7 Healthcast: A Sound Sleep

It's not unusual for Joanne Butler to battle with her bed - lose - and finally give up.

Joanne Butler, Insomniac
"Every night at 3 a.m. I just wake up…wide awake…you know ready to start working. And I can't fall back asleep no matter what I do."

According to the National Sleep Foundation, one out of every three Americans report the same problem with insomnia every night. A new study compared the popular sleeping pill Ambien to a non-drug approach called cognitive behavioral treatment, and the two in combination.

Cognitive behavioral treatment proved the best. It includes relaxation techniques and what experts call good sleep hygiene.

Dr. Stasia Weiber, Mt. Sinai Medical Center
"Good sleep hygiene means that you go to bed the same time every night. You get up the same time every morning. This includes weekends and vacations. People develop a ritual before they go to bed, they brush their teeth, they comb their hair, they put on their pajamas, and that type of ritual helps prepare a person mentally for sleep and good sleep."

The study found Ambien cut the amount of time it took for subjects to fall asleep by about a third. Cognitive behavioral therapy cut that time it took to fall asleep by more than half, and the benefits lasted long-term. Once the individuals stopped taking the medicine, the insomnia returned.

Dr. Stasia Weiber, Mt. Sinai Medical Center
"Sleeping pills are generally short term use they are not the final answer for insomnia."

Joanne says she's ready to try cognitive behavioral therapy, especially if it'll help her sleep through the night.

Joanne Butler, Insomniac
"I would be willing to do it. it would definitely improve the quality of my life if I could get a good nights sleep cause it's really killing me right now."

• Besides going to bed at the same time every night, experts suggest:
• Use the bed only for sleep
• Make sure the bedroom is dark and quiet, and the bed is comfortable
• If you can't fall asleep after 20 minutes, get up and go to another room, and return to bed when you do get sleepy.