Insomnia And Chronic Illness: What You Can Do

Published: 2025-10-11
Estimated read time: 3 minutes

When your body is unwell, sleep often suffers too

If you are living with a chronic medical condition, like cancer, fibromyalgia, IBS, or a neurological illness, chances are, your sleep has been affected.

In fact, insomnia is up to three times more common in people with chronic illness compared to the general population.

This is not just a coincidence. Medical conditions and insomnia are closely linked, and they often feed into each other.

The good news? Even when your health is complex, sleep can improve. You are not stuck.

Why insomnia is common in chronic illness

There are many reasons why sleep gets disrupted when your body is not at its best:

🩺 Physical symptoms

• Pain, nausea, hot flashes, tremors, or shortness of breath can interrupt sleep

• You may wake up often, or avoid certain sleep positions that trigger discomfort

🧠 Emotional stress

• Living with illness can bring anxiety, grief, and uncertainty, all of which keep the mind active at night

• Nighttime is often the quietest part of the day, when worries get louder

📉 Irregular routines

• Fatigue can lead to excessive daytime rest or inconsistent bedtimes

• Treatment schedules, hospital stays, or medications may also shift your natural rhythm

All of this makes it harder for your brain to settle at night, and easier for insomnia to take hold.

Why better sleep matters, even if your illness does not go away

Poor sleep can worsen:

• Pain sensitivity

• Fatigue and low energy

• Cognitive fog

• Mood symptoms like anxiety and depression

• Immune system function and overall resilience

When sleep improves, everything else gets a little easier to manage. You may not “cure” the illness, but you gain energy, clarity, and strength to cope with it.

What can actually help?

You may have been told to “just rest when you can”, or you may feel like insomnia is inevitable given your condition.

But in many cases, insomnia can improve with the right support.

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I) can be adapted for people with medical conditions. It focuses on:

• Matching your sleep schedule to your current rhythms

• Minimizing the impact of symptoms at night

• Teaching strategies to reduce nighttime anxiety

• Helping you stay connected to life, even when energy is low

At Luna Health, we specialize in helping people with chronic illness manage insomnia through behavioural sleep support. Because no two bodies, or nights, are the same, we tailor our approach to fit your unique needs.

Final word

You do not need perfect health to sleep better.

Even with ongoing pain, fatigue, or stress, your brain can still learn to rest.