Sample Solution

A study by Sousa and colleagues (2020) suggests that psychoanalytic psychotherapy can improve sleep disturbances in adolescents with depression. The research examined the effects of individual psychoanalytic psychotherapy on a sample of depressed adolescents, aged 14-17 years old, who reported having problems with their sleep. At the start of the treatment period, all participants were assessed using several clinical measures to assess their symptoms of depression, as well as any accompanying sleep disturbances. Following twelve weeks of individual psychoanalytic therapy sessions, assessments were conducted again to measure symptom changes among participants.

Results indicated that after twelve weeks of treatment there was a significant decrease in depressive symptoms among participants compared to baseline assessment scores (Sousa et al., 2020). These improvements were also accompanied by reductions in severity of reported sleep disturbances. Specifically, objective measurements taken during this period showed decreases in average nighttime wakefulness and an overall increase in total hours slept per night (Sousa et al., 2020). The authors concluded that these findings suggest that individual psychoanalytic psychotherapy may be effective for improving both depression and associated sleep disturbances among adolescents with major depressive disorder.

The results from this study demonstrate potential efficacy for treating adolescent depression symptoms through individually administered psychoanalysis interventions (Sousa et al., 2020). Further research into the specific mechanisms at play between this form of therapy and its effects on reducing both depression and accompanying sleeping problems is warranted to better understand how best to utilize this form of treatment when working with young people experiencing difficulty related to mental health issues.