Interview with Álvaro Ruiz de Ocenda: Mindfulness to combat insomnia

Sleep problems are one of the most common health conditions, and in fact it is estimated that one in two adults will develop insomnia at some point in the year.

Fortunately, in the field of Psychology, procedures have been developed that help prevent and combat this kind of discomfort. Mindfulness is an example of this.

Although it is inspired by the millenary vipassana meditation originated in the region of India, Mindfulness, also known as Mindfulness, is considered a resource therapeutic designed through non-religious, but scientific procedures, being done with its objective effects on the body and behavior in mind human. Here we will learn about its potential to help people with insomnia from the hand of an expert on the subject: the psychologist Álvaro Ruiz de Ocenda.

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Álvaro Ruiz de Ocenda: applying Mindfulness to insomnia problems

Álvaro Ruiz de Ocenda is a psychologist with more than two decades of professional experience dedicating himself to this field. Being based in Vitoria, he currently directs the Psikonet psychotherapy center, and stands out as an expert in Mindfulness as a therapist and as a trainer. That is why he frequently organizes and teaches courses of Mindfulness applied to areas of life as stress management and the mitigation and prevention of insomnia problems, among others.

On this occasion, we spoke with this psychologist about this last facet of Mindfulness, the potential of Mindfulness as a resource to combat insomnia, a topic on which He organizes an online course in real time that will take place from October 2 to November 20 through the Chamber Business School of the Chamber of Álava: "Mindfulness for Insomnia (MPI) ".

Can Mindfulness be applied to oneself without having to dedicate oneself to this field professionally?

Of course, it is more, in my understanding this is the proper order to start in this valuable approach. Personal experience and contact with colleagues in psychology tells me that although we have more knowledge of psychopathology and various models therapeutic, we are subjected to various life challenges that make us suffer as much or more than people who are not dedicated to the field of relationship help.

Thus, to the extent that I experience advances in my life as a person such as greater awareness, less reactivity, greater connection with my body, with others and with the environment, I can then infect my patients.

Approaching this perspective as if it were only a set of techniques to apply does not provide greater effectively, approaching with a curious spirit and experiencing them makes it easier to radiate this perspective.

In fact, the creators of the MBCT (Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy to prevent relapse into depression) program saw that until they incorporated into their lives the mindfulness approach (daily meditation, acceptance, various practices in the day to day) their program was no more effective than the remaining. When they engaged in their practice, the program became the program of choice for relapses of depression.

What aspects of Mindfulness do you think make it a valuable therapeutic resource to help people with sleep disorders?

The insomnia It is a problem that involves several aspects of life: difficulty sleeping or sleeping continuously, concerns associated with poor sleep (believing that something is not working in the brain) and the impact of day-to-day challenges, such as fatigue and feelings of low energy or irritability, among others.

Through strategies based on Mindfulness, we can intervene in the thoughts that have to do with sleep, such as expectations or beliefs associated with rest, and also relate better to the thoughts that come to our mind in the hours nocturnal. In this sense, one of the thoughts that takes us the most away from sleep is precisely saying to ourselves: "I have to sleep, I have to sleep" since it creates more frustration.

In addition, with the practice of conscious attention exercises or Mindfulness, we will lower the level of physical and mental activation, favoring the emergence of sleep.

Is Mindfulness an effective help to get rid of those thoughts that haunt us and that when we are In bed do they remind us over and over again of the problems we have to face and the obligations we must fulfill?

Experience teaching Mindfulness courses for insomnia indicates to me that without a doubt, people who commit to Activities proposed during the course notice that they “fight” less with their thoughts, or that they do not “get tangled up” so easily with they. Thoughts will keep coming into our minds, but we train the ability to observe them and let them pass. And it is achieved.

While we are in bed, if for work reasons or various demands we remember things to do the next day, it may be helpful to have on hand a notebook in which we will write down the pending task, and thus we will be able to pay attention to breathing or other aspects of reality that are more favorable to the break. And if thoughts keep popping up over and over again, we will address them in the sessions, in the space set aside for that purpose.

Could you give an example of a Mindfulness exercise used to combat insomnia, even in a summarized way?

In the Mindfulness for Insomnia program, traditional practices very similar to the others are carried out Mindfulness programs, such as attention to breathing, body sensations, movements conscious...

The most specific aspects come from the application of these meditations to the act of resting, of how the moment of sleep can be prepared in the best way. The practice of mindfulness is a meditation that is done anywhere, and of course in the case of insomnia, also in bed.

Here, in addition to techniques based on Mindfulness, strategies that have to do with the model are implemented cognitive-behavioral, such as sleep logging, sleep reconditioning, or sleep hygiene for a good night's rest, and many others.

Once Mindfulness has started to be incorporated into day-to-day routines, how are the first improvements manifested in terms of sleep quality and ease of sleeping well?

At first, the bed is no longer perceived as a battlefield in which I am going to enter; paying attention to what happens as if it were the first time is encouraged, and interesting discoveries are often made.

Afterwards, the feeling that "I have something broken in my brain" is usually stopped and confidence in our sleep regulatory system is favored; the body is wiser than our expectations of it. And without a doubt, the most important change is that we rest better and we learn to relate better to the ideas related to sleep.

As the program progresses, changes are introduced in the routines that have to do with sleep, and that are sometimes perpetuating factors of poor sleep habits. And here the quality and quantity of sleep increases.

Note: There is more information available on the course "Mindfulness for Insomnia (MPI)" on the website of the Chamber of Álava: http://www.camaradealava.com/es/areas/formacion/formacion/mindfulnes-para-el-insomio-mpi-escuela-virtual--/845/2/2