The Gift of the Night

Foreword by Kristen LaMarca, Ph.D., DBSM

Introduction
The Integrative Approach

PART ONE
The Six-Step Program to Get You Sleeping Better

Step 1: What Psychedelic Therapy Can Teach Us

Step 2: Tune In

Step 3: Optimize the Body

Step 4: Prepare the Setting

Step 5. Choose Your Medicine: Thirteen Ways to Get to Sleep
1. CBT-I: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia aka Behavioural Sleep Medicine
2. Sophrology
3. Hypnotherapy
4. The Silva Method
5. Yoga Nidra
6. Tapping: the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT)
7. Progressive Muscle Relaxation
8. The Autogenic Lateral Scan
9. The Power of Sound to Help You Sleep
10. Breathing
11. Jin Shin Jyutsu
12. Havening
13. The Day Review
Five Scripts to Practice With

Step 6: Create Rituals

PART TWO
Almost Everything You’ve Ever Wanted to Know about Sleep

Sleep FAQs & Troubleshooting Guide for a Good Night’s Sleep

Afterword

How I Developed the Six-Step Program

Notes

Resources

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Index

Philip Carr-Gomm is an author and psychotherapist, trained in psychology, sophrology, and psychosynthesis psycho therapy. The founder of the Sophrology Institute, he also works in the emerging field of psychedelic psychotherapy. Philip runs a sleep clinic that offers online sleep therapy and is the author of more than twenty books. He lives in Sussex, England.

“A must-read for all those who find good sleep elusive. Soundly based in contemporary sleep science—also a deeply practical approach.” Vivianne Crowley, psychologist and author of Wicca

“An excellent short guide to sleep from a very welcome integral perspective with a wonderfully varied selection of approaches to try. My new go-to recommendation for clients and colleagues suffering from sleep difficulties.” Stephen Decker, chartered psychologist and coeditor of Taking Children Seriously

“No one can officiate a marriage between mind and spirit better than Philip Carr-Gomm.” Ruby Wax, actress and author of Sane New World and A Mindfulness Guide for the Frazzled

“A brilliant, important, and inspiring book that will be so helpful to so many people.” Rosalind Watts, Ph.D., clinical psychologist and clinical lead for Imperial College London’s psilocybin trial

“Sleep is one of the great unsolved mysteries of neuroscience. We understand very little of either what it is or why we, or indeed almost every animal that has a central nervous system, do it. With so little hard science as to its nature, those of us who suffer from sleep disturbances must fall back on empirical methodologies that have been shown to work. Philip Carr-Gomm’s book is a practical guide to finding the peace that comes from returning to the patterns of sleep that energize our waking lives. I strongly commend it to you as a very practical and helpful guide.” Peter Mobbs, professor emeritus and former dean of the faculty of life sciences and dean of preclinical medicine at University College London

“Philip Carr-Gomm’s message on how to access the power of the night for the world of healing, restorative sleeps, and dreams is of value and much needed. His six-step program provides practical and easy ways to fall asleep and to access your creative, healing dreams— an invaluable resource. I highly recommend The Gift of the Night!” Machiel Klerk, author of Dream Guidance

“Sleep as a daily embodied spiritual practice! This workbook is a rare marriage of science and soul.” David Peters, professor emeritus and cofounder and director of the Centre for Resilience at the University of Westminster

“Philip Carr-Gomm presents a succinct but authoritative look at ways to help us sleep better. Science and spirituality are drawn upon equally, with inspiration and techniques coming via sophrology, yoga nidra, and the latest sleep research. The author even taps into the potential of psychedelic-assisted therapy, applying elements of the model as a way of optimizing the conditions for sleep. Accessible, practical, and endlessly thought-provoking, reading The Gift of the Night certainly won’t send you to sleep, but the rich content contained within should provide even the greatest insomniacs with plenty of new ways to finally drift off.” Ian Roullier, cofounder of the Psychedelic Participant Advocacy Network (PsyPAN) and mental health advocate

“Philip Carr-Gomm has drawn on his own sleeping difficulties to create an integrative approach to tackling sleep issues. Although the problem is a simple one—we have difficulty sleeping well—the roots of it can be complex and multilayered. Philip draws on his training as a psychologist to help tackle these issues, combining the best of current scientific understanding with transpersonal approaches that help address wider holistic aspects of sleep disorder. Philip is highly trained in multiple disciplines (many of which contribute to the wide range of helpful suggestions in this book), but he wears his learning lightly. The book is written in a relaxed and conversational style: readers will feel as though they are being taken by the hand by a wise and helpful friend who can guide them toward a satisfying night’s sleep. I can’t recommend this book highly enough.” Martin Treacy, chartered psychologist and cofounder of the British Psychological Society Transpersonal Section

SELF-HELP SLEEP

“A must-read for all those who find good sleep elusive. Soundly based in contemporary sleep science—also a deeply practical approach.”
— VIVIANNE CROWLEY, psychologist and author of Wicca

“An excellent short guide to sleep from a very welcome integral perspective with a wonderfully varied selection of approaches to try. My new go-to recommendation for clients and colleagues suffering from sleep difficulties.”
— STEPHEN DECKER, chartered psychologist and coeditor of Taking Children Seriously

Combining Sleep Science and Spirituality

MORE THAN ONE THIRD OF ADULTS suffer from insomnia or some other kind of sleep disorder. With time, a lack of sleep lowers our resilience and impacts our health as well as our performance in all areas of life. Restoring hope to the sleepless, psychologist Philip Carr-Gomm reveals how we can improve our sleep naturally.

A fast and easy-to-follow six-step program to help you sleep better, The Gift of the Night combines knowledge from sleep science and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) with techniques drawn from spiritual traditions and insights from the emerging field of psychedelic therapy. This guide presents a myriad of suggestions for creating the best mindset, emotional state, and physical conditions to optimize the environment for sleep, including advice on nutrition and supplements. Based on the success of his sleep clinic, Carr-Gomm offers thirteen natural ways we can drift into a deep and restorative sleep, including hypnotherapy, yoga nidra, sophrology, progressive muscle relaxation, and coloured noise. In addition, a comprehensive sleep troubleshooting guide tackles topics such as sleep phobia, sleep hacking, and lucid dreaming. Helping you get a better night’s rest, this concise and simple guide shows you how to truly benefit from everything the night offers to body and soul.


PHILIP CARRGOMM is an author and psychotherapist, trained in psychology, sophrology, and psychosynthesis psycho therapy. The founder of the Sophrology Institute, he also works in the emerging field of psychedelic psychotherapy. Philip runs a sleep clinic that offers online sleep therapy and is the author of more than twenty books. He lives in Sussex, England.