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L.S.
Female, age 49
Prior to beginning the REI Custom Program, L.S.'s main issues included having trouble quieting her mind in order to get to sleep, it would often take her more than an hour to fall asleep. She also woke up at night with anxious thoughts. As she was unable to control these thoughts she usually was awake for several hours. She also slept lightly and would easily wake if her husband moved in the bed. She was tired during the day due to her disrupted sleep pattern.
She saw significant improvement in her ability to fall and stay asleep within the first week. After four days she slept through the night and woke rested for the first time since she could remember. This pattern continued for most nights during the first three weeks of the REI Custom Program. Beginning the fourth week she found herself having more difficulty falling asleep again and waking at night again with anxious thoughts. However, she would fall sleep again fairly quickly (within 20 minutes) when she turned on CD#1.
In talking with her and evaluating her experience, it was determined that CD#2 was over-stimulating for her at night. She was instructed to play CD#2 in the morning and CD#1 at bedtime. After three days of the routine she was again falling asleep quickly and only occasionally waking at night. When she did awake turning CD#1 on helped her calm her mind and go back to sleep again.
At ten weeks she found that she had developed a more consistently restful sleep pattern. Due to her steady improvement in sleep she decided to stop using CD#2 during the day and only play CD#1 at bedtime and if she woke up at night. This has proven to be a good schedule for her since, after 9months, she was still falling asleep quickly, waking infrequently at night and waking feeling for refreshed and energetic.
M.M.
Female, age 52
M.M. had trouble getting to sleep and was generally tired with mild anxiety and often had feelings of depression.
Upon starting the REI Therapy Program, she described that the CD “was a pleasant experience to listen to” and that for the first few days she experienced a “rush of energy” that was unusual for her and bordered on uncomfortable. This energy rush passed after three days and was replaced by an energy level that was still higher than before starting the REI Therapy Program but wasn’t uncomfortable for her. She described that she had more energy “just to be” and found herself able to socialize more.
She began sleeping after three days of listening to CD#1 of the Program in mid-morning. She described that she would fall asleep within 1/2 hour of going to bed and would sleep deeply for 7.5 to 8 hours. She also described that for the first time in her memory she was having pleasant dreams every night (before starting the program she described that she wouldn’t sleep deeply enough to have dreams and when she used melatonin she often experienced nightmares when she did fall asleep).
She found that the listening volume needed to be very low for her, as evidenced by one day playing the CD while in the shower and turning it up loud enough to hear over the water. She was irritable the rest of that day. This is not uncommon for sensitive people, so it was suggested that it would be best to alter the week three protocol to ensure that the transition from CD#1 to CD#2 would not over-stimulate her and cause her mood or sleep to be disrupted. It was recommended that she alternate days (CD#1 day one of week three, CD#2 day two, CD#1 day three, and so on) instead of playing both CDs alternately each day.
At the end of three weeks, M.M. described that listening to CD#2 gave her more energy during the day and didn’t disrupt her new deep sleep patterns. The biggest impact for her aside from consistently having restful sleep, was that she was enjoying more social contact and wasn’t tired during the day.
As the REI Therapy Program progressed over the ten-weeks, she continued using CD#2 in mid-morning and continued have about 8 hours of sleep each night. She described that the CDs “were an important part of my day. A part that I look forward to”.
