Insomnia is a symptom of depression. Insomnia involves the following symptoms:
- If you wake up in the night and have difficulty going back to sleep.
- If you have difficulty falling asleep.
- If you wake up too early and cannot return to sleep at all.The lack of sleep over time can cause further feelings of “blah” or hopelessness about the future, your family, or life in general. At some point, without treatment, these feelings can escalate to loss of pleasure from activities that previously gave the individual pleasure. Hobbies are no longer practiced and family members may notice the person withdrawing socially. The depressed person’s partner may notice a significant reduction in previous sexual desires. All of these symptoms may be exacerbated by insomnia, as a depressed person gets more and more exhausted and lethargic.
Anti-depressants are often prescribed to treat depression and its symptoms. In some cases, the drugs have side-effects that include a dulled feeling about life (apathy), anxiety, weight gain, headaches, and sexual side effects. The best treatment for depression is talk therapy coupled with anti-depressant medication. Many people can also benefit from neurofeedback therapy (eeg biofeedback) and / or EMDR.
If you are currently on anti-depressants, but still don’t feel 100%, neurofeedback treatment can be an excellent supplement. Neurofeedback therapy is exercise for the brain. Neurofeedback helps the brain achieve a sense of balance. People report that eeg biofeedback helps them feel more hopeful, positive, and light-hearted.
EMDR (Eye Movement De-sensitization and Reprocessing) is a type of therapy that helps uncover and de-sensitize people to the root causes of their depression. EMDR is a powerful treatment, that must be led by a trained professional in a safe environment to have full effect.
If you’re dealing with an issue like this, I would be happy to help. Please reach out by calling my office at 310-314-6933 or sending me a private email.
