Description:
OPD Points: 5
Sleep disturbances are a common experience after bereavement, yet have received little attention in care for bereaved people. Current scientific research suggests that sleep is important in emotional processing of negative life-events. Insomnia severity is associated with worsening of emotional problems, such as depression and post-traumatic stress symptoms. Treating sleep problems appears highly effective in treating such emotional problems and may be similarly relevant in care for severe and persistent grief. We will explore this possibility in the current webinar.
Explore the link between grief and sleep problems, learn about insomnia’s impact on emotional well-being, and discover evidence-based treatment options like CBT-I.
Key Learning Objectives / Outcomes:
Dr. Maarten Eisma will provide an overview of sleep disturbances following bereavement, highlighting specific types of sleep disturbances, their risk factors and development, as well as the relationships between (prolonged) grief and sleep problems.
Thomas de Lang, MSc. will address gaps in knowledge by discussing recent finding regarding the typical trajectories of insomnia following bereavement and how grief and sleep jointly develop over time.
Prof. Dr. Marike Lancel will introduce a treatment lens, presenting the most important factors in the regulation of sleep-wake behavior and elaborating on the treatment modules of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I). CBT-I is as effective as sleep medication, but enhances physiological sleep without adverse side effects, as well as promoting long-term improvements in sleep. Specific recommendations regarding the application of CBT-I with grieving individuals will be provided.
Presenter / Provider:
Dr. Maarten C. Eisma,
Thomas A. de Lang,
Prof. Dr. Marike Lancel
Presenter Qualifications:
Dr. Maarten C. Eisma is Associate Professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Groningen, the Netherlands. His research focuses on the causes, consequences, and treatment of severe and persistent grief (i.e. prolonged grief). He has helped develop multiple internet-based interventions for prolonged grief and Dutch practice guidelines for grief in palliative care. He has published over 90 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters. In April 2023, he received the ADEC Research Recognition Award.
Thomas A. de Lang is a PhD-student who has investigated the bi-directional effects of sleep on grief and risks for the development of chronic insomnia. He will be leading a therapeutic intervention study examining the effects of evidence-based insomnia therapy on sleep and prolonged grief.
Prof. Dr. Marike Lancel is professor of Clinical Psychology at the University of Groningen, expert in sleep medicine and head of research of the Center of Expertise on Sleep and Psychiatry, Mental Health Service, Assen, the Netherlands. Her main research theme is the reciprocal relation between sleep disturbances and symptom severity of affective and stress-related disorders. She is co-founder of the Center of Expertise on Sleep and Psychiatry and co-editor of the Dutch book Sleep Disorders in Psychiatry: Diagnosis and Treatment.
