Why You Can't Beat Depression If You Can't Sleep with Guest Vanika Lall

Up to 9 in 10 people with depression also struggle with disturbed sleep — and new research says that leftover insomnia may be exactly why depression keeps coming back. Sleep researcher Vanika Lall of the University of Western Australia joins Damon to break down her Sleep Well for Mood study: when people with depression treated their insomnia with CBT-I — cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia — their depression improved too, and their recovery lasted longer. Vanika explains why insomnia often survives depression treatment, why it is the quality of your sleep (not just the hours) that moves your mood, and the three core tools of CBT-I: quieting the racing mind, stimulus control, and sleep restriction. Plus: what this means for people in addiction recovery, where being tired is one of the classic HALT relapse triggers — and why Vanika says even 20 or 30 years of chronic insomnia is treatable. Join the Recovered Life Community here. Find out how to work with Damon here.