A conversation with an expert Sleep coach

Sophrology has helped many, including myself, to relax and regain better sleep patterns.  You may not have heard - it is a very popular holistic approach in France to reconnect body and mind, and deal with anxiety, stress or even pain. It offers simple guided mediation and relaxation tools. Recently, I had the opportunity to interview Mireille Barreau, my former tutor at the Sophrology Academy, who since 2008 has been working on solutions to manage stress and prevent sleep disorders. During our conversation, we talked about her approach to sophrology, including her opinions on the growing number of digital solutions promising to improve our sleep.

What attracted inspired you to specialize in sleep disorders?

I like the holistic aspect of sleep management; I‘m a good sleeper and whenever I struggle with sleep, I use Sophrology tools that are very powerful. I had a sophrology practice in the Netherlands and worked with the medical department of a large organization, most of their employees’ stress issues systematically resulted in sleep disorders. To combat this, we launched a sleep programme financed by both employees and the company. Participants had to commit to 10 weekly sessions focusing on sleep, not stress. This experience was an eye-opener for me, I could see the impact on their lives, how we had managed to improve their sleep quality and quantity.

 

What groups tend to suffer the most from bad sleep?

Sleep issues cut across all ages, social class or sex. You have for instance:

Young adults: Teenagers and students, highly stressed by their studies and their future, or young adults highly stimulated by their demanding work environment. Young mothers with endless days, managing their work and their young families at the same time. Here it’s all about reducing the stress created by external pressure.

Women: Women suffer more from sleep issues than men, with menopause having a major impact for 80% of them.

Older adults: Sleep changes as you get older. Its quality changes. But you have solutions beyond pills such as respecting good sleep hygiene and doing regular exercises.

 

How does Sophrology help with sleep problems?

At its heart, Sophrology allows you to reconnect body, mind and emotions. When practised, you get better at recognizing and acting on these interactions and it opens a totally new field of possibilities. You learn to recognize what happens within yourself during your day and how to rebalance yourself, which will in turn leads to better sleep as you learn to prepare for the night by acting on your day.

Sophrologists don’t focus just on the symptoms but look for the root causes to propose long term solutions. I give my patients a toolbox to use whenever they need it so that they are no longer passive when confronted with sleep problems.

With sophrology, you can learn how to ‘pause’ during the day, get better at letting go in the evening and fall asleep more easily. Our autonomic nervous system uses hormones that accelerate or slows down our system. The famous fight-or-flight response. By relaxing during the day, we reduce the build-up of acceleration hormones. The build-ups that cause sleep startles, for instance.

 

Should we track and analyse our sleep patterns?

I often start with asking my clients to do a sleep diary or use one of the many digital tools that exist. It can help to ‘dedramatize’ a sleep problem. Sleep perception is very subjective, and people often sleep better and more than they think. Tracking and analysing your sleep can help in understanding what really happens during the night, to start acting upon it. But it should not become an obsession. Sleep is not about performance; it is more important to focus on how you feel. Obsessive self-quantification is more common among men, some come to see me with 3 weeks of in-depth sleep analysis. However, a 60% sleep quality is meaningless to me, it’s more interesting to understand the patterns; are you struggling to fall asleep, waking up in the middle of the night, what happens before a good or a bad night sleep? So use sleep diaries but don’t be obsessed with it.

The solutions I will recommend are tailored to the individual’s sleeping patterns. Some tools are focused on falling asleep, whereas others address the causes of night awakenings like stress or negative thoughts.

 

What is a truly impactful way to improve sleep?

It’s important to find out first if there are specific sleep pathologies that would require medical advice.

I always start with the ‘Golden rules’ of sleep: don’t eat too late, don’t smoke or drink alcohol before going to bed, have regular sleeping times, get a good sleeping environment and a fresh bedroom, avoid physical exercises too late in the day...

Sophrology is really about experimentation ­- by asking questions, trying different tools throughout the programme, you can quickly identify what works for each individual.

Sleep diaries are really good for this because they really show that a new habit, such as a meditation exercise, can improve your night.

I really want to stress the fact that simple habits can go a long way. I followed a young art student years ago; she was studying all day long and sleeping just a few hours during the week. She was exhausted but could not manage to sleep properly. At our first meeting, she was in her 20’s but looked 10 years older. I just gave her simple exercises, breathing exercises to practice during the day and short, neuronal naps in the afternoon for 2 weeks. When she came back, I didn’t recognize her in the waiting room. She was totally transformed - she was smiling again because she was able to sleep properly again.

 

Is it hard to change your clients’ ‘bad habits’?

It really depends on the individual. A heavy smoker will struggle, but it is their own responsibility, and they understand it. Clients who really suffer, who are extremely tired, are really motivated. Interestingly, teenagers are better at implementing changes, they have less engrained habits and daily constraints.

It’s important to do the exercises every day, be the actor of your own change.

Coaches can remind people what to do, but ultimately, it’s a personal decision. Overall, new sleeping habits are much easier than breaking up with addiction, starting a new sport or eating regime. I always recommend my clients to set up a time slot in their agenda for a sophrology exercise and stick to it.

 

Did COVID have an impact on how we sleep?

In France, between March and September 2020, we saw a 20% increase in the consumption of sleeping pills and tranquillizers. I expect it to be even worse now. We sleep more when we work from home, but our sleep quality is worse, with frequent nightmares. We do fewer physical activities, with less natural daylight and we are stressed and worried about our future. You can compare this to harassment. I have a lot of teenagers reaching out right now. They are lonely, their only activity is studying with limited social interaction. It’s really worrying.

 

What is the impact of technology on sleep and in your work?
Sleep is now a market; a lot of digital tools have emerged, and they generally work on the same principles. It can be useful as it creates awareness, but a coach or a sleep practitioner is important to act on the information collected by an app.
Anti-snoring devices and sleep pattern trackers can help, but there’s no miracle solution. It is really important to integrate relaxation techniques.
Technology has made it easier to work from home, I already work a lot remotely, but it doesn’t work for everybody. With COVID, we had no choice. I recommend mixing face to face and remote - when possible - because the personal connection is essential for many of my clients.

Have you come across any innovative sleep solutions recently?

The Dreem digital is an interesting solution. It reinforces deep sleep by tracking the brain activities, but it has to be complemented with cognitive techniques like Sophrology.

Supplements with natural melatonin, like Chronobiane, are helpful especially with seniors.

Anti-snoring intranasal orthosis work by expanding the upper airways. It allows to effectively treat not only snoring but also sleep apnoea and its consequences.

 Weighted blankets (10% of adult weight) are designed to provide a light, evenly distributed pressure (deep pressure stimulation) on your body that mimics the feeling of being held or hugged.

Sound wave therapy has developed a lot lately. Listening to binaural beats for a recommended period can affect a person’s subsequent behaviour and sleep cycles. But we may be able to do this on our own, just by thinking about waterfall sounds. 

Useful links to learn more about Sophrology and try some Sophrology sleeping tools
Infinity Breathing – 10 min relaxation and breathing exercise to do just before sleeping, in your bed (provided by the Sophrology Academy)
 
What is Sophrology? I find this video from BeSophro a really good introduction to Sophrology.
 
You can follow Vanessa’s blog ‘Why I can’t sleep’

if like me, you are fascinated by the science of sleep and want to know more about the existing solutions.