I know how terrifying insomnia can be.

I’ve lived through it myself for 5 brutal years.

I created the End Insomnia System because nothing else worked.

And I tried everything.

This system wasn’t born in a lab.

It came from my own desperation.

Let me take you back to how it all started.

My descent into insomnia

It began after a particularly stressful period in my life.

The stress eventually passed.

But the insomnia didn’t.

Even once the circumstances calmed down, my body remained on high alert.

I dragged myself through each day, exhausted and tense.

My brain was foggy.

I was irritable, anxious, and scared.

Scared of another night.

Scared of how I’d feel the next morning.

Scared this was never going to end.

I kept telling myself it would resolve on its own.

But it didn’t.

In fact, things only got worse.

The turning point

I would lie awake for hours.

Then finally fall asleep—only to jolt awake again, heart pounding.

Sometimes I’d feel panic setting in as soon as I got into bed.

Other times, I’d toss and turn all night in a kind of frozen dread.

I couldn’t relax.

I couldn’t think clearly.

And I couldn’t find anyone who seemed to truly understand what I was going through.

Even people trying to help didn’t get it.

Sleep was becoming the central force in my life.

And it was wrecking everything.

I stopped enjoying things.

Stopped seeing friends.

Stopped feeling like myself.

It was a lonely path to walk.

So I started chasing solutions.

I tried everything

Here’s just some of what I tried:

• Sleeping pills
• Sleep hygiene
• Herbal teas and tinctures
• Relaxation apps
• Exercise
• Weighted blankets
• Blackout curtains
• Pre-bedtime routines
• Cold showers
• Hot showers
• Vitamin D
• Vitamin B12
• No caffeine
• No alcohol
• No screens 2 hours before bed
• Sunlight first thing in the morning, blue-light glasses
• Sleep restriction therapy and CBT-i

Some helped for a few nights.

Most didn’t help at all.

None of it lasted.

After CBT-i failed me—despite being “the gold standard”—I knew I had to do something different.

I wasn’t willing to spend the rest of my life sleep-deprived and afraid.

What finally made things click

I started researching what actually causes long-term insomnia.

What I found changed everything.

Insomnia almost always starts from stress.

But it persists because of sleep anxiety and nervous system activation.

When you’re afraid of not sleeping, your body goes into survival mode.

And the more you worry about sleep, the more you unknowingly train your nervous system to stay alert at night.

This is called conditioned hyperarousal.

And it explains why you can feel calm all day, but your heart still pounds the moment you lie down.

That insight finally helped me understand the real problem.

But I still didn’t have a clear path to fix it.

What helped me finally escape insomnia

Around this time, I found an approach called Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT).

It had been proven effective for anxiety, trauma, and hyperarousal.

But it had barely been applied to insomnia.

So I teamed up with a therapist.

We studied the research.

We filled in the gaps.

We added in tools from nervous system work, psychology, and mindfulness.

We tested everything.

I experimented on myself.

And slowly…

Things began to shift.

I began to feel calm at night—even if I...

If you’re like many people with long-term insomnia, you’ve probably tried everything.

Pills. Teas. Blackout curtains. Supplements. Sleep hygiene checklists.

You’ve rearranged your bedroom, created the “perfect” nighttime routine, and cut caffeine completely.

And yet here you are, still not sleeping.

• You’re exhausted, frustrated, and on the verge of giving up.
• You want to sleep more than anything, but nothing seems to work.
• Your nights are filled with effort.
• Your days are shadowed by dread and fatigue.

And maybe, deep down, you’ve started to wonder if there’s something uniquely wrong with you.

Something no book, protocol, or expert has been able to fix.

Here’s the truth:

You are not broken.

But you have been misled.

Most approaches to insomnia try to make sleep happen.

They focus on control and effort.

But sleep is not something you can force or have any control over.

And trying to control sleep is exactly what keeps you stuck.

This is where the End Insomnia System comes in.

A new solution based on what actually causes insomnia

Insomnia doesn’t persist because of blue light, a bad mattress, or the fact that you haven’t tried magnesium glycinate.

Long-term insomnia is driven by a very specific combination of two things:

1. Sleep anxiety
2. A chronically activated nervous system

This combination creates a loop where your fear of not sleeping keeps your nervous system alert, which prevents sleep, which fuels more fear.

The End Insomnia System is designed to break that loop.

It teaches you how to calm your nervous system, reduce sleep-related anxiety, and stop making sleep into a performance you need to nail.

Therapy, mindfulness, nervous system regulation, and real-world results from people who’ve used it to sleep again—naturally, without gimmicks.

This is probably you if any of this sounds familiar:

• You constantly think about sleep and how to fix it
• You feel stuck in a loop of exhaustion and dread
• You’ve tried every tip and trick and still can’t sleep
• You obsessively Google sleep solutions but nothing sticks
• You’re scared this is how your life will be forever

You are not alone.

There is, in fact, a real path forward.

This system is not about hacks

It’s not a miracle supplement, ritual, mental exercise, or secret herbal tea.

It’s not about tricking your brain into sleeping.

And it’s not Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I), which way too many people find too rigid and ineffective.

Instead, you learn how to:

• Build your body’s natural sleep drive
• Lower your nervous system’s alertness at night
• Reduce the pressure you put on sleep
• Respond differently to tired days
• Handle setbacks without spiraling
• Stop trying to make sleep happen—and let it be

This is a long-term shift in how you relate to sleep.

It’s a process of retraining your body, rewiring your thoughts, and reclaiming your life from the grip of insomnia.

Yes, there are ups and downs.

This isn't a straight line.

But as you begin to suffer less and react less, sleep starts to return.

Not through effort—but through letting go of it.

To peaceful sleep,

Ivo at End Insomnia

Why should you listen to me?

I recovered from insomnia after 5 brutal years of suffering. I also wrote a book about it. I've now coached many on how to end their insomnia for good in 8...

If you’ve been seeing progress in your sleep, that’s something to celebrate.

It means the End Insomnia System is working for you.

But let me be upfront about something most people don’t want to hear:

Setbacks are part of the process.

Not just common.

Necessary.

They’re how your nervous system learns to stop fearing sleep again.

Let’s walk through how setbacks happen, what to do when they hit, and why they’re actually key to long-term recovery.

Setback Scenario 1: The Fear of Losing Good Sleep

This one catches many by surprise.

You start sleeping better.

Relief washes over you.

But then, something creeps in — the fear of losing it.

You start thinking things like,

“What if this doesn’t last?”

“What if I go back to square one?”

That fear reignites sleep anxiety.

And just like that, you’re putting pressure on sleep again.

You’ve moved from a state of non-attachment back to performance mode.

And performance mode is enemy territory for sleep.

Setback Scenario 2: The Big Day Spiral

Even after progress, special events can trip you up.

A work presentation.

A wedding.

An early flight.

Something important is happening tomorrow — and you really want to sleep well for it.

Understandably, your anxiety ramps up.

You want to show up at your best.

But when you need sleep too much, it doesn’t come.

This performance pressure causes your nervous system to tense again, reactivating the old loop.

Setback Scenario 3: The Surprise Drop

Sometimes, it just hits.

Out of nowhere.

You’ve been sleeping better.

Then suddenly — you’re back to lying awake at 3 a.m., heart pounding.

You can’t trace it to anything specific.

This is old wiring in the nervous system reactivating.

It doesn’t mean you did anything wrong.

It means a pocket of stored hyperarousal is surfacing to be cleared.

This, too, is part of the healing process.

The Way Through: Reapply the System

No matter the cause, the solution to every setback is the same:

Return to the tools.

Don’t try to analyze or solve the setback.

Don’t spiral.

Don’t force sleep.

Do the work you already know:

• Let go of controlling sleep
• Reconnect to your values
• Practice self-compassion
• Use mindfulness to observe, not react
• Stop tracking your sleep
• ​

Most importantly, remember:

The tools still work.

You’re not back at the beginning.

You’ve changed.

Your relationship with insomnia has changed.

You just need to remember what you already know.

Expect Setbacks, Don’t Fear Them

The more you expect setbacks, the less they knock you off course.

Setbacks are not signs that the system failed.

They are signs that your nervous system is finishing its work.​

Each setback is an opportunity to prove that you’re no longer afraid.

To see that poor sleep is not dangerous.

That you don’t need to protect against it.

That you can live your life, even when tired.

Setbacks Build Confidence

Think about it this way:

If you had never had another bad night, you might still fear that insomnia could return.

You might live in the shadow of “What if?”

But when you experience a setback, face it, and recover…

You prove to yourself — for real — that insomnia has no power over you

That proof rewires your brain.

It builds trust.

And eventually, you lose your fear of sleep trouble altogether.

The Final Shift: From Setback to Stability

Recovery...

If you’ve been working through insomnia, it’s normal to feel unsure where you are on the journey or whether progress is even happening.

The truth is, there is a rough path most people follow when working through the End Insomnia System.

It’s not perfectly linear.

You may jump between stages or feel like you’re in more than one at a time.

But understanding the path ahead can give you clarity, motivation, and self-compassion:

Phase 1: Lost and Suffering

You’ve tried everything - melatonin, weighted blankets, supplements, perfect sleep hygiene - and nothing works.

You’re exhausted, frustrated, and scared that things might never change.

This is the phase of desperation and confusion, where you are stuck in the vicious cycle of effort and fear.

​

Phase 2: Finding Hope

You start learning what’s really driving your insomnia.

You realize it’s not just about sleep hygiene, but about breaking the fear-based cycle.

You haven’t slept better yet, but understanding the problem brings relief.

Hope begins to spark.

​

Phase 3: Making Key Behavior Changes

You stop chasing sleep and start gently letting go of unhelpful efforts.

You adjust your routine in ways that support your natural sleep rhythm, and start facing the discomfort of doing less to try to make sleep happen.

There may be some setbacks, but you begin to see that letting go helps.

​

Phase 4: Experiencing Some Anxiety Reduction

This is where the real work begins.

You start practicing mindfulness, acceptance, and self-compassion during the day and at night.

Sleep still fluctuates, but you get glimpses of peace.

You’re less afraid of poor nights and building confidence that you can handle them.

Meditation, values-based action, and nervous system regulation tools begin to pay off.

​

Phase 5: Feeling Non-Attachment

You’re still having ups and downs, but you worry less.

You know you can function after bad nights.

You stop identifying as someone with insomnia.

There is more ease, more flexibility, and more of your life coming back online.

You’re not free from insomnia yet, but it no longer dominates you.

You’re sleeping better and living better.

​

Phase 6: Sleeping Consistently Better

You’ve now built a sleep-compatible nervous system.

You’ve shifted out of fight-or-flight.

Most nights are good, and even the rough ones don’t throw you off course.

You are grateful, calm, and moving through life without sleep anxiety.

This doesn’t mean perfection, but it means freedom.

You’re no longer afraid of the night.

​

Phase 7: Working Through Setbacks

Every journey includes setbacks.

Maybe a stressful event or an old memory throws you off.

The key here is applying what you’ve learned - without panic or pressure.

You handle it, bounce back, and prove to yourself that insomnia has lost its grip.

With every challenge you face, your resilience grows deeper.

​

Phase 8: Life Beyond Insomnia

You’ve moved on.

Sleep is just something that happens.

You are not haunted by your past struggles.

Bad nights come and go like the weather, but your life is full, meaningful, and vibrant.

The tools you used to recover have become a part of who you are - more present, resilient, and self-aware.

Let go of the timeline

You might be wondering, “How long will this take?”

But focusing on a timeline only builds pressure, which makes sleep harder.

Instead, shift your focus to consistent daily actions. A

pply the tools, stick to the process, and allow the transformation to unfold naturally.

This is a journey...

Making progress with insomnia isn’t just about what you do.

It’s also about how you think.

Certain beliefs and mental loops can keep you stuck in the cycle of poor sleep, while small but intentional shifts in your mindset can dramatically change how you respond to bad nights, tired days, and the fear that fuels insomnia.

Here are 7 mindset shifts that will support your insomnia recovery:

​1. You Are Not an Insomniac​

It’s easy to let insomnia become part of your identity.

Maybe friends check in about your sleep, or you joke about how little you get.

But the more central insomnia becomes in your story, the more it reinforces itself.

Try this: stop calling yourself an insomniac.

You are a person who is dealing with insomnia, not defined by it.

Avoid sleep talk in social settings.

Focus on the things you want to talk about once insomnia is behind you.

And when you do need support, make sure it’s from someone who understands what truly helps—someone who will reinforce progress, not fear.

​2. Hard Nights and Tired Days Are Opportunities​

This might sound strange, but the best opportunities to overcome sleep anxiety are the bad nights and groggy mornings.

Why?

Because insomnia gets weaker when you face what you fear and realize you can handle it.

That’s the principle behind exposure therapy: you reduce anxiety by willingly facing the uncomfortable thing and discovering you’re okay.

Each rough night is a chance to build that strength.

Each tired day is an opportunity to prove that you can still function—and even enjoy life.

​3. Bring Out Your Inner Rebel​

Watch for lingering sleep efforts that sneak into your routine.

Perhaps you still avoid caffeine altogether, certain foods, or evening activities in the hopes of getting better sleep.

Now is the time to rebel against those self-imposed rules.

Not only do they restrict your life, but they send the message that you are fragile—and you’re not.

​4. Don’t Blame Sleep for Everything​

Insomnia makes life harder, but it isn’t the root of every problem.

Financial stress, relationship tension, or pressure at work may still exist after insomnia resolves.

When you place too much blame on sleep, it increases the pressure to fix it fast.

That desperation only makes things worse.

Life includes stress, whether you sleep well or not.

Recognizing that will help take some weight off your sleep’s shoulders.

​5. Remember the Good Things in Your Life​

Insomnia doesn’t cancel out everything good in your life.

Even in hard times, there are things worth appreciating.

Pause once in a while to reflect on what you’re grateful for - your family, health, home, or even small moments of peace.

Gratitude won’t magically fix things, but it helps shift your perspective and soften the sharp edges of fatigue and frustration.

​6. Be Patient​

Reading the ideas in this system will help, but change comes from experience—not just understanding.

You need time to apply the tools and gather evidence that things can improve.

Stick with it. The goal isn’t perfection or instant sleep, but steady progress and reduced anxiety.

​7. Stay the Course​

There will be setbacks.

You might have a string of bad nights and feel tempted to abandon the plan or try something extreme.

Don’t.

This system works by building long-term resilience, not chasing short-term results.

Measure progress in weeks or months, not single nights.

The hard moments will pass.

Trust the process.

​Final Thought​

Insomnia can feel like it’s taken over your life.

But mindset is where you begin to take it back.

Every time you

If you’re stuck in a cycle of poor sleep and constant fatigue, you might think what you need is another strategy to help you fall asleep at night.

But here’s the real secret:

You don’t need to chase sleep. You need to calm your nervous system.

When your nervous system is in a state of high alert, it’s nearly impossible to transition into sleep.

That’s where nervous system regulation comes in.

Mindfulness meditation is one of the most effective tools for this.

Yes, the sleep knowledge you’re learning here matters.

But knowledge alone doesn’t rewire your system.

To truly change your relationship with sleep, you need experiences that teach your body how to feel calm again.

That’s where daily practice comes in.

There’s mindfulness, and then there’s mindfulness meditation.

Mindfulness is the ability to be present in the moment and open to what’s happening, without judgment.

You can practice it anytime, while walking, eating, or even brushing your teeth.

Mindfulness meditation is a formal version of this.

You sit with your spine upright, your body relaxed, and your attention anchored on the breath.

When your mind wanders (and it will), you simply notice and bring it back.

You’re not trying to block thoughts or feel peaceful. The goal is to build awareness, openness, and emotional balance.

Calm may come—but it’s a byproduct, not the objective.

Here are three reasons to give this practice a real place in your life:

When you meditate consistently, you strengthen your mental “muscle” for awareness.

This awareness allows you to interrupt automatic patterns that perpetuate insomnia.

• You notice unhelpful thoughts.
• You catch yourself spiraling into fear.
• You choose how to respond.
• ​

This ability to observe, pause, and shift is what allows you to act differently during challenging nights and mornings.

Over time, your nights feel less threatening—and your days feel more manageable.

Mindfulness meditation has a proven ability to reduce sympathetic nervous system activity (your fight-or-flight mode) and activate the parasympathetic system (your rest-and-digest mode).

This matters a lot because insomnia is essentially a threat response.

The body perceives danger around not sleeping and stays wired.

Meditation helps reverse this.

It teaches your body that it’s safe to slow down.

And over time, you’ll find that your baseline nervous system state becomes calmer—even outside of meditation.

Important note:

Don’t try to use meditation to make yourself sleep.

That turns it into a sleep effort, which keeps the cycle going.

Use it to feel more at peace with being awake.

That’s what actually helps you sleep better in the long run.

Long-term meditation doesn’t just change your behavior. It changes your brain structure.

Studies have shown that a consistent mindfulness meditation practice:

• Strengthens the prefrontal cortex (responsible for emotional regulation and rational thought)
• Shrinks the amygdala (your brain’s alarm system that triggers stress)

These brain shifts help you become less reactive, more centered, and better able to handle adversity—including the bad nights that come with insomnia recovery.

If you’re tired of feeling like your...

Let’s talk about something that doesn’t get enough attention when it comes to insomnia:

How you treat yourself when things are hard.

Most people are kinder to others than they are to themselves.

And if you’re like many people struggling with insomnia, you may find yourself thinking things like:

• “What’s wrong with me?”
• “Why can’t I just sleep like a normal person?”
• “I’m such a mess.”

That internal tone?

It matters. A lot.

You might think being tough on yourself will push you to “try harder” or “get it together.”

But research shows the opposite.

Self-criticism actually increases your stress levels and activates threat centers in the brain.

This puts your body on high alert - making it even harder to sleep.

In fact, a review of 48 studies found that self-criticism is linked to depression, anxiety, eating disorders, and more.

It doesn’t create change - it creates shame, frustration, and stuckness.

Self-compassion is not indulgent or weak. It’s practical.

When you respond to your suffering with care instead of criticism, you shift your nervous system from fight-or-flight into a calmer, more restful state.

In other words:

Self-compassion reduces the “sleep-stopping force” that fuels insomnia in the first place.

Instead of adding dirty pain (shame, blame, judgment), you create space for healing.

Think of a recent moment where you were struggling - maybe during a hard night or a rough morning after.

Now imagine your closest friend told you they were going through that exact experience.

• What would you say to them?
• Would you shame them for not handling it better?
• Or would you offer words of care and understanding?

Take those same words - and speak them to yourself.

It might feel awkward at first.

But with practice, it gets easier.

And over time, your brain learns that it’s safe to suffer without self-punishment.

That’s when real healing can begin.

Insomnia is not a personal failing.

It’s a pattern your brain got stuck in after perceiving a threat around sleep.

But every time you respond to your struggle with compassion instead of criticism, you send a signal to your brain that the threat is lessening.

You’re not broken. You’re human.

You’re doing your best.

And you deserve your own kindness - especially on the nights that feel the hardest.

To peaceful sleep,

Ivo at End Insomnia

Why should you listen to me?

I recovered from insomnia after 5 brutal years of suffering. I also wrote a book about it. I've now coached many on how to end their insomnia for good in 8 weeks.

1. Looking for a deep dive into the End Insomnia System? Start with the End Insomnia book on Amazon.
2. If you are committed to ending insomnia for good in 8 weeks, 100% naturally, book a call today to see if we can help: http://endinsomnia.co/podcast

Your resilience during insomnia grows when you stop trying to “fix” the pain you experience - and instead start living in a way that reflects what matters most to you.

Let’s take this one step further:

👉 How do you live by your values when you’re exhausted, foggy, and unmotivated?

👉 How do you reclaim your day after a brutal night?

⸻

Behavioral activation: a small shift with big results

In the field of psychology, there’s a powerful concept called behavioral activation.

Put simply:

Doing the things that matter to you—even when you don’t feel like it—can lift your mood, increase resilience, and help reduce the intensity of insomnia.

This doesn’t mean ignoring your fatigue.

It means choosing to act with the fatigue, rather than waiting for it to disappear before you engage with life again.

⸻

What this looks like in real life:

Let’s say you didn’t sleep much.

Your instinct might be to cancel plans, stay home, and just try to “survive the day.”

That’s totally understandable.

And sometimes, rest is the right call.

But what if you:

• Still met your friend for a slow coffee walk?

• Did a small creative task instead of canceling everything?

• Took 20 minutes to play music or cook a simple meal because it connects you to yourself?

These aren’t acts of denial.

They’re acts of courage—and alignment with your values.

They prove to your nervous system:

“I can live a meaningful life, even before my sleep is perfect.”

And that reduces the stakes on sleep.

⸻

A few helpful tools:

1. The Two Lists Strategy

Write down:

• Tasks you’ll do no matter how you slept

• Tasks you’ll do only if you slept decently

Keep your “no matter what” list rooted in your values.

This builds confidence and consistency.

2. Mood Forecasting Filter

Remember: your energy and mood will shift throughout the day.

Just because the morning feels awful doesn’t mean the whole day is doomed.

3. Mini Joy Check-Ins

Do one small thing that connects you to joy, play, or presence—no matter how short. It counts.

⸻

You’re allowed to enjoy life again—even before sleep improves.

Insomnia takes a lot from us before we recover.

But it doesn’t get to take our whole life.

If you wait to feel “better” before living fully, you’ll only raise the pressure on sleep—which makes it even harder to come.

Living by your values, no matter how you slept, is a way out.

Start small.

Start today.

You’ve got this.

⸻

Why should you listen to me?

I recovered from insomnia after 5 brutal years of suffering. I also wrote a book about it. I've now coached many on how to end their insomnia for good in 8 weeks.

1. Looking for a deep dive into the End Insomnia System? Start with the End Insomnia book on Amazon.
2. If you are committed to ending insomnia for good in 8 weeks, 100% naturally, book a call today to see if we can help: http://endinsomnia.co/podcast