Testing an intervention for chronic insomnia based on the third wave models of cognitive-behavioral therapy, in comparison with the standard CBT-I

Insomnia is the most prevalent sleep complaint with multiple consequences at several levels. Despite the proved efficacy of Cognitive-behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) at diminishing insomnia symptoms and severity, some of its behavioural components have been shown to be of difficult compliance leading to intervention failure.

One of the causes for the lack of compliance relates to difficulty in tolerate unpleasant feelings, thoughts and emotions. The third wave CBT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy [ACT] and Compassion Focused Therapy [CFT]) act on psychological and behavioural flexibility, acceptance of unpleasant internal experiences and work on developing a compassionate attitude toward oneself.

Considering these aspects, the adaptation of third wave CBT to insomnia treatment appears to be and advantageous new approach; as such, the main objectives of this study are to develop an ACT and compassion based protocol for insomnia treatment and test its efficacy in comparison to CBT-I.