A sleep therapist's night routine, for people who've tried everything
Tony Ho works with people whose sleep stopped working months or years ago. Not a bad week — the kind where it's 3am again and you're staring at the ceiling doing arithmetic about how many hours are left.
12
Guided
practices
6
Podcast
episodes
10
Minutes
a night
It works by repetition. The first night won't tell you much, and the first two weeks are the hard part.
You've tried everything on this list
Some of it worked for a week, then stopped. Some of it was money down the drain. What none of it touched is the thing that actually happens at 3am — a brain that won't shut off, and everything you've learned to do about being awake.
Sleep hygiene isn't enough once the problem is established. That's not a criticism of your habits. It's the reason habits stopped being the answer.
No sequence to finish
Twelve practices, sorted by what they're for. You pick the one that fits the night you're having.
Attention
Before you get into bed
Body
Wired but tired
Acceptance
It's 3am again
Visualization
Brain won't shut off
Listen to one now
This is the one for 3am, when you've been awake long enough to have given up on the night.
Welcoming Wakefulness
Acceptance-based practice
His opening question is why this doesn't sound like the app you already deleted: why would you welcome being awake when all you want is to sleep?
Who made this
Night routine created by Tony Ho, CBT-I/ACT-I practitioner at Quadra Wellness.
Talking therapies for insomnia — they work on what you do at night and how you respond to being awake. Not on anything you swallow.
This isn't for you if
You sleep fine most nights and want something for the occasional bad one
You want a pill
You want something that works tonight — the first two weeks are the hard part
You just want something to fall asleep to. Plenty of apps do that, and they cost nothing
You haven't tried anything yet. Start with the simple things first
Try the first night
4
practices
3
episodes
3
sounds
What the practice asks for
Darkness
Every practice asks you to close your eyes and keep your attention inward. A sliver of light ruins it.
The same cue
Repeated often enough, a scent stops being a smell and becomes the signal that the practice is starting.
Sleep Mask with Lavender Aroma Capsules
$29.99