institute of Health recommends a treatment called Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) as the first-line treatment for insomnia. CBT-I is an evidence-based therapy that has been heavily researched and is shown to be more effective than medications prescribed for sleep.