Sömnskolans betydelse för personer med insomni – en intervjustudie

Introduction: Sleep is necessary for human survival. Difficulty sleeping occurs in about one in four adult person in Sweden, insomnia in every ten. There are several reasons for difficulty sleeping, where stress is one of the most common. The quality of life and health are affected negatively. Treatment with proven efficacy against insomnia is not only sleep medication, but also cognitive behavioral therapy, CBT. CBT is used as method in so-called sleep education groups. Purpose: The purpose of this study is to describe the participant´s expectations and perceptions of sleep education in group. Method: The study was performed through interviews with eight participants from sleep education groups, using a descriptive qualitative method with content analysis. Result: All participants received a better sleep after sleep education in group. The quality of life improved with better mood and increased energy. It was appreciated by all that the sleep-education was conducted in group. The participants described the benefits of recognizing their own problems with others. They felt it was valuable that they could exchange experiences with each other. It contributed to a maintenance of good habits to sleep, to show results to the others in the group. The sleep restriction was hard but effective. Other methods to treat insomnia that was appreciated in the sleep education group, was relaxation, mindfulness, relapse prevention and to deal with anxiety. The sleep education gave the participants a confidence to cope with a sleepless night. Expectations for sleep education group were low for six of the participants while two of the participants had high expectations. Conclusion: Sleep education provided in group is effective for persons suffering from insomnia as it resulted in better sleep and quality of life. Keywords: expectations, insomnia, perceptions, quality of life, sleep education, sleep restriction