Sleep is an essential process that helps us maintain our mental and physical health.
We know that without it, we cannot function effectively.
A good night’s sleep reduces our risk of developing serious illness, boosts our immune system, reduces stress, helps us think more clearly – and sleeping well makes us feel great!
More advice can be found on the NHS Better Health sleep pages.
There are also a range of support options available locally, from NHS Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression to online tools, including the Sleepio programme.
Sleepio is a leading treatment, backed by international research, and is clinically proven to help improve insomnia. And the NHS is offering it to all Berkshire West residents free of charge.
Use Sleepio at no cost to yourself by clicking on the button below or by visiting www.sleepio.com/nhs and clicking on the ‘Get started’ button.
You will need to use your NHS login to sign-up. These are the login details you use if you have the NHS app. For more information about NHS login or to create an account go to: About NHS login – NHS (www.nhs.uk)
Sleepio is an online, fully automated, six-session programme of digital Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) for insomnia.
It’s designed by sleep experts to help you understand why sleepless nights happen, what makes them worse, and how to reduce them. It uses clinically proven CBT techniques to help you fall asleep faster, stay asleep through the night and feel better during the day.
Recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), Sleepio is a proven approach for those experiencing poor sleep.
It has been evaluated in many clinical trials and has been shown to help people restore their sleep to healthy levels.
The advice given in your Sleepio sessions will be personalised to you, based on the answers you give when registering.
There are six core online sessions that take about 20-25 minutes to complete.
These are spaced weekly, but you can choose exactly what times work best for you.
You will also need to keep a sleep diary, which takes about one minute to complete each day. Additional support is available from an online community of other Sleepio users, if this is something you want to join.
Using Sleepio is your decision – if you choose to sign up but don’t find it helpful, you can stop at any time.
If you need support with your mental health, your local NHS Talking Therapies can offer a range of treatment including support for issues with sleep, stress, work stress, depression, worry and anxiety – Contact with your therapist may take place by ‘phone, online, virtual video call or face to face. Translation services or support in languages other than English can be made available. Other digital options are available, such as SilverCloud.
To explore your treatment options further, contact your local NHS Talking Therapies provider for an assessment:
NHS Berkshire Talking Therapies for anxiety and depression offer free and confidential treatment to people aged 17+ who are registered with a GP in Reading, Wokingham or Newbury NHS Talking Therapies Berkshire (berkshirehealthcare.nhs.uk)
Yes, your local NHS Talking Therapies can offer treatments instead of, or in addition to, Sleepio.
If you are registered with a GP in West Berkshire, Reading and Wokingham, you will be able to use Sleepio free of charge. Your access will last for 12 months. If you require access beyond this, please contact hello@sleepio.com
To start using Sleepio, you will need to sign up using your NHS login. Please use this link: https://www.sleepio.com/nhs, click the “Get started” button and complete the following steps:
If you don’t yet have an NHS login and would like to create an account go to: About NHS login – NHS (www.nhs.uk).
We know that good sleep is essential for health and wellbeing and we want to help by giving you all the information about the support available.
Sleepio is one of the clinically proven options available that you can sign up to yourself free of charge. It is recommended by NICE (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) for use by the NHS to treat insomnia in primary care where you might otherwise be offered sleep hygiene or sleep medication.
No, you will be able to access and use Sleepio free of charge if you live in West Berkshire, Reading or Wokingham. You just need to enter the first part of your postcode during the registration process.
There is no paid-for subscription and you will not be asked for payment details or to sign up to an ongoing subscription.
You will have access to Sleepio for 12 months from when you sign up.
The Sleepio programme is designed to be completed in six weeks, but you will have full access to the programme for 12 months. This allows you to complete the sessions at your own pace and revisit sessions if you wish.
If you require access beyond this, please contact hello@sleepio.com
CBT stands for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy.
It is recommended by the NHS as the first-choice way to help you manage your problems, by changing the way you think and behave. It’s most commonly used to treat anxiety and depression but can be useful for other mental and physical health problems.
Sleepio uses clinically proven CBT techniques to help you fall asleep faster, stay asleep through the night and feel better during the day.
CBT is also available through your local NHS Talking Therapies who may be able to offer alternative methods of delivery such as face-to-face consultations, therapy via video or phone, support in other languages or with translation, or alternative digital offers.
Sleepio can still be effective when taking sleeping medication and you may decide to try Sleepio in addition to other treatments.
If you have any questions about your current medication, please contact the healthcare team that prescribed this medication.
If you are thinking about making any changes to your current medication, please first contact the healthcare team that prescribed this medication.
To find out more about what Sleepio is and whether it is suitable for you please refer to sleepio.com/suitable
Big Health has developed a set of frequently asked questions for Sleepio that you can view here: FAQs – Sleepio.
Signing up to use Sleepio should be straightforward, but if you do encounter any difficulties, please email your query to hello@sleepio.com and say that you are resident in the area of Berkshire West.
We hope you find Sleepio a useful tool, but if you would like to raise a concern about Sleepio, please email hello@sleepio.com
Sleepio is provided by Big Health Ltd. Big Health is the data controller for data you enter into the Sleepio platform and your information is managed by Big Health while you are using the Sleepio website or app.
When you access Sleepio using your NHS login details, NHS England is the Controller for any Personal Data that you provided when signing up for an NHS login account. Big Health is a Processor of this information and acts under the instructions provided by NHS England when verifying your identity.
Personal Data you provide to Sleepio is not shared back to your healthcare professional or Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.
Sleepio use the information you provide to personalise your sleep programme and analyse your progress.
To learn more, please read the Sleepio privacy policy: Privacy policy – Sleepio and Your Privacy on NHS login.
NHS login allows you to access a range of health and care websites and apps with one set of login details.
You will need to use NHS login to sign-up for Sleepio.
To learn more about NHS login and how to create an account About NHS login – NHS (www.nhs.uk)
Existing users can continue to sign in using the same log in details as before. You can also sign into your account using NHS login if you prefer.
If you do experience an issue when trying to log into your account, please contact hello@sleepio.com