#99 - Insomnia in 7 Days with Dr. Aric Prather

Sleep health relies on establishing consistent wake-up times to anchor circadian rhythms and build homeostatic sleep pressure, metaphorically described as filling a balloon throughout the day. Dr. Aric Prather, a Professor of Psychiatry at UCSF and author of *The Sleep Prescription*, emphasizes that insomnia often stems from conditioned arousal, where the bedroom becomes a site of anxiety rather than rest. Effective interventions include stimulus control therapy, which involves leaving the bed when unable to sleep, and sleep restriction, which consolidates sleep by limiting time in bed to match actual sleep duration. Furthermore, managing stress through scheduled "worry time" and low-arousal wind-down rituals prevents the cognitive hyper-arousal that frequently sabotages sleep. These non-pharmacological approaches build self-efficacy, allowing individuals to break the cycle of insomnia and restore natural, restorative sleep patterns without relying on medication.