What is it? How do I do it?
What if your chronic insomnia is rooted in subconscious fears and repressed emotions that are creating a negative feedback loop in your brain? Instead of processing your repressed emotions your brain “protects” you by sending danger signals. You become stuck in a danger/hyper-alert state. You nervous system is revved up, which creates sleep problems.
The Rest ReSET is a tool that will give you a structured way to safely release buried emotions. Its basic structure is grounded in the work of Nichole Sachs* and Dr. John Sarno. The Rest ReSET is a daily journaling practice that “allows repressed emotions and stored trauma to safely rise, eliminating the brain’s protective impulse to send pain signals” (Sachs 2025). The goal is to access honest, uncensored feelings which allows your subconscious to stop sending danger signals. This, in turn, shows the brain that emotions are safe to feel. When the brain no longer needs to distract you from repressed emotions, your nervous system calms down which creates space for sleep.
One of the most surprising things about The Rest ReSET is that you don’t actually have to figure out the exact emotional cause of your insomnia is for it to work. Many people think healing requires identifying the exact trauma or understanding every emotional pattern. But this is not true! The brain cares about expression, not analysis or intellectual understanding. Think of it like letting steam out of a pressure cooker — it just needs the pressure to be released.
In the mind-body model, the brain is not necessarily protecting you from one specific trauma or event. Often, it is reacting to ongoing emotional pressure like perfectionism, responsibility, suppressed anger, fear of failing, pressure to be good, pressure to be in control, or internal conflict. Many of these feelings are subtle and constant, so they don’t stand out as “the cause” of your chronic insomnia. Your brain just senses too much emotional load.
The Rest ReSET acts like a ladle. Every time you practice it, you scoop some emotional soup out of the pot. You don’t have to empty the whole pot or solve your life’s problems. You are just reducing the pressure a little at a time.
So what exactly is The Rest ReSET?
The Rest ReSET is different from normal journaling. It is a very private affair that has NO audience besides you. This type of journaling is not polite, filtered, nor is it akin to a gratitude or reflective journaling. The ReSET intentionally encourages writing raw and unedited feelings that express anger, resentment, fear, grief, and shame. You are encouraged to write things that you would never say out loud.
Again, the idea is that the nervous system responds to honesty and expression, not polite reflection.
How do you practice The Rest ReSET?:
- Set a timer for 20 minutes
- Pick something that feels emotionally charged. For example:
- Something someone said that bothered you
- A stressful responsibility
- A resentment that you don’t admit out loud
- Pressure you put on yourself
- Fear of never getting better from chronic insomnia
- Click here for a database of journal prompts curated specifically for the chronic insomniac.
- Write continuously and write completely uncensored. Write about what you feel, not what you think you should feel. Write it even if it seems childish, selfish, irrational, or mean. Write it even if it hurts you or would hurt someone you love. Think “word vomit!” Be aware that just because you write it, doesn’t make it true or lasting.
- Stop when the timer ends
- DO NOT reread it!
- Tear it up, delete it, throw it away!! This is an extremely important step. If you keep the journal entry, your brain receives the message that you could be writing for an audience. This can lead your brain to push you towards more performative, less authentic writing in subsequent journal entries. Remember, the key is raw, authentic, and unfiltered!
- Do a few minutes of calming afterwards like breathing slowly, meditation, or stretching.
- Do it all over again tomorrow!
The key rules to the Rest ReSET are:
- Raw honesty
- No editing
- No rereading
- Destroy it afterward
- Do it regularly (often, daily).
To help make this a daily practice, I have created a database of journal prompts around specific themes that are especially powerful for the chronic insomniac. Click here to access the subscription database of prompts.
* Sachs, Nicole, J. (2025). Mind Your Body: A Revolutionary Program to Release Chronic Pain and Anxiety. Penguin Random House.
The Rest RESET is a journaling practice inspired by psychotherapist Nicole Sachs and the mind-body work of Dr. John Sarno. The ideas and prompts shared on this website are shaped by that approach but are written independently and are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Nicole Sachs. This site it intended to explore how expressive journaling may support people experiencing chronic insomnia. The information on this site is educational and not intended as medical or psychological advice.
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