The 3 Ps of insomnia
Introduction
Since I've been experiencing insomnia, I thought I'd share the helpful things I've learned about insomnia.
For many people, insomnia represents a behavior, rather than purely physiological, disorder. Under a behavioral model of insomnia, we can imagine insomnia going through 3 Ps.
Predisposition
Certain people have a predisposition for insomnia. These predisposing factors can range from personal, e.g. internalizing unrealistic expectations about sleep, to environmental, e.g. living in a noisy place. Note these predisposing factors (thankfully) don't automatically determine you will experience insomnia; they simply increase the chances you might experience insomnia, if you encounter the subsequent Ps.
Precipitation
Life happens. And sometimes it happens in a way that causes us to experience some nights of bad sleep. While insomnia doesn't have to come from a specific event, people who experience insomnia, like me, can often point to a specific time, related to a specific event, that precipitated their insomnia.
Perpetuation
Insomnia becomes chronic when those first nights of bad sleep lead to a cycle of bad sleep. For me, understanding sleep as important, I panicked, perpetuating a cycle of bad sleep. Because of the panic, I continued to experience nights of bad sleep, which fed further into my panic.