Cognitive Behavioral Therapy For an Individual Suffering From Chronic Pain With Overactivity And Sleep Disturbance: A Case Report

Abstract

Background: Patients suffering from chronic pain (CP) with overactivity frequently experience sleep disturbance. In order to improve the sleep disturbance of such individuals, changing their daytime activity patterns may be a key treatment strategy.Case presentation: The patient is a 35-year-old woman suffering from CP with sleep disturbance. First, cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia was conducted to improve her sleep disturbance. However, due to the overactivity, she did not want to go to sleep earlier. Thus, she practiced activity pacing and changed her daytime activity patterns. Through activity pacing and cognitive restructuring, she stabilized her wake-up and bed times, and returned to work.Conclusions: To improve the sleep disturbance of individuals suffering from CP with overactivity, it is important to combine cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia and activity pacing.