REINVENT Partner pathway · Reset
Sleep after burnout
Sleep is usually one of the first things to go under sustained pressure, and one of the last to come back. It does not always return on its own when the pressure lifts, because by then the problem has changed shape: it is no longer the stress keeping you awake, it is the hours you have spent lying there bracing for another bad night.
That is the gap this page is about. It covers what tends to happen to sleep after burnout, where the evidence-based help sits, and the question people ask least often out loud, which is what happens if you have been on sleeping tablets for a long time and want to stop.
Who it may help
- People whose sleep broke down during a period of sustained pressure and has not recovered since.
- People who fall asleep fine and then wake at three or four in the morning.
- People who have started dreading bedtime, and notice the dread itself keeping them awake.
- People taking sleeping tablets who were never given an end date, and are unsure how to ask for one.
- People who are afraid that stopping the tablets means the whole burnout comes back.
What this is not
- Not medical advice, and not a substitute for talking to your doctor.
- Not a sleep programme run by Where I'm At. Nothing on this page is ours to deliver.
- Not a verdict on medication. Plenty of people take sleeping tablets for good reasons.
- Not a promise about outcomes. What helped one person is not a prediction about you.
The conversation
Kathryn Pinkham
Founder of The Insomnia Clinic. She works with cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia, known as CBT-I, which is the approach the NHS recommends for persistent sleep problems. She trains other clinicians in CBT-I, and her work has been featured on ITV.
I asked Kathryn onto the podcast because she was the first person who treated the question underneath my own sleep problem as an ordinary part of the work rather than a sign I was not ready. I had been taking sleeping tablets every night for three years. They started during the worst of my burnout and then they just stayed, and nobody ever suggested an end date.
I filmed the whole thing
Eight short films, recorded as I went rather than afterwards. The sleep diary, the restriction weeks, the taper, and the last two weeks without tablets, including the weeks that went badly.
- Three years on sleeping tablets
- The sleep diary begins
- Sleep restriction explained
- What the sleep data shows
- Why anxiety keeps you awake
- CBT-I complete, taper begins
- Ireland, lowest dose
- Fourteen nights tablet free
One gentle next step
Before anything else, it helps to know which part of this is actually yours. The Reset phase of the framework is where sleep, rest and recovery sit, and it is free to read with nothing to sign up to.
If you want to go further
About the programme, in Kathryn Pinkham's words
The Sleep Well & Live Better Programme is an evidence-based online sleep programme from The Insomnia Clinic, designed for people who struggle to fall asleep, wake during the night or feel anxious about sleep.
Created by former NHS sleep specialist Kathryn Pinkham, the programme is based on Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) and goes beyond generic sleep tips to address the patterns that keep poor sleep going.
Unlike many self-guided sleep programmes, participants also have direct access to Kathryn for support throughout the course, so they can ask questions and get expert guidance as they put the techniques into practice.
The programme is completed online, in your own time, and has already helped thousands of people improve their sleep and their quality of life.
If it is relevant for you, it is an optional next step. The code CHRIS30 takes thirty pounds off.
See the programmeNo commission
How this came about
I worked with The Insomnia Clinic on this series. I received the Sleep Well & Live Better Programme and Kathryn's professional support in exchange for documenting my experience honestly. Code CHRIS30 gets you thirty pounds off. I do not receive a commission.
Everything here about my own medication is personal experience, not medical advice. The changes I document were made under the supervision of my psychiatrist. If you are taking sleep medication and thinking about reducing or stopping, please speak to your doctor first. If you are struggling right now, our safety pagelists where to get support.
Where I'm At is based on lived experience, reflection, and educational support. It is not therapy, counselling, crisis support, or professional advice. Please consult a qualified professional for individual medical, psychological, legal, financial, employment, or specialist support where relevant.