In mental health treatment, difficulty with sleep is often a commonly reported problem. Traditionally, sleep problems have been viewed as a symptom and consequences of a mental health problem. More modern perspectives have suggested that lack of sleep contributes to mental health issues (Freeman et al., 2017). A vicious cycle can develop “…between the distress of the mental health symptoms, effect on daytime functioning, and struggles in gaining restorative sleep” (Freeman et al., 2017, p. 749). This perspective has caused more mental health professionals to focus on treating sleep problems especially insomnia. Insomnia has been characterized as “…difficulties in initiating or staying asleep” (Freeman et al., 2017, p. 749). Current protocols recommend cognitive behavior therapy as the first line of treatment. However, other treatment such as heart rate variability biofeedback have also been successful in improving sleep (Rozman & McCraty, 2013).
If you’re having difficulty with sleep, call today to see how we can help improve your sleep.
References
Freeman, D., Sheaves, B., Goodwin, G., Yu, L-M., Nickless, A., Harrison, P. J., … & Espie, C. A. (2017). The effects of improving sleep on mental health (OASIS): A randomized controlled trial with mediation analysis. The Lancet Psychiatry, 4, 749-758. doi:10.1016/S2215-0366(17)30328-0
Rozman, D., & McCraty, R. (2013). HeartMath solution for better sleep: Integrating emWave and Inner Balance technologies. HeartMath, LLC.