Thirty-five percent of all French people suffer from insomnia. The lives of those who have difficulties sleeping often turn into nightmares of fatigue, anxiety, irritability and lack of concentration. How can the vicious circle of insomnia be broken? Is it possible to fall asleep without the aid of medication? And in those cases where patients have been unable to fall asleep for years without the aid of medication, how can they overcome their dependency? In this practical manual, Dr. Royant-Parola offers some straightforward tips to help insomniacs. First of all they should observe themselves and learn to understand their real needs. Then they should begin a programme to change their habits. The techniques she proposes are inspired by behavioural and cognitive methods, which have been used for many years in Northern Europe and in English-speaking countries. They have been shown to cure insomnia in two out of three cases.

Sylvie Royant-Parola is a psychiatrist and neuro-biologist. She works in the laboratories on sleep at the Hôpital Antoine-Béchère, in Clamart, near Paris, and at the clinic of the Château de Garches. She is the president of the Syndicat de la Médecine du Sommeil et de la Vigilance.