Can Depression Cause Sleep Problems

What Are The Best Binaural Beats For Sleep & Insomnia

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How Does Depression Affect Sleep

Unfortunately, sleep and depression are connected. Almost everyone with depression will experience problems with sleep. For that reason, doctors are reluctant to diagnose depression if someone doesnt experience sleep issues. The two have a bidirectional relationship, meaning poor sleep can lead to the development of depression. It also implies that depression can make someone more likely to develop sleep issues. This relationship makes it hard to determine which came first.

Sleep issues that depression causes include hypersomnia, insomnia, and obstructive sleep apnea. However, insomnia is the most common and affects three-quarters of those with depression. Many people with depression can go back and forth between experiencing hypersomnia or insomnia during a depression episode.

Sleep problems can lead to depression due to changes in how neurotransmitters like serotonin function. Disruptions in sleep can also affect how our body reacts to stress, cause problems with circadian rhythms, and increase the odds you become depressed. Fortunately, if you seek help for depression, youll also notice an improvement in your sleep.

What Depression And Insomnia Treatments Are Available

Treatment choices for depression depend on how serious the illness is. Major depressive disorder is treated with psychotherapy , medications, or a combination of the two.

The most effective treatment for depression is often a combination of psychotherapy and medication. Drugs tend to work more quickly to decrease symptoms while psychotherapy helps people learn coping strategies to prevent the onset of future depressive symptoms.

Medications used to treat depression include antidepressants such as:

• Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors , likeCelexa, Lexapro,Paxil, Prozac,and Zoloft these medications can perform double duty for patients by helping them sleep and elevating their mood, though some people taking these drugs may have trouble sleeping. Newer antidepressant medicines that affect multiple serotonin receptors besides the serotonin transporter include Viibryd and Trintellix.
• Tricyclic antidepressants
• Serotonin/norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors like Effexor, Pristiq, Khedezla, Fetzima, or Cymbalta, that affect the functioning of brain circuits involved in mood regulation that communicate using chemicals such as serotonin and norepinephrine
• Novel antidepressants such as bupropion and mirtazapine .

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How Major Depressive Disorder Might Affect Your Sleep

Sleep problems may be one of the first symptoms of major depressive disorder — a serious, but treatable mental health problem, more commonly known as depression.

Not only a symptom of depression, some sleep problems, like insomnia, may also help cause depression. Up to 20% of people who have trouble falling or staying asleep — that’s insomnia — eventually develop depression. In one major study, people with insomnia were five times more likely to get depression than others.

This link between insomnia and depression can lead to a painful cycle in which depression leads to sleep problems, which in turn worsen your depression.

Antidepressants That May Help With Sleep

Certain antidepressants can help relieve symptoms of depression and in turn might reduce sleep disruptions, too. Your healthcare provider may prescribe one of the following depending on your individual needs and health history:

• Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors such as Celexa , Lexapro , Prozac , Paxil , or Zoloft
• Serotonin/norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors such as Khedezia or Pristiq , Cymbalta , Fetzima , or Effexor
• Tricyclic antidepressants such as Elavil or Pamelor
• Sedating antidepressants to be taken at night such as Remeron or trazodone

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Sleep Structure And Related Neurotransmitters

Sleep is vital for human beings and most animals, and control mechanisms are embodied in all levels of biological organizations, from genes and intracellular mechanisms to cell population networks, and then to all central nervous systems, including systems that control movement, arousal, autonomic function, behavior, and cognition. Mammalian sleep is characterized by the periodic alternation of rapid eye movement sleep and non-rapid eye movement sleep . NREMs includes two stages: slow-wave sleep and light sleep. In humans, SWS and REMs, which are the specific modes of potential electric field oscillations and neuromodulator activities, dominate the first half of the night and the latter half of the night, respectively .

The mutual transformation between sleep and wakefulness is caused by the excitation or inhibition of many neurotransmitters in the brain, which are released by sleep-promoting neurons in the anterior hypothalamus or sleep-inhibiting neurons in the lateral and posterior hypothalamus activity. These neurons release excitatory or inhibitory neurotransmitters to promote the brainstem to control the mutual transformation of wakefulness and sleep .

What Is The Relationship Between Anxiety And Sleep

Serious sleep disturbances, including insomnia, have long been recognized as a common symptom of anxiety disorders. People who are plagued with worry often ruminate about their concerns in bed, and this anxiety at night can keep them from falling asleep.

In fact, a state of mental hyperarousal, frequently marked by worry, has been identified as a key factor behind insomnia. People with anxiety disorders are inclined to have higher sleep reactivity, which means they are much more likely to have sleeping problems when facing stress.

Sleeping difficulties have been found for people with various types of anxiety including generalized anxiety disorder, OCD, and PTSD. In several studies, over 90% of people with PTSD associated with military combat have reported symptoms of insomnia.

Distress about falling asleep can itself complicate matters, creating a sleep anxiety that reinforces a persons sense of dread and preoccupation. These negative thoughts about going to bed, a type of anticipatory anxiety, can create challenges to healthy sleep schedules and routines.

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At the same time, strong evidence indicates that sleeping problems are not only a symptom of anxiety. Instead, sleep deprivation can instigate or worsen anxiety disorders. Researchers have found that people who are prone to anxiety are especially sensitive to the effects of insufficient sleep, which can provoke symptoms of anxiety.

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Some Components Of Cbti Can Target Depression

Most CBTi courses, ours included, will recommend some form of sleep rescheduling, which usually involves setting a fixed getting up time and reducing the time spent in bed for a short period.

This approach is called sleep restriction therapy but itâs badly named as the intention is not to restrict the amount of sleep that a person gets â rather to consolidate their sleep and restrict the time they spend in bed awake.

Sleep restriction therapy usually results in mild sleep deprivation in the early stages. This can lead to an increase in slow-wave sleep which may be whatâs driving the mood improvements that have been observed in some people with depression when they complete a course of CBTi. 1112

Of course, prolonged sleep deprivation to lift mood is unsustainable but the science does suggest that sleep restriction can be an effective, short-term, non-drug approach that can complement any antidepressant medication a person may be taking.

Coping With Sleep Disturbances During Depression

Dealing with sleep disturbances when youre feeling depressed can seem like a vicious circle. The more depressed you feel, the harder it is to sleep. And the more exhausted you feel, the harder it is to fight depression.

It can feel like theres no way to break the cycle. And its frustrating to feel tired yet be unable to fall or stay asleep. Here’s what you should know about the relationship between sleep disturbances and depression.

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Increased Risk Of Depression In Insomnia

The National Institute of Mental Health Epidemiologic Catchment Area study 20 years ago interviewed 7954 adults on two occasions a year apart, and this study first highlighted the strong association between sleep disturbance and subsequent depression. They found that 14% of those who had insomnia at the first interview had developed new major depression a year later.35 This data has been augmented by several more recent reports of increased risk. Brcslau ct al,5 in a survey of 1200 young adults in Michigan, found that the odds ratio of new depression in was 4 times increased in those subjects who had insomnia 3 years earlier, and in a questionnaire survey of adults over 18 in the UK there was a 3-fold increased risk of new depression if subjects had reported one sleep problem occurring on most nights a year earlier.36 Doctors in a prospective study who had complained of insomnia during medical school in the 1950s and 1960s were twice as likely to have developed depression at follow-up in 1990s.37

It is apparent that sleep problems often appear before other depression symptoms,38 and that subjective sleep quality worsens before onset of an episode in recurrent depression.39

Is Oversleeping As Bad As Not Sleeping

However, even as the study of oversleeping continues to expand and evolve, one thing remains true: spending too much time in bed asleep is linked to health hazards included cognitive impairment, depression, increased inflammation and pains, higher risk of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and stroke, and even possible …

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Depression Can Affect Sleep And Sleep Can Affect Depression

To give you a full review of how depression and sleep interact with each other would fill a book. Instead, weâve broken down the key scientific findings to show how people living with depression and poor sleep can use what weâve learned about these interactions to improve their mood and achieve better sleep.

Insomnia And Depression Are Closely Related

Together, depression and insomnia create a vicious cycle, as both conditions further worsen symptoms for each other.

While depression can cause trouble sleeping, that lack of sleep can exacerbate irritability, low mood, and decreased energy levels or motivation.

To break this cycle, it’s important to address the root cause of your sleep troubles. If you feel that you have depression, you should talk with a therapist.

This can include a psychiatrist, psychologist, or mental health counselor and there are many online therapy services you can use to schedule a virtual consultation.

The three most common therapies to treat depression include:

• Cognitive behavioral therapy helps patients change negative thought patterns and behaviors that are associated with depression. One study found that 58% of depressed individuals who underwent CBT reduced their depressive symptoms.
• Psychodynamic therapy helps patients resolve psychological harm or conflicts typically rooted in childhood that could contribute to depression. A 2017 study found that psychodynamic therapy can be just as effective as CBT for treating depression.
• Interpersonal therapy focuses on how personal relationships can cause or exacerbate depression. Overall, research has found that there’s not much of a difference between the three therapies for treating depression, and aspects of each approach are all incorporated to mitigate depressive symptoms.

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Sleep Disorder Prevalence Amongst Individuals With Mental Health Issues

With one in six U.S. adults suffering from some form of mental illness and 10-18% of adults living with a chronic sleep problem, understanding the causal factors involved in the two groups of disorders and the interplay between them is no small issue.

Its been known for years that those with mental issues are at a much greater risk for sleep disorders than those without. While about one in five Americans suffers from some sort of chronic sleep disorder, four out of five Americans with mental health issues have an accompanying sleep issue.

• Somewhere between 65% to 90% of adults with depression suffer from a sleep disorder.
• The most common sleep disorder among those with depression is insomnia, but 20% suffer from sleep apnea.

Unsurprisingly, the most common sleep ailments here are insomnia and hypersomnia during manic and depressive phases respectively.

While not all with mental health issues present a sleep disorder, its clear that a great many do.

Now that weve established a strong basic link between the two issues, lets delve into the synergy between them and think about the methodology used to determine this link.

Create A Bedtime Routine

The bedtime routine is one of the first things that people with depression should focus on. This simple act can help you relax and prepare for sleep. It can be as simple as taking a bath or reading a book before bed. Also, it is important to avoid watching television or working on the computer in the hours leading up to sleep.

When you have a bedtime routine, stick to it as much as possible. This will help train your body to know when its time to sleep. This will make it easier to fall asleep and stay asleep.

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Take Sleep Problems Seriously

You should tell your doctor if you:

• have trouble falling or staying asleep
• feel tired during the day
• have physical pain, discomfort or other complaints that prevent you from getting a good nights sleep

Treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia and continuous positive airway pressure devices for apnea can restore good sleep, helping you sidestep related conditions like depression.

What Is Samhsa’s National Helpline

SAMHSAs National Helpline, , or TTY: is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. This service provides referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations.

Also visit the online treatment locator, or send your zip code via text message: 435748 to find help near you. Read more about the HELP4U text messaging service.

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Is It Bad To Oversleep

Too much sleep on a regular basis can increase the risk of diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and death according to several studies done over the years. Too much is defined as greater than nine hours. The most common cause is not getting enough sleep the night before, or cumulatively during the week.

Spend Time Outside During The Day

Spending time in natural light during the day can help regulate your circadian rhythm. The internal biological clock that regulates the sleep-wake cycle is influenced by light when theres less light at night, your body releases melatonin.

In the morning, the sun cues your brain and body to wake up. If youre spending all your time indoors in the dark, you might suffer from sleep problems. Regular exercise can also help with sleep issues, as well as depression, provided its not done immediately before bed.

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Stay Alert For Signs Of Depression

These include feeling hopeless, helpless or sad trouble concentrating and remembering things loss of energy daytime sleepiness loss of interest in activities that once gave you pleasure or thoughts of suicide or death. Tell your doctor if you have any of these.

This is especially important if youre discussing insomnia with your doctor. Insomnia may be a separate condition or it may be a symptom of depression, Finan explains. Your doctor needs to know as much as possible to treat the right problem.

Seek Help From Professionals

There are several therapies that could help people with depression. These could also improve ones sleeping behavior. With psychodynamic therapy, interpersonal psychotherapy, and CBT, you can process your feelings and thoughts that lead to depression.

In most cases, mental health professionals will suggest behavioral changes to avoid the symptoms of depression, such as sleeping issues.

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What Actually Causes Depression

Research suggests that depression doesn’t spring from simply having too much or too little of certain brain chemicals. Rather, there are many possible causes of depression, including faulty mood regulation by the brain, genetic vulnerability, stressful life events, medications, and medical problems.

What Might Explain The Link Between Sleep Apnea And Depression And Anxiety

If your sleep is interrupted repeatedly during the night, you might experience a change in brain activity and neurochemicals that can worsen your mood, according to the NSF.

When you have an OSA event, you not only receive low oxygen but also have carbon dioxide retention, and carbon dioxide buildup makes your blood acidic, says Dr. Dyken. As this blood flows to your brain, your brain centers recognize that youre not breathing and release neurotransmitters that trigger a microarousal so you take a breath.

The problem is that you can have hundreds of these microarousals every night with apnea. The neurotransmitters in your brain are depleted when you wake up, Dyken explains, and during the day you feel run-down and sleepy, and you lack energy to do the things that might protect you from developing depression and anxiety.

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