The drug reduction method of estazolam tablets (Shanghai Xinyi Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Shanghai, China, State Drugs Administration License No.: H31020644, 1 mg) will be given, with a starting dose of 1 mg, that is, the dosage of estazolam will be reduced by 25% (0.25mg) every week until the dosage will be stopped completely on the premise of no aggravation of insomnia symptoms.

Auricular acupressure therapy will be added based on the estazolam reduction method in the control group. The specific auricular points to be treated are Shenmen (TF4), Sympathetic (AH6), Endocrine (CO18), Heart (CO15), Liver (CO12) and Kidney (CO10). During the treatment, the acupuncturist will use a metal probe to identify the auricular points and ask the patients if they experience "deqi" sensations such as heat, numbness, distension, or pain. Once the auricular points have been confirmed, the ear will be disinfected using a 75% ethanol solution and dried using a sterile dry cotton ball. The acupuncturist will then hold the ear in place with their left hand while using their right hand to manipulate a tweezer and apply tape (0.5 x 0.5 cm) with vaccaria (Suzhou Konakang Medical Instrument Co., LTD., Suzhou, China) to the selected auricular point.

Based on the estazolam reduction method in the control group, the acupuncturist will place the same skin-colored adhesive tapes without vaccaria on the auricular points, but these tapes will not be pressed during treatment.

The doctor will guide patients to adjust medication dosage once a week in the outpatient clinic. When patients experience withdrawal reactions such as worsening insomnia or anxiety symptoms due to drug reduction, they will be returned to the oral dose before the current reduction, and the dosage will be reduced again after evaluation in the next reduction cycle. The treatment for 4 weeks is one course and 1 course of treatment is required totally.

The amount of drug taken by patients will be assessed.The rate of dosage reduction will be observed. Estazolam reduction rate = (pre-treatment Estazolam dose - post-treatment Estazolam dose)/pre-treatment Estazolam dose x 100%.

The method of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) will be used. 4 ml of venous blood will be extracted from the subjects, and will be added anticoagulant. After that, the samples will be centrifuged at 3000 r/min to separate upper serum and preserved in a refrigerator at -80℃, according to the kit instructions.

The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index is a self-rated questionnaire used to assess sleep quality and disturbances over a 1-month period. It comprises 19 self-rated items and five other-rated items. The scores for the 19 self-rated items and five other-rated items are not included in the total score. Except for the first item, the remaining 18 items include the seven following subscales: subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, sleep duration, habitual sleep efficacy, sleep disturbances, use of sleeping medication, and daytime dysfunction. Each subscale is rated from 0 to 3, and the accumulated scores of the seven subscales constitute the total score of the PSQI (0-21), where 7 is the threshold value of the sleep quality problem. A higher score indicates more severe sleep disorders.