From Better Sleep to Improved Mood: A Review of the Biopsychosocial Pathways for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia’s Antidepressant Effects
Members of the Sleep and Health Research Lab recently published a review examining potential mechanistic pathways linking insomnia and depression. Their analyses spanned biological, behavioral, and cognitive affective domains, focusing specifically on hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and inflammatory functioning, behavioral activation, and emotional processes. This review summarizes how sleep improvements via CBT-I may lead to reduced depressive symptoms, and in turn inform future research and clinical efforts to enhance the overall effectiveness of CBT-I in patients with comorbid depression.
(Vargas et al., 2026)