Why Work with a Psychotherapist to Solve Your Sleep Issues?

Sleep Therapy vs. Psychotherapy: Understanding the Difference

Sleep is deeply personal—it’s not just a biological function but an emotional and psychological experience. When sleep becomes difficult, it can reflect deeper stressors, anxieties, or unresolved patterns. Heather offers two distinct but complementary services: sleep therapy and psychotherapy. While both approaches support emotional well-being, they serve different purposes and address different challenges.

What is Sleep Therapy?

Sleep therapy is a structured approach designed specifically to help individuals navigate sleep difficulties. Many traditional sleep interventions focus on medical solutions (such as medication or sleep studies) or behavioural techniques (such as cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia, CBT-I). While these can be effective, they often don’t address the deeper emotional and physiological patterns that contribute to sleep struggles.

Heather’s approach to sleep therapy goes beyond sleep hygiene and behavioural techniques. She works with clients to explore the emotional and relational factors that shape their sleep, helping them understand why their body is responding the way it is. This process is about learning to work with the body rather than against it, using an integrative and compassionate approach to improve sleep in a sustainable way.

Not sure if sleep therapy is right for you? Get in touch for a consultation

Expert Sleep Therapy in London & Online

What Is Sleep Therapy
What Is Psychotherapy

What is Psychotherapy?

Psychotherapy, on the other hand, is a broader, open-ended process that explores emotional and psychological challenges beyond sleep. As a UKCP-accredited psychotherapist, Heather works with clients on a wide range of issues, including anxiety, stress, trauma, and life transitions. While sleep may be part of the conversation, psychotherapy is not solely focused on sleep difficulties. Instead, it provides a space for deeper self-exploration, personal growth, and emotional healing.

Which Approach is Right for You?

Sleep Therapy

If your primary concern is sleep—whether it’s struggling to fall asleep, waking in the night, or experiencing disrupted sleep patterns—sleep therapy may be the best fit.

Sleep Therapy Vs. Psychotherapy

If you are looking for a space to explore broader emotional challenges, including those that may impact your sleep, psychotherapy might be more appropriate.

Psychotherapy (6)

Some clients find that starting with sleep therapy helps their immediate concern, making the decision at a later stage to embark on longer-term psychotherapy.

If you’re struggling with chronic insomnia or complex sleep disorders, our Sleep Clinic in London provides specialized support.

Meet Heather Darwall-Smith: Sleep Therapist & UKCP-Accredited Psychotherapist

Heather Darwall-Smith is a UKCP-accredited psychotherapist specialising in sleep. With extensive experience in addressing complex sleep challenges, she integrates psychotherapy with evidence-based interventions to help clients develop sustainable sleep patterns. Her expertise spans anxiety-related sleep difficulties, neurodivergent sleep challenges, and the emotional barriers to restful sleep.

Heather’s relational approach ensures that therapy is not just about sleep but about understanding the deeper patterns that impact well-being and rest. Her work is recognised in both private practice and the wider field of sleep psychology.

Offering CBTi & psychotherapy

How Heather’s Work Differs

Unlike sleep clinics that focus on diagnosing and treating sleep disorders, sleep therapy is about understanding your personal relationship with rest. Heather works with individuals to explore how emotions, past experiences, and current stressors shape their sleep patterns.

Her approach integrates psychotherapy with practical strategies, helping clients build a foundation for long-term sleep health rather than just symptom management.

Explore our sleep therapy blog for expert insights on overcoming insomnia and improving sleep.

Getting Started:
Sleep Therapy vs. Psychotherapy

Heather offers both sleep therapy and psychotherapy, and how you begin will depend on what you’re seeking support for. Sessions online via Zoom.

Are You Coming to See Heather for Sleep Therapy?

If you’re struggling with insomnia, disrupted sleep, or ongoing sleep difficulties, I offer a specialised sleep programme designed to help you build a healthier relationship with sleep. This approach is structured yet personalised, blending science-backed strategies with psychological support to address both the habits and deeper patterns affecting your rest.

Your First Sleep Therapy Session Will Include:

Our initial sleep therapy session will be a comprehensive sleep assessment, where we explore:

The nature of your sleep difficulties and their possible causes.

How your lifestyle, emotions, and past experiences may be shaping your sleep patterns.

What has and hasn’t worked for you in the past.

A tailored sleep plan, outlining how we will work together and the next steps.

Beyond the structured programme, I also offer top-up or drop-in sessions for those who need ongoing guidance.

Sleep Therapy Vs. Psychotherapy

Are You Coming to See Heather for Psychotherapy?

If you’re seeking deeper therapeutic work, whether related to stress, anxiety, trauma, relationships, or personal growth, we will begin with an initial consultation to explore what brings you to therapy. This is a space to discuss:

  • The challenges you’re facing and what you hope to gain from therapy.
  • How we might work together – whether through weekly sessions or a more flexible approach.

Any questions or concerns you have about the process.

Psychotherapy is often open-ended and exploratory, allowing us to follow what emerges in the sessions. For some, sleep is the starting point but reveals deeper patterns – such as unresolved trauma, burnout, or long-standing stress—that benefit from a broader therapeutic approach.

Session Length & Fees

The structure and length of our sessions depend on whether you are seeking sleep therapy or psychotherapy.

Initial Consultation

Sleep Therapy Sessions

The first sleep therapy session is 2 hours to allow for a comprehensive sleep assessment. This gives us the time to:

  • Explore your sleep history, current patterns, and any underlying factors affecting your sleep.
  • Discuss how lifestyle, emotions, and past experiences might be shaping your rest.
  • Begin developing a personalised sleep plan tailored to your needs.

Subsequent sleep therapy sessions are 50 minutes, with flexible options for:

  • Regular follow-ups to support ongoing progress.
  • Top-up or drop-in sessions if you need additional guidance over time.
  • Begin developing a personalised sleep plan tailored to your needs.
Initial Consultation

Psychotherapy Sessions

Individual psychotherapy sessions last 50 minutes and are typically held weekly, though we can discuss flexibility depending on your needs. Psychotherapy is open-ended, meaning we follow what emerges over time rather than working to a fixed plan.

The cost of sessions varies based on whether you are seeking psychotherapy or sleep therapy. If you’d like to discuss fees or have any questions about what’s right for you, feel free to reach out.

Start Your Journey to Better Sleep – Book a Consultation Today
Why Heather No Longer Accepts Insurance – A Thoughtful Change

Heather has made a significant shift in her practice—one that was not an easy decision but ultimately allows her to be more present and effective in her work.

She no longer accepts insurance for sessions.

Heather understands that therapy, especially long-term work, is a considerable financial commitment and deeply respects the investment clients make in their well-being. This decision was not made lightly. It has taken time to reach this point, as accessibility has always been a priority.

Why This Change?

As a sole practitioner, Heather manages every aspect of her practice—from client care to scheduling, ongoing study, and maintaining the depth of work she offers. Working with insurance companies requires a significant amount of administrative time, including billing schedules, documentation, and ongoing negotiations over fees. This administrative burden takes time away from what matters most—supporting clients in a meaningful and considered way.

Additionally, insurance companies often impose low, fixed fees that do not reflect the expertise, training, and depth of care required for psychotherapy. While accessibility remains a core value, insurance structures often do not allow for the personalised, unhurried, and deeply attuned work that Heather strives to provide.

The Grey Area of Sleep in Insurance Coverage

One of the ongoing challenges Heather has encountered is that sleep falls into a grey area within insurance coverage. There is often ambiguity about what is and isn’t covered, making it difficult for both clients and practitioners to navigate.

This is particularly frustrating, as sleep is one of the most fundamental pillars of mental health, yet it is frequently overlooked or deprioritised in insurance policies. Decades of research show that poor sleep is both a symptom and a driver of mental health struggles, yet it often does not fit neatly into diagnostic categories that insurers recognise. This creates barriers to care, making it harder for individuals to access the depth of support they need.

Sleep Therapist in London

Frequently asked questions

Sleep therapy combines psychotherapy, CBTi, and holistic approaches to address insomnia and sleep issues. It focuses on improving sleep patterns, reducing stress, and creating long-term sleep health.
Yes. A sleep clinic focuses on medical diagnoses and treatments like sleep studies, while sleep therapy explores the emotional, psychological, and behavioral aspects of sleep difficulties.

Anyone experiencing persistent sleep difficulties that feel emotionally, mentally, or relationally rooted can benefit from sleep therapy.

A sleep clinic typically focuses on diagnosing and treating physical sleep disorders, while sleep therapy explores the emotional and psychological aspects influencing rest.

Every individual’s journey is different, but many clients begin to see meaningful changes after several sessions.

Yes, Heather offers both in-person sleep therapy in London and online consultations for flexibility and accessibility.

No referral is needed—you can contact Heather directly to begin your therapeutic journey.

Heather specialises in working with adults over the age of eighteen.

Take the First Step Toward Restorative Sleep

Sleep therapy isn’t just about fixing broken sleep—it’s about deepening your self-understanding, processing emotional roadblocks, and building resilience for lasting change. With Heather’s guidance, you can shift from battling sleep to embracing rest as an essential part of your well-being.

Apply to Work with Heather Darwall-Smith Today

If you’re ready to explore the emotional and psychological aspects of your sleep challenges, apply to work with Heather and begin the journey toward a more peaceful, restorative relationship with rest.

Overcome Insomnia with CBTi & Psychotherapy – Get Started Now

For a deeper look at how I integrate psychotherapy into sleep therapy, explore my holistic approach.