Chronic Insomnia in Women: Comparison between Drug Therapy and Behavioral Therapy

This research aimed to compare medical and psychological interventions to improve chronic insomnia among adult women who sought advice from a sleep clinic in the city of Tehran. The study population included all of the clients in a sleep clinic in the city of Tehran suffering from chronic insomnia. The sample for this study included 26 clients, who were randomly divided into two groups with 13 clients in each group. Psychological intervention group subjects were given instructions for progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery, relaxing music, and sleep hygiene in 4 sessions. Subjects in medical intervention group used hypnotic drugs in 4 weeks. All participants were examined after 4 weeks. The tools for obtaining information consisted of Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, Insomnia Severity Index, Epworth Sleepiness Scale, Berlin Questionnaire for Sleep Apnea, and Beck Depression Inventory. The analysis of data showed that both psychological and medical interventions could improve sleep quality and insomnia. Comparison between the two kinds of interventions showed that psychological interventions are more effective than medical intervention. According to the results, we may suggest that psychological interventions are a more proper remedy for insomnia.