Adriane M. Soehner

Comparative efficacy of behavior therapy, cognitive therapy, and cognitive behavior therapy for chronic insomnia: a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE To examine the unique contribution of behavior therapy (BT) and cognitive therapy (CT) relative to the full cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) for persistent insomnia. METHOD Participants were 188 adults (117 women; M age = 47.4 years, SD = 12.6) with persistent insomnia (average of 14.5 years duration). They were randomized to 8 weekly, individual sessions consisting of BT (n = 63), CT (n = 65), or CBT (n = 60). RESULTS Full CBT was associated with greatest improvements, the improvements associated with BT were faster but not as sustained and the improvements associated with CT were slower and sustained. The proportion of treatment responders was significantly higher in the CBT (67.3%) and BT (67.4%) relative to CT (42.4%) groups at post treatment, while 6 months later CT made significant further gains (62.3%), BT had significant loss (44.4%), and CBT retained its initial response (67.6%). Remission rates followed a similar trajectory, with higher remission rates at post treatment in CBT (57.3%) relative to CT (30.8%), with BT falling in between (39.4%); CT made further gains from post treatment to follow up (30.9% to 51.6%). All 3 therapies produced improvements of daytime functioning at both post treatment and follow up, with few differential changes across groups. CONCLUSIONS Full CBT is the treatment of choice. Both BT and CT are effective, with a more rapid effect for BT and a delayed action for CT. These different trajectories of changes provide unique insights into the process of behavior change via behavioral versus cognitive routes.

Personality Correlates with Sleep‐Wake Variables

A mail‐in questionnaire study and two confirmatory archival analyses are described. Variables related to personality and measures of sleep timing, sleep quality, and sleep duration were initially assessed by self‐report in a sample of 54 working adults (31.5% male, 23–48 yrs). Extraversion and neuroticism were measured by the Eysenck Personality Inventory (EPI), and the level of sub‐clinical manic‐type symptoms by the Attitude to Life Questionnaire (ATLQ). The quality of sleep was measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and by questions relating to habitual sleep latency and minutes awake after sleep onset from the Sleep Timing Questionnaire (STQ). The duration and timing of sleep was assessed using the STQ separately for work‐week nights (Sunday–Thursday) and for weekend nights (Friday and Saturday). Morningness‐eveningness was assessed using the Composite Scale of Morningness (CSM). Two confirmatory analyses using separate archival samples (Study A: n=201, 55.7% male, 20–57 yrs; Study B: n=101, 47.5% male, 18–59 yrs) were then used to confirm specific correlations of interest. In both initial and confirmatory studies, increased sub‐clinical manic‐type symptoms were found to be significantly associated with later bedtimes and wake‐times during the work‐week and lower (more evening‐type) CSM scores, and higher neuroticism was associated with poorer sleep as indicated by higher PSQI scores. In contrast, no significant correlations emerged between any of the personality variables and any of the sleep duration variables. Personality appears to affect certain aspects of the timing and subjective quality of sleep, but not necessarily its duration.

Treating Insomnia Improves Mood State, Sleep, and Functioning in Bipolar Disorder: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

OBJECTIVE To determine if a treatment for interepisode bipolar disorder I patients with insomnia improves mood state, sleep, and functioning. METHOD Alongside psychiatric care, interepisode bipolar disorder I participants with insomnia were randomly allocated to a bipolar disorder-specific modification of cognitive behavior therapy for insomnia (CBTI-BP; n = 30) or psychoeducation (PE; n = 28) as a comparison condition. Outcomes were assessed at baseline, the end of 8 sessions of treatment, and 6 months later. This pilot was conducted to determine initial feasibility and generate effect size estimates. RESULTS During the 6-month follow-up, the CBTI-BP group had fewer days in a bipolar episode relative to the PE group (3.3 days vs. 25.5 days). The CBTI-BP group also experienced a significantly lower hypomania/mania relapse rate (4.6% vs. 31.6%) and a marginally lower overall mood episode relapse rate (13.6% vs. 42.1%) compared with the PE group. Relative to PE, CBTI-BP reduced insomnia severity and led to higher rates of insomnia remission at posttreatment and marginally higher rates at 6 months. Both CBTI-BP and PE showed statistically significant improvement on selected sleep and functional impairment measures. The effects of treatment were well sustained through follow-up for most outcomes, although some decline on secondary sleep benefits was observed. CONCLUSIONS CBTI-BP was associated with reduced risk of mood episode relapse and improved sleep and functioning on certain outcomes in bipolar disorder. Hence, sleep disturbance appears to be an important pathway contributing to bipolar disorder. The need to develop bipolar disorder-specific sleep diary scoring standards is highlighted.

Prevalence and clinical correlates of co-occurring insomnia and hypersomnia symptoms in depression

BACKGROUND The aim was to examine the prevalence and consequences of co-occurring insomnia and hypersomnia symptoms in depressed adults drawn from a representative sample of the U.S. population. METHOD Data from 687 National Comorbidity Survey Replication (NCS-R) respondents meeting criteria for a major depressive episode (MDE) in the past year were included. Respondents completed clinical interviews that assessed 12-month DSM-IV disorders, impairment, mental health treatment, and depressive symptom severity. Outcomes were compared between respondents who experienced insomnia symptoms-only (N=404), hypersomnia symptoms-only (N=44), both insomnia and hypersomnia symptoms (N=184) and no sleep problems (N=55) during an MDE. RESULTS Insomnia and hypersomnia symptoms co-occurred in 27.7% of respondents with past-year MDEs, most frequently in bipolar spectrum disorders and major depressive disorder with dysthymia. Similar to the insomnia-only group, respondents with co-occurring sleep disturbances had more severe depression, and higher rates of past-year impulse control disorders and suicide planning. Similar to the hypersomnia-only group, respondents with co-occurring sleep disturbances had higher rates of past-year drug use disorders and suicide attempts. Compared to the insomnia-only and no sleep problem groups, respondents with both sleep disturbances were more frequently in mental health treatment, seeing a general practitioner, and taking antidepressants. LIMITATIONS The NCS-R is cross-sectional and did not evaluate sleep disorder diagnoses. CONCLUSIONS Co-occurring insomnia and hypersomnia symptoms were associated with a more severe MDE. Further research is warranted to more fully understand the joint presentation of insomnia and hypersomnia in depression.

Circadian Preference and Sleep-Wake Regularity: Associations With Self-Report Sleep Parameters in Daytime-Working Adults

The aim of this study was to explore how interindividual differences in circadian type (morningness) and sleep timing regularity might be related to subjective sleep quality and quantity. Self-report circadian phase preference, sleep timing, sleep quality, and sleep duration were assessed in a sample of 62 day-working adults (33.9% male, age 23–48 yrs). The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) measured subjective sleep quality and the Sleep Timing Questionnaire (STQ) assessed habitual sleep latency and minutes awake after sleep onset. The duration, timing, and stability of sleep were assessed using the STQ separately for work-week nights (Sunday–Thursday) and for weekend nights (Friday and Saturday). Morningness-eveningness was assessed using the Composite Scale of Morningness (CSM). Daytime sleepiness was measured using the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS). A morning-type orientation was associated with longer weekly sleep duration, better subjective sleep quality, and shorter sleep-onset latency. Stable weekday rise-time correlated with better self-reported sleep quality and shorter sleep-onset latency. A more regular weekend bedtime was associated with a shorter sleep latency. A more stable weekend rise-time was related to longer weekday sleep duration and lower daytime sleepiness. Increased overall regularity in rise-time was associated with better subjective sleep quality, shorter sleep-onset latency, and higher weekday sleep efficiency. Finally, a morning orientation was related to increased regularity in both bedtimes and rise-times. In conclusion, in daytime workers, a morning-type orientation and more stable sleep timing are associated with better subjective sleep quality. (Author correspondence: asoehner@berkeley.edu)

Circadian rhythms and risk for substance use disorders in adolescence.

Purpose of review This article explores recent research in adolescent circadian rhythms, neurobiological changes influencing affective regulation and reward responding, and the emergence of substance use and related problems. Recent findings Recent findings have confirmed that adolescents with drug and alcohol problems are also beset by sleep problems, and have advanced our understanding of the relationship between sleep problems and substance involvement in this developmental period. During adolescence, a shift to later preferred sleep times interacts with early school start times to cause sleep loss and circadian misalignment. Sleep loss and circadian misalignment may disrupt reward-related brain function and impair inhibitory control. Deficits or delays in mature reward and inhibitory functions may contribute to adolescent alcohol use and other substance involvement. Summary An integration of the available research literature suggests that changes in sleep and circadian rhythms during adolescence may contribute to accelerated substance use and related problems.

Circadian rhythms and psychiatric illness.

Purpose of review The present review provides a conceptual introduction to sleep and circadian research in psychiatric illness, and discusses recent experimental and intervention findings in this area. Recent findings In this review, studies published since January 2011 on circadian disturbance and psychiatric illness have been summarized. Summary Exciting new results have increasingly utilized objective and validated instruments to measure the circadian system in experimental studies. Since 2011, treatment research has still predominantly utilized self-report measures as outcome variables. However, research in the treatment domain for sleep/circadian disturbances comorbid with psychiatric illness has advanced the field in its work to broaden the validation of existing sleep treatments to additional patient populations with comorbid sleep/circadian disruptions and address how to increase access to and affordability of treatment for sleep and circadian dysfunction for patients with psychiatric disorders, and how to combine psychosocial treatments with psychopharmacology to optimize treatment outcomes.

Impact of comorbid anxiety and depressive disorders on treatment response to cognitive behavior therapy for insomnia.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the impact of comorbid anxiety or depressive disorders on treatment response to cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) for insomnia, behavior therapy (BT), or cognitive therapy (CT). METHOD Participants were 188 adults (117 women; Mage = 47.4 years) with chronic insomnia, including 45 also presenting a comorbid anxiety or mild to moderate depressive disorder. They were randomized to BT (n = 63), CT (n = 65), or CBT (n = 60). Outcome measures were the proportion of treatment responders (decrease of ≥8 points on the Insomnia Severity Index; ISI) and remissions (ISI score < 8) and depression and anxiety symptoms. RESULTS Proportion of treatment responders and remitters in the CBT condition was not significantly different between the subgroups with and without comorbidity. However, the proportion of responders was lower in the comorbidity subgroup compared to those without comorbidity in both the BT (34.4% vs. 81.6%; p = .007) and CT (23.6% vs. 57.6%; p = .02) alone conditions, although remission rates and prepost ISI change scores were not. Pre to post change scores on the depression (-10.6 vs. -3.9; p < .001) and anxiety measures (-9.2 vs. -2.5; p = .01) were significantly greater in the comorbidity subgroup relative to the subgroup without comorbidity but only for those treated with the full CBT; no difference was found for those treated with either BT or CT alone. CONCLUSIONS The presence of a comorbid anxiety or mild to moderate depressive disorder did not reduce the efficacy of CBT for insomnia, but it did for its single BT and CT components when used alone. (PsycINFO Database Record

Basic sleep and circadian science as building blocks for behavioral interventions: a translational approach for mood disorders.

Sleep and circadian functioning has been of particular interest to researchers focused on improving treatments for psychiatric illness. The goal of the present paper is to highlight the exciting research that utilizes basic sleep and circadian science as building blocks for intervention in the mood disorders. The reviewed evidence suggests that the sleep and circadian systems are a) disrupted in the mood disorders and linked to symptoms, b) open systems that can be modified, c) the focus of interventions which have been developed to effectively treat sleep disturbance within mood disorders, and d) intimately linked with mood, such that improvements in sleep are associated with improvements in mood. Although significant positive treatment effects are evident, more research is needed to fill the gap in our basic understanding of the relationship between sleep and mood.

Behavioral Circadian Regularity at Age 1-Month Predicts Anxiety Levels During School-Age Years

Daily lifestyle regularity is measured using the Social Rhythm Metric (SRM). We developed a Baby SRM, with 59 babies followed for approximately 13years. Baby SRM score at age 1 month significantly predicted the childs school (K-9, 5 time points) anxiety level (more regular=less anxious), and may be mediated through sociability and directed-attention pathways.