About Program
Overview
SHUTi (Sleep Healthy Using the Internet) is an interactive, web-based training program designed to improve the sleep of adults with insomnia. It was developed at the University of Virginia with funding from the National Institute of Health. SHUTi provides a tailored educational program to individuals who are experiencing sleep difficulties, including those having difficulty falling asleep, waking in the middle of the night, or waking too early in the morning.
The help offered by SHUTi is based on interventions for insomnia that have been developed over the past 20 years and tested in numerous scientific studies. Typically, this type of training is only available from psychologists and physicians who have been specially trained in behavioral sleep medicine, and only offered in weekly face-to-face sessions. SHUTi was created to make this kind of help available to more people through a convenient home-based program which can be accessed at any time via the Internet.
CBT
Research has shown that Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is an excellent option for chronic insomnia. CBT for Insomnia (CBT-I) focuses on identifying and changing behaviors and patterns of thinking that interfere with good sleep.
The National Institutes of Health State-of-the-Science Conference in 2005 on chronic insomnia in adults concluded that there is strong evidence that CBT-I is the treatment of choice for insomnia, and that its use should be more widespread.
In 2016, the American College of Physicians recommended all adult patients receive CBT-I as the initial treatment for chronic insomnia disorder. The goal of SHUTi is to make CBT-I more available and accessible.
What SHUTi Is
SHUTi is designed to help adults with insomnia by using the Internet as the way of providing the intervention. It begins with an Overview, which reviews educational information on sleep problems, and helps users evaluate their own problem and treatment goals. There are five more units, or Cores, focused on specific methods for improving the quantity and quality of sleep.
Each of these Cores takes about 45 – 60 minutes to complete. After completing a Core, users spend a week practicing what they have learned in their daily routines. The next week, a new Core is reviewed. During the program, SHUTi users complete exercises designed to help develop new sleep habits and skills. SHUTi users also complete daily Sleep Diaries while using the program allowing SHUTi to make personalized recommendations.
As you can see, SHUTi takes time and effort. It is designed for people who are motivated and ready to do the necessary work to improve their sleep. Sleep problems do not develop overnight, and it takes time to overcome them. But, with the help of SHUTi, you can get your sleep back on track.
What SHUTi Is Not
SHUTi is not intended to take the place of medical evaluation and treatment. Sleep problems can be a sign of serious medical conditions, such as thyroid disorders and clinical depression. If you have not talked to a physician about your sleep problems to rule out a serious medical condition, you should make an appointment to do this before starting SHUTi.
SHUTi is also not designed to be a treatment for sleep problems other than insomnia, such as sleep apnea, sleep-walking, or narcolepsy. If you believe you might have a sleep disorder other than insomnia, you should see a physician or go to a sleep clinic for further evaluation.