The Psychology & Practice Of Healing Your Insomnia | Dr. Sumedha Verma episode artwork

EPISODE · Apr 7, 2026 · 1H 7M

The Psychology & Practice Of Healing Your Insomnia | Dr. Sumedha Verma

from Life Academy · host Alicia Banit & Dena Kaplan

Time to sleep like a log DALINGS!!! 💜 Dr Sumedha Verma is a sleep psychologist and researcher who's here to bust every myth you've ever heard about sleep – and trust us, there are A LOT. The 8-hour rule? Lies. Your Apple Watch sleep score? Useless. That spiral of "why can't I sleep" making it worse? YEP. We go deep on this one – Dena shares her insomnia and PTSD story (she couldn't even look at a bed without panicking), Alicia finally gets answers about why Isla faceplants walls in her sleep, and Sumedha drops so much knowledge we wish we knew years ago. We needed this episode and we think you will too!!! 💕 This episode is brought to you by Protect-A-Bed: https://protectabed.com.au/ 12:22 - Welcome Dr. Sumedha Verma — sleep psychologist & researcher 19:00 - Dena's insomnia story: PTSD, panic attacks & getting back to trust 💛 24:26 - The 8-hour myth — busted by a sleep expert 29:10 - Sleep & mental health: the bidirectional link (it's causation, not correlation) 36:24 - What is sleep hygiene? And why fear is the real sleep disruptor 39:00 - CBT for insomnia — the gold-standard treatment most people don't know exists 48:13 - Sleep drive explained: why napping can push out your bedtime for hours 52:00 - Sleep debt, body compassion & what happens when chemical dependency is involved 59:12 - Is insomnia hereditary? + How to access Medicare-rebated sleep psychology 1:02:30 - Recs & frameworks: fake freckles, rejection goals & sky bathing 🌌 Follow us at: https://www.instagram.com/denaamy https://www.instagram.com/aliciabanit https://www.instagram.com/sleepwithdrv/ https://www.instagram.com/lifeacademythepodcast https://www.tiktok.com/@lifeacademythepodcast Join our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/957273649851434/ Watch us on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LifeAcademyThePodcast Recs/Homework: Mental Health Care Plan: Go to your GP and ask for one – you can see a sleep psychologist through Medicare (up to 10 rebated sessions!) Deep Sleep Helps: Dr Sumedha's practice – online program plus sessions https://www.drsumedhaverma.com.au/ Megan Thee Stallion / Cardi B: Windows down, music up – Sumedha's go-to for feminine energy. The Self Retreats: Only 2 spots left for the rest of the year! Grab your spots!! And if you want to join Dena in Bali this is the retreat she’s attending! https://chelsea-faye.mykajabi.com/fayeretreat Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Apr 7, 2026

Embed this episode

NOW PLAYING

The Psychology & Practice Of Healing Your Insomnia | Dr. Sumedha Verma

0:00 1:07:49

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of Life Academy?

This episode is 1 hour and 7 minutes long.

When was this Life Academy episode published?

This episode was published on April 7, 2026.

Can I download this Life Academy episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!