Treatments For Chronic Insomnia: Behavioral And Drug Therapies

The chronic insomnia treatments are simply the same as the treatment for other insomnia types. The difference lies on the intensity and the duration of the treatments. Look into two recognized techniques.

“An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure”. This saying goes well in treating chronic insomnia. Insomnia in the first place will not be considered chronic if on the onset the patient has been diligent with his treatment options. Although in some cases like those with psychiatric disorders, insomnia is hard to treat especially if their medications are the reason behind their sleep disturbance.
Management of chronic insomnia always begins with a careful assessment of identifying and treating the underlying cause. For example, if your chronic insomnia is caused by recurrent nocturnal enuresis, your doctor might give you medications or exercises to improve your bladder control. Behavioral therapy is always the first line of treatment for insomniacs but because of its long term duration a drug therapy is combined. Combining both behavioral and drug therapy is more effective than either treatment alone.

Behavioral therapy as a chronic insomnia treatment

Behavioral therapy aims to encourage a patient to eliminate unwanted behaviors that disrupt his sleep-wake pattern. During these therapies a patient is required to make a sleep diary for a couple of weeks. In this journal you will take note of your activities before you sleep, the time you sleep and wake up, the food and beverages you take, the medications and other factors that could be affecting your sleep. The diary will be the basis of behavioral treatments necessary for your case.

Relaxation techniques will also help. You are taught about music therapy before you sleep, aromatherapy and guided imagery. These steps are proven to relax the mind and body. A relaxed mind and body promotes better sleep, decreases nighttime awakenings and leads to a restful and refreshed feeling the night after.

Stimulus control and sleep restriction are also used in behavioral therapy. These techniques however needs a lot of time and effort on the part of the patients since it requires depriving yourself of your sleep habits. Focus and concentration are the keys to beat chronic insomnia.

Drug therapy as a chronic insomnia treatment

Antihistamines are the most commonly used over the counter treatment for chronic insomnia according to NIH. There are significant concerns about the risk of taking these medications though. Tolerance develops over time and a study found out that there is no systemic efficacy when using this drug to treat chronic insomnia. Aside from the benign side effects like dry mouth, constipation, urinary retention and blurred vision the FDA has not provided a well defined dose to manage insomnia

Sedating antidepressants are potentially recommended for treating chronic insomnia caused by depression. However, like many other medications there are also reported inconsistencies on its efficacy and the noted side effects profile are poor.

Barbiturates and antipsychotics are also used in treatment of insomnia. There had been only few studies on the usefulness of these drugs for either short or long term use of these drugs to treat insomnia and it is not recommended to treat chronic insomnia.

Over the counter agents still lack safety and efficacy data following their use in treatment of patients with chronic insomniacs. Few studies were conducted to prove the efficacy of sedating antidepressants. To avoid adverse side effect it is always imperative to consult with your physician and avoid self medicating.

Tags: behavioral therapy, chronic insomnia, chronic insomnia treatment, drug therapy

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