Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia
The first step in treating insomnia with CBT-I is to identify the underlying causes of the insomnia. People with insomnia should evaluate or have their sleep patterns evaluated and take into account all possible factors that may be affecting the person's ability to sleep. This would involve keeping a sleep diary or journal for a couple weeks. The journal will help to identify patterns of thoughts or behaviors, stressors, etc. that could be contributing to the person's insomnia.
Eszopiclone
Eszopiclone is slightly effective in the treatment of insomnia where difficulty in falling asleep is the primary complaint. Kirsch et al. found the benefit over placebo to be of questionable clinical significance. Although the drug effect and the placebo response were rather small and of questionable clinical importance, the two together produce a reasonably large clinical response. It is not recommended for chronic use in the elderly.