Veterans and others struggling with insomnia find support in the SleepSmartz app

A military veteran and first responder was going through one of the “most difficult times in my life.”

Struggling with “sleepless nights, post-traumatic stress, and overwhelming thoughts,” Ty Burns tried the SleepSmartz app.

“(It) became a true blessing,” he said in a SleepSmartz testimonial.

Another user, Shirley M., wrote that she has to sleep during the day at times due to chronic pain.

“So many times I will lay on the recliner and fret over my weaknesses, not able to sleep,” she said. “With SleepSmartz, I’m able to get out (from) underneath those worries and actually sleep and rest.”

SleepSmartz, available for both iOS and Android devices, was created by Gary Brown, a former Samaritan Ministries member whose wife, Tracy, still participates in the ministry.

How decades of chronic insomnia led to the creation of SleepSmartz

Gary said his own insomnia led him to develop SleepSmartz. Today, the app serves veterans struggling with post‑traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), recovering or struggling addicts, troubled youth, and others who have difficulty falling and staying asleep.

“I struggled with insomnia for 23 years, and when you have chronic insomnia, you’ll do anything to get a good night’s sleep,” Gary said.

Gary’s solution—CDs with relaxation meditations—led him to create the app, which costs $69.99 per year or $9.99 per month (Samaritan Ministries members should check their April 2026 “This Month at Samaritan” email for information on how to obtain a special discount.) So far, the app has been downloaded more than 24,000 times across both platforms by users around the world. Some of its content has even been featured in the YouVersion Bible app.

SleepSmartz uses Scripture and has sessions for everybody as well as those with specific experiences:

• Veterans and first responders suffering from destructive thoughts and PTSD
• Addicts seeking freedom from alcohol, opioids, methamphetamine, or addiction in general
• Young people struggling with destructive thoughts, with some sessions designed specifically for girls

“Our biggest concern is to reach those in despair in whatever way possible,” Gary said. “We are currently praying for partners who share our heart for veterans and others struggling with insomnia, emotional distress, and related mental health challenges. We believe that when the Body of Christ comes together, practical solutions and hope can reach those who feel forgotten.”

How guided sleep sessions help people fall and stay asleep

Each catergory has specific sessions of 20-plus minutes. For example, the sections for addicts are broken into 12-step sessions. The destructive thoughts sessions for veterans have themes like “Anchored in Hope” and “Strength for the Journey.”

Each sleep session starts with a relaxation technique and then transitions into a message “that’s still relaxing, but it communicates something that helps a person with the issue that’s keeping them awake.”

All sessions except for one set of 12-step sessions are infused with Scripture.

“All sessions help a person with the issue that’s keeping them awake,” Brown said.

Meditation sessions—different from sleep sessions­—aren’t geared toward helping a person fall asleep but, rather, are shorter sessions to reinforce messages that are first heard in sleep sessions.

Why insomnia is so common, especially among veterans

NapLab and other sources report that up to two thirds of adults experience occasional insomnia symptoms while 10% to 15% of them have chronic insomnia. It’s even worse for veterans, with one study showing that 57% of veterans suffer from insomnia. That percentage is even higher for veterans with PTSD, Brown said.

After he produced some sessions for himself, he started sharing the information with neighbors who wanted to try it out through the Nextdoor app. He then started to build a team to help him put the app’s content and structure together.

“The Lord really gave us a realization that insomnia relief is a vehicle through which you can provide God’s principles for healing of the soul,” Gary said. “Our vision statement is ‘Healing souls through healing sleep.’

“People who use the app are able to get the sleep they need while, in some cases, freeing them from destructive behavior.”

The SleepSmartz team includes veterans, a physician who specializes in addiction medicine, and others, including the Christian veterans organization Warriors Journey and The Hope Line, the latter of which serves adolescents and young adults in crisis.

What makes SleepSmartz different from other sleep apps

What sets SleepSmartz apart, Gary said, is that so many of the sessions are targeted at specific causes of insomnia.

“There are a hundred good sleep apps out there, “…but when you deal directly with the issue keeping someone awake and give them hope for overcoming it, they’re much more likely to fall asleep when you get to the final relaxation of the sleep session, because you’ve actually dealt with something and given them hope,” he said.

The SleepSmartz team is developing a Freedom from Porn series.

“Again, research shows that addiction to pornography is a huge driver of insomnia, and insomnia actually drives porn addiction for those who are already struggling with that.”

Other sessions address anxiety, knowing God more deeply, freedom from destructive thoughts, and Scripture reflections.

“One of our sleep sessions actually takes the steps to lead a person to Christ,” Gary said.

Future projects include developing sessions based on discipleship, and Gary is writing sessions like “All Things Are Equally Easy for God” and “Resting in God’s Threefold Peace.”

The goal of those sessions and others is to reassure listeners that “God knows every detail of your life, and there’s no detail too small, and He is good, and He loves you.”

“And you know what? There’s not a lot of room for worry in there.”

Gary Brown can be reached at [email protected]