ARCHIVE

In a week-long series of the Brain Warrior’s Way Podcast, Dr. Daniel Amen and Tana Amen talk about sleep with Dr. Shane Creado, a psychiatrist at Amen Clinics and an expert in sleep medicine. Dr. Creado completed a sleep medicine fellowship at the University of Wisconsin and has created a 21-lesson online course to help you get the restful sleep you need.

In this remarkable series, you’ll discover:

Listen to the 4-part series on sleep with Dr. Shane Creado on the Brain Warrior’s Way Podcast.

At Amen Clinics, we understand how important sleep is to overall brain health and we evaluate all the biological, psychological, social, and spiritual factors that can be contributing to sleep issues and mental health problems. If you’re having trouble sleeping and it is affecting your life, make an appointment with Dr. Creado by calling 888-288-9834 or schedule a visit online.

 

Does your child get irritable and upset if they don’t get their Fortnite fix? Are you worried they might be addicted to video games? You could be right.

In a landmark 2019 decision, the World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that video game addiction is officially a mental health disorder. “Gaming disorder” has been added to the WHO’s International Classification of Diseases, putting it on a par with depression, anxiety disorders, bipolar disorder, and other mental illnesses.

Gaming Disorder Can Steal Your Life

Research shows that 97% of Americans 12 to 17 years old play video games, and as many as 23% of gamers of all ages show signs of addictive behavior. According to the WHO, these signs include impaired control over gaming and “continuation or escalation of gaming despite the occurrence of negative consequences.” And these repercussions can be seen in a person’s personal relationships, career, schoolwork, or daily life.

Gaming disorder also puts people at greater risk for other detrimental issues, including:

The link between gaming and ADD/ADHD goes both ways. In addition to gaming contributing to the condition, a 2019 study shows that people who have ADD/ADHD may be at increased risk for developing a gaming addiction.

The Risk for Addiction Lies in the Brain

It’s important to understand that gaming addiction is not a character flaw or personal failure. Brain imaging studies using a technology called SPECT show that addiction is, in fact, a brain disorder. The health of your brain plays a major role in your risk for addiction—whether it’s to alcohol, drugs, or video games.

In particular, it is your brain’s self-control circuit that helps you rein in your behaviors or that drives you to addiction.

The brain’s self-control circuit includes:

When this self-control circuit is in balance, you can be motivated, focused, goal-oriented, and have control over your gaming and other behaviors. In the addicted brain, the PFC is weakened, allowing the drive systems to take control.

A SPECT Scan Indicating Low PFC Function

Not All Gaming Addicts are the Same

Designating video game addiction as a mental health disorder is a powerful first step in encouraging people to seek treatment. But most healthcare professionals will view it as a single or simple disorder and will treat everyone the same way. This will never work because not all people with gaming addictions are the same. In fact, SPECT brain scans reveal that there are 6 types of addicts.

Type 1: Compulsive Addicts

Type 2: Impulsive Addicts

Type 3: Impulsive-Compulsive Addicts

Type 4: Sad or Emotional Addicts

Type 5: Anxious Addicts

Type 6: Temporal Lobe Addicts

Knowing your type is essential to getting the right treatment plan to help you regain control of your life.

4 Key Ways to Break Free from Addiction

The brain is the ultimate key to overcoming gaming addiction and other bad behaviors. Strengthening your PFC is one of the best ways to balance your brain’s self-control circuit. Here are 4 ways to boost your PFC.

1. Get your heart pumping.

Regular aerobic exercise boosts blood flow to the PFC and has been shown to improve focus and impulse control. Aim for 30-45 minutes a day of fast walking (walk like you are late for an important appointment.)

2. Practice saying no.

Every time you say no to extra gaming time, you train your PFC and help create new neural pathways that strengthen your control. Eventually, saying no to unhealthy gaming behavior becomes easier and can even feel automatic.

3. Eat a brain healthy diet.

Did you know that a sugar-filled junk-food diet can fuel your addiction? Getting a quick sugar rush from soda, cookies, or candy weakens the PFC and can make you more impulsive. Eating lean protein throughout the day and eliminating sugar can help stabilize blood sugar levels, which is beneficial for your PFC, moods, and impulse control.

4. Supplement your diet.

Nutritional supplements, such as omega-3 fatty acids, green tea, and Rhodiola can boost blood flow to the PFC and help you stay focused on your goals.

If you or your child is struggling with addiction to video games or any other substance, we’re here for you. At Amen Clinics, we have helped thousands of people overcome bad behaviors and improve every aspect of their life. We use brain SPECT imaging to help identify your addiction type in addition to assessing the biological, psychological, social, and spiritual factors that may be contributing to addiction. With this comprehensive evaluation, we are able to personalize treatment solutions for your needs.

Don’t let addiction steal your life. Speak to a specialist today at 888-288-9834 or schedule a visit online.

David was struggling with his memory along with other issues and was growing concerned about it. Afraid his forgetfulness was a sign of dementia, he went for a brain imaging test called SPECT to see what was really happening in his brain. David’s brain scan looked toxic, and it turned out he was taking a cocktail of medications, including antianxiety pills (benzodiazepines), which have been found to harm the brain and accelerate memory problems. Making adjustments to his medications made a huge difference in his memory.

DAVID’S BRAIN

HEALTHY BRAIN

If you can’t remember where you left your keys, if you blank on your neighbor’s name, or if you forget to pick up bananas at the grocery store, you may be wondering if it’s a serious condition or just everyday forgetfulness. Many people worry that Alzheimer’s disease may be the underlying cause of their memory issues, but there are several causes of forgetfulness that are far more common…and far easier to fix.

Seven Causes of Forgetfulness

1. Not Enough Zzzzz’s

A number of studies link sleep problems to a higher risk of memory issues. Scientists have found that while you sleep, your brain cleans out toxins that build up throughout the day. Without adequate sleep, the brain’s waste management crew does not have enough time to do its job, and trash piles up, causing brain fog and memory problems. One study in Nature Neuroscience found that in elderly people, a lack of deep sleep caused a 55% drop in memory the next day. Other research in Nature Neuroscience shows that sleep, and especially slow-wave sleep, is critical for memory consolidation regardless of a person’s age.

Solution: Aim for 7-8 hours of sleep each night. Create a nighttime routine to help promote restful sleep.

2. Underactive Thyroid

SPECT scans of people with low levels of thyroid hormone show overall decreased brain activity, which can cause symptoms often seen in dementia, such as cognitive impairment and brain fog. In fact, research shows that more than 80% of people with low-grade hypothyroidism have impaired memory function. Brain imaging research, including a 2014 study in Thyroid, found decreased brain volume in the hippocampus in people with low thyroid levels. The hippocampus is a brain structure involved in memory and learning.

Solution: Get your thyroid levels checked and optimize them if necessary.

3. Too Much Multitasking

In some cases, forgetfulness may have less to do with memory problems and more to do with distractions. Research shows that juggling too many tasks takes a toll on the brain’s memory centers. If you’re watching TV while playing a game on your tablet while you’re having a conversation with your spouse, it’s no wonder you may be having trouble remembering what they say. A 2020 survey of 2,000 people in the U.S. shows that 6 in 10 Americans experience “multitasking-induced forgetfulness.” The top 3 things people forget, according to the survey, are passwords, items they need while grocery shopping, and where they put their keys.

Solution: If you want to have better recall, pay attention to the information you want to remember. Put your phone down, mute the TV, and listen.

4. Head Trauma

A single fall off your bike, a slip off a ladder, or a car accident that causes you to hit your head can have lasting consequences on your memory. Many people don’t connect the dots from a head injury that may have occurred weeks, months, or even years earlier to forgetfulness.

Solution: Healing the underlying brain trauma with hyperbaric oxygen therapy, neurofeedback, and other therapies can help restore cognitive function.

5. Your Medicine Cabinet

Many common medications—such as sleep aids, cholesterol-lowering drugs, or those anti-anxiety pills like David was taking—can mess with your memory. For example, sleeping pills act on brain pathways involved in the memory-making process. In findings released at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference 2019, older adults who said they used sleep medications “almost always” or “often” were 43% more likely to develop dementia compared with seniors who never or only rarely took them. Cholesterol is critical for healthy brain functioning and decreased levels can interfere with memory. And benzodiazepines for anxiety lower activity in areas of the brain involved in memory formation.

Solution: Talk to your doctor about treatment methods that don’t compromise brain activity and memory.

6. Untreated ADHD

A lack of focus is a common sign of ADD/ADHD, but many people don’t realize that forgetfulness can also be a symptom of the condition. Some of the hallmark symptoms of ADD/ADHD—including short attention span, distractibility, and disorganization—may contribute to problems with recall. Typically, people with this common condition struggle with short-term memory or working memory rather than long-term memory. A 2012 review in Clinical Psychology Review found that children with ADD/ADHD have statistically significant issues with working memory compared with healthy peers. Newer findings from a 2020 study suggest that it’s the attention-related encoding and retrieval processes that are compromised in individuals with ADD/ADHD. This results in an inability to prioritize important information.

Solution: Treating ADD/ADHD, naturally or with medication, may improve focus, attention, and organization.

7. Untreated Depression

Research, including a 2018 study in Psychological Medicine, shows that untreated depression significantly increases the risk of memory problems. In fact, depression doubles the risk of cognitive impairment in women and quadruples it in men, according to findings in the Archives of General Psychiatry. Some researchers believe that late-life depression may, in fact, be a precursor to Alzheimer’s disease. One-third of all patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) are reported to suffer from depression, which then accelerates the progression to full-blown dementia, according to a 2017 study in JAMA Psychiatry. 

Solution: Treating depression is critical to keep your memory sharp. Understand that depression is not just one thing. There are 7 types of the condition that each requires their own unique treatment plans. Knowing your type is key to finding the solutions that will help you feel happier and more hopeful.

Memory loss and other mental health issues can’t wait. At Amen Clinics, we’re here for you. We offer in-clinic brain scanning and appointments, as well as mental telehealth, clinical evaluations, and therapy for adults, teens, children, and couples. We also offer a comprehensive Memory Rescue Program to find the root causes of memory loss and treat them accordingly. Find out more by speaking to a specialist today at 888-288-9834 or visit our contact page here.

 

 

Ever wonder if the media your tweens and teens are watching influences their moods and mental health? Consider this. In the month following the release of the critically acclaimed but controversial Netflix show “13 Reasons Why” the suicide rate among Americans ages 10-17 jumped by nearly 30 percent! The series, which began streaming on Netflix in 2017, follows the story of a teenage girl who took her own life and left behind 13 audiocassettes for her friends that unravel the reasons why she did it.

The study, which was funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and appeared in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, analyzed five years of suicide rates among people between the ages of 10 to 64. Although there was no change in suicide rates for adults in the month after the show’s release, the rate among those under 18 rose dramatically. And it was particularly evident among boys.

These findings are troubling and should be a wake-up call for parents.

Young Brains Still Under Construction

Young people’s brains are still developing until their mid-20s, with girls’ brains typically developing faster than boys’ brains. In particular, the prefrontal cortex is the last area of the brain to mature at about age 25.  

This brain region is involved in judgment, planning, forethought, and impulse control. So, you can understand why teens—and especially male teens—are more likely to make rash decisions. Even car insurance companies know this. It’s why they charge more until a driver reaches their mid-20s.

Troubled Teen Brains

Sadly, suicide is a growing problem in our society. The overall rate of suicide has increased 33 percent since 1999. It is the second leading cause of death among people ages 10 to 34. And teens today are more likely to have suicidal thoughts or to suffer from depression compared with Millennials when they were the same age.

Reducing the Teen Suicide Risk

There are many things parents can do to help protect their kids from falling victim to suicide.

1. Monitor their media consumption.

Parents need to understand that what your kids and teens watch on television, online, and on social media can play a role in the development of their brain. Set limits, use parental controls, and talk to your kids about what they’re watching.

2. Don’t let adolescents smoke marijuana.

Research shows that using cannabis as an adolescent raises the risk of depression and increases suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts when they become young adults.

3. Encourage healthy sleep habits.

Did you know that teenagers who average just one hour less of sleep at night are 38 percent more likely to feel sad and hopeless, 42 percent more likely to consider suicide, and 58 percent more likely to attempt suicide?

4. Protect their brain.

Head injuries and concussions—even mild ones that are never diagnosed—increase the risk for suicide. Make sure young people always wear a helmet when riding a bike and don’t let your kids hit soccer balls with their heads.

5. Seek help for mental health issues.

If your child is experiencing symptoms of depression, anxiety, or ADD/ADHD, it’s critical to seek help for those issues. Be aware that medications don’t always work, and in some cases, they can make a teen worse. Getting a comprehensive evaluation is key to finding solutions that work.

If you are having suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255).

At Amen Clinics, we have helped thousands of teens and tweens overcome feelings of anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts, as well as to gain control over impulse control issues. We believe in using the least toxic, most effective treatments based on comprehensive evaluations that include brain imaging, lab work, and cognitive testing. If you have concerns about your teen, reach out today by calling 888-288-9834 or schedule a visit online.

 

Sleep is one of the absolute necessities in life, but some of us tend to sleep less than others. Over 70-million Americans suffer from sleep disorders, and for many, this may be due to parasomnia. Healthy sleep is a hallmark of a happy lifestyle, and parasomnia treatment could make a major impact on your life.

What is Parasomnia?

All of us have experienced uncontrolled movements during sleep, but not to the degree of parasomnia. Parasomnia definition: A set of sleep disorders caused by dysfunction in the brain and marked by abnormal, uncontrolled and repetitive nighttime movements. Most parasomnia types occur during deep sleep and they are more common in children. Sleep disorder specialists have found some parasomnia during REM sleep may be an early sign of serious illness such as Parkinson’s. In parasomnia, the mind triggers the body to move in various ways. Insomnia treatment is related to parasomnia treatment, as parasomnias cause you to lose an excessive amount of quality sleep.

Parasomnia Types

To treat sleep disorders, six main types of sleep disorders have been identified as well as five types of parasomnias. One of the most common sleep disorders is sleep apnea while the most variety in sleep disorders comes from parasomnias. Your body may experience a range of motor activities due to parasomnia. These types may also overlap where you experience more than one at a time.

1. Sleep Disorders of Arousal

Forced arousal during sleep may cause you to appear awake but in a confused state when speaking, or maybe a mixed state of both asleep and awake where you have not yet begun dreaming.

2. Sleepwalking

Sleepwalking symptoms may include your significant other not being able to wake you while you move, sitting up in bed and possibly leaving the bed, waking up unsure of how you left your bed, an inability to communicate while you appear to get out of bed, or talking and walking while still asleep.

3. Sleep Talking

Sleep talking may happen with one’s eyes open, appearing to others that you are awake, and is typically called confusional arousal. The meaning behind sleep talking is not clear and is typically not as serious as other parasomnias.

4. Sleep-Related Eating

Sleep-related eating can lead to obesity and many additional health concerns. This sleep disorder is strongly related to other sleep disorders, such as sleepwalking or may even be due to chronic pain preventing you from sleeping and turning to eating instead.

5. Sleep Terrors

With sleep terrors, your “fight or flight” response may cause dramatic movements, such as fighting and shouting in your sleep. All parasomnias are complex and may be due to brain abnormalities preventing you from a restful night’s sleep. Therefore, Amen Clinics is unique in conducting brain SPECT imaging for our patients. We believe it is of the utmost importance to view what is happening in the brain to aid in the diagnosis of brain disorders and mental illness. Each patient is evaluated through The Amen Clinics Method starting with your specific biological, psychological, social and spiritual influences. We apply neuropsychological testing, brain SPECT imaging at rest and during concentration, and conduct lab tests when necessary.

Parasomnia Treatment

For all parasomnias, Amen Clinics offers parasomnia treatment tailored to the individual. Our clinics focus on natural therapies first for the least toxic method of treating your parasomnia, and we sometimes recommend medication when necessary. Our goal is to offer you restful sleep without the use of sedatives or sleeping pills. In some cases, the parasomnia may be caused by a seizure, and in others, it could be triggered by sleep apnea. The parasomnia treatment will greatly depend on the individual’s root cause. One of the most common causes of parasomnias is sleep deprivation (quantity or quality of sleep), and this can be corrected by identifying and treating the underlying causes of disrupted sleep/insomnia. Sleep disorder specialists at Amen Clinics have access to many treatments and therapies to help treat your parasomnia. • Sleep cognitive and behavioral coaching • Hormone Replacement Therapy • Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy • IV Nutrient Therapy • Neurofeedback • Nutrition Counseling • Psychotherapy • Supplements and Medication • Hypnotherapy To learn more about parasomnia treatment with Amen Clinics, call us now at 888-288-9834 or make an appointment online. See the video below to hear more from Dr. Shane Creado, a sleep disorder specialist at Amen Clinics Chicago. Insomnia treatment is required for many people to enjoy a standard quality of living. Up to 35% of American adults and 69% of high school students don’t get adequate sleep at night. To find the right insomnia treatment, it’s important to find an expert who can understand the root cause of the problem. There could be an underlying condition which causes insomnia and must be treated before symptoms can resolve. Insomnia treatment calls for a personalized approach to understand all factors behind the patient’s dysfunction.

What is Insomnia?

Insomnia is excessive wakefulness of the brain. In modern sleep medicine, we view the problem as the brain feeling awake when it should not be. Insomnia is one of six sleep conditions treated at Amen Clinics. When someone experiences insomnia, it is often diagnosed alongside other disorders. Amen Clinics also treats the following sleep disorders: • Hypersomnia • Sleep Apnea (Sleep Disordered Breathing) • Parasomnias • REM (Rapid Eye Movement) Sleep Behavior Disorder • Circadian Rhythm Disorders Treating your sleep disorder is essential to helping with other chronic conditions.

Types of Insomnia

Researchers are still learning more about insomnia each day. By identifying the different types of insomnia, insomnia treatment is more successful and can target the individual’s root cause. According to the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience with research released in 2019, there are five types of insomnia: • Type 1: Patients scored high on neuroticism and feeling down or tense. • Type 2: Patients were less distressed and had high sensitivity to reward. • Type 3: Patients were less distressed and had low sensitivity to reward. • Type 4: Patients were even less distressed and responded to stressful life events with severe and long-lasting insomnia. • Type 5: Patients were even less distressed but were unaffected by stressful life events. Many patients who turn to Amen Clinics feel they have no hope left to find help for their illness. Our experts stay abreast on cutting edge research in each field and have the goal to give patients the best possible individualized care.

Insomnia Causes & Symptoms

Sleep disorders often overlap with psychiatric disorders and requires special attention. A common cause of insomnia is depression, and the two go hand in hand. For example, there’s a 20% concordance between sleep apnea and major depression. Children can also be affected by sleep apnea. It’s important to remember that depression is not just one thing. Treatment for depression relies on finding the root cause and can rely on a wide range of dysfunctions, including brain injury, bipolar disorder, childbirth, unhealthy diet, and much more. Just a few common causes of insomnia include the following: • Environmental factors (light, noise, temperature, etc.) • Stress (home, work, school, etc.) • Emotional distress (financial, occupational, familial, etc.) • Physical discomfort (Restless Legs Syndrome, chronic pain, etc.) • Medications • Irregular sleep schedule (shift work, jet lag, etc.) Just as depression is not one thing, insomnia is not one thing. By identifying the types of insomnia, experts have taken a step closer to identifying the root cause for each individual’s insomnia treatment.

Natural Treatments for Insomnia: Melatonin, Hypnosis & More

Natural ways to treat insomnia help to bring balance to your life and give relief. Melatonin can be helpful for aiding in sleep, but it is often misprescribed and wrongly dosed to treat insomnia. The correct way to use melatonin is to nudge the patient into sleep rather than “knock them out.” Magnesium is one type of vitamin to consider to help with nutritional support for sleep. It can be effective with calming the brain before sleep due to its help with activating GABA receptors. 5-HTP can help those who struggle with sleep due to worrying as it aids with creating serotonin in the brain. Amen Clinics only recommends medication when absolutely necessary, and always turns first to natural remedies while identifying the root cause. Our clinic is unique in using brain SPECT imaging to inform treatment for all patients. We us a four-pronged approach to evaluate the biological, psychological, social and spiritual influences in your life and review your brain scans for any abnormalities before recommending treatment. Ways Amen Clinics often treats insomnia may include: • Coaching • Hormone Replacement Therapy • Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy • IV Nutrient Therapy • Neurofeedback • Nutrition Counseling • Psychotherapy • Supplements and Medication • Hypnotherapy

How to Find Help for Insomnia: Insomnia Treatment Clinics

Sometimes, eight hours of sleep is not enough. Getting less than seven hours of sleep at night is associated with weight issues, hypertension, accidents, and marriage conflict. Amen Clinics offers personalized insomnia treatment with the care of our expert sleep medicine team. Find a clinic today and schedule your appointment. We have clinic locations in Atlanta, Chicago, Northern California, Orange County, CA, New York, Bellevue, WA, Washington D.C, and Los Angeles. When you hear the word “hypnosis,” your brain might conjure up the image of a magician at a carnival sideshow swinging a pocket watch in front of someone’s face and saying, “you’re getting very, very sleepy.” Unlike magic show hypnosis, medical hypnosis is a holistic treatment that focuses on supporting and restoring the mind.

What is Hypnotherapy?

Hypnotherapy is hypnosis that is guided by a clinical hypnotherapist. Hypnotherapy is a widely accepted tool in psychology. It is characterized by a heightened state of calmness that helps an individual quiet their emotional mind while increasing their focus. By inducing a trance-like state, a therapist can help a patient begin the recovery process. With professional guidance, individuals can focus on their pains and struggles, which allows them to implement changes or regain control of their life in targeted areas.

What Does Hypnotherapy Treat?

Hypnotherapy has been used as a treatment for a variety of conditions, such as: • Addiction • Anxiety • Chronic stress • Depression • Pain management • PTSD (posttraumatic stress disorder) • Sleep management • Weight loss Additionally, hypnosis can help reduce phobias, improve digestive issues, and manage negative thoughts and behaviors. Hypnosis is a powerful tool to help you gain mastery over your own mind. Just as negative thoughts can make a body sick, promoting positive and nurturing thoughts (via hypnosis) can help heal your mind.

Preparing for Hypnotherapy

Before starting your hypnosis sessions, your healthcare professional may recommend that you eliminate certain unhealthy routines or behaviors that might interfere with the treatment process. These harmful habits may include: lack of quality sleep, alcohol or drug abuse, excessive caffeine intake, and living a sedentary existence. A practitioner might also give some simple tips, like unplugging electronics before bed to allow for more restful and brain rejuvenating sleep.

What Happens During a Session?

A hypnosis session is typically conducted in a quiet, relaxed environment. A clinician will make sure the patient is comfortable and then begin the session. The therapist will ask the patient to reflect on troubling events from the past or current challenges. By changing a negative thought or experience to a positive one, a practitioner can help guide the patient along a path of recovery. Unlike the frequently inaccurate ways hypnotherapy is portrayed in movies and TV, a patient is never unwillingly forced into unconsciousness or some abstract dream state. A patient is awake and in control of their thought process the entire session. The patient can hear the therapist’s direction and can choose whether or not to implement those suggestions.

Hypnosis Case Study

Dr. Daniel Amen has used hypnosis with his patients for decades, and the results have been remarkable. He shares one fascinating case study from when he was an intern at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center: Many of my patients wanted sleeping pills. As you can imagine, it’s hard to sleep in a busy, noisy hospital. Before I gave them the pills, however, I asked if I could hypnotize them first. Almost everyone agreed, and it was very helpful. One of my patients, a decorated World War II hero, had Parkinson’s disease and when he was in hypnotic trance for sleep, his intensive tremors went away. When I told the attending neurologist about it the next morning, he thought I was crazy. So, I repeated the exercise in front of the doctor, and the astounding results became my first clinical paper.

Find the Right Help

Since many practitioners offer hypnosis services, it’s important to identify a hypnotherapist that is properly trained in the therapy. Aside from qualifications, it’s important that you find a hypnotherapist that you’re comfortable with to ensure the effectiveness of the therapy. It might be a good idea to schedule an initial consultation to see how well you “click” with the therapist to make sure it’s a good match. Hypnosis is a tool to help you (and other professionals) understand what’s going on inside your mind. It helps identify different therapies that might be helpful for you. Hypnosis is often accompanied by talk therapy, lab tests, and doctor’s visits. If you’d like to learn more about how hypnosis can help promote better quality sleep, manage food cravings, break bad habits or just help you understand personal struggles with deeper clarity, ask your healthcare professional if hypnotherapy is right for you. At Amen Clinics, we’re committed to treating our patients with the least toxic, most effective regimen possible, which may include treatments like hypnotherapy. Not all services are offered at each Amen Clinics location. Call us today at 888-288-9834 for availability at a clinic near you, or visit us online to schedule a visit. As a leader in the field of mental health, Amen Clinics has treated an array of psychiatric conditions over the past 30 years and has amassed the world’s largest database of brain scans at 300,000 and growing. Though many people have come to know about us due to the remarkable results we’ve seen with brain SPECT imaging, we also offer a wide range of therapy options at the nationwide Amen Clinics locations. One of the brain health and wellness services we are excited to recommend is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT).

What is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy?

Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is the most widely used practice for improving mental health. CBT is an evidence-based, action-oriented psychological treatment that focuses on the way people think (cognitive) and act (behavioral). CBT can help individuals cope with personal challenges by breaking them down into smaller areas to concentrate on. CBT addresses five fundamental areas: • Actions • Emotions • Physical feelings • Situations • Thoughts CBT focuses on correcting negative thinking patterns and developing accurate, more positive thinking skills, which in turn can change your behavior and help boost your mood, motivation and determination. In head-to-head studies, taking fish oil, exercising, and CBT has been found to be as effective as medication.

How Does It Work?

CBT sessions can occur one-on-one or in groups. During the first session, a therapist will make sure the patient is comfortable and then ask a few questions pertaining to the patient’s background and current situation. Future sessions may focus on various aspects of what the patient is struggling with, breaking down the problem into manageable parts and implementing practical solutions or strategies (which may include homework) to address those concerns and improve the patient’s situation.

Who Does It Treat?

CBT can benefit a wide range of psychiatric and mental health conditions, including: ADD/ADHD, anxiety, anger, autism spectrum disorders, bipolar, depression, eating/weight issues, OCD/ODD, pain management, PTSD, sleep dysregulation, traumatic brain injury (TBI) and toxic exposure.

What Are the Benefits?

CBT can help you: • Learn how to slow down and relax • Change your beliefs about yourself • Control anxious or negative thoughts • Prevent addiction relapse • Manage your anger • Cope with grief and loss • Deal with chronic pain • Resolve relationship challenges

CBT and Insomnia

Research has shown that CBT can help to relieve the effects of insomnia. CBT-I therapy seeks to undo the notion that sleep requires effort or that it needs to be fixed. CBT-I teaches patients to: • Establish a regular wake-up time and stick to it • Get out of bed during waking periods • Avoid eating, reading, watching TV or similar activities in bed • Refrain from taking daytime naps

CBT and PTSD

CBT helps people identify, challenge, and modify automatic negative thoughts (ANTs) and abnormal mental scenarios. People learn how to identify cognitive distortions, find evidences for and against thoughts, create alternatives, and finally reappraise their beliefs about themselves and the trauma by creating a new narrative of the traumatic event. CBT not only helps to reduce symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder PTSD, but also reverses the underlying biology of the disorder within the brain. If you experience reoccurring stress from traumatic memories, CBT combined with a psychotherapeutic treatment technique called EMDR (eye movement desensitization and reprocessing) may help.

How Many Sessions Are Recommended?

The number of sessions will be determined by the therapist. Sessions typically last either 30 or 60 minutes. For medication management, a 90-minute consult may be recommended.

Is it Safe?

CBT is non-invasive, has no side effects and is safe for people of all ages. Not all services are offered at each Amen Clinics location. Call us today at 888-288-9834 for availability at a clinic near you, or tell us more online for additional guidance. Do you frequently fall asleep during the day? Are you tired all the time, even when you get a good night’s sleep? Have others noticed that you snore or make choking noises when you sleep? If you answered yes to any of those questions, you might have sleep apnea.

What is Sleep Apnea?

Apnea is a medical term that refers to a pause in breathing. Those who suffer with sleep apnea stop breathing 10 to 60 times every hour and those stoppages can last between 10 to 20 seconds. Sleep apnea is characterized by the upper airways closing off during sleep, causing a brief interruption of breathing and, often, loud snoring. Frequently waking up at night from lack of oxygen can rob you of restful sleep and leave you feeling sluggish, inattentive, and forgetful throughout the day. Sleep apnea costs the U.S. economy $87 billion a year. Common symptoms include: • Loud snoring with snorts or gasps • Periods of not breathing during sleep • Morning tiredness and/or headaches • Significant daytime drowsiness • Attention and/or memory problems • Mood issues and irritability What’s particularly harmful about sleep apnea is that when air can’t reach the lungs, it also can’t circulate to the rest of the body, including the brain. Chronic lack of sleep is a serious condition that can lead to an irreversible loss of brain cells. If you have sleep apnea, you could be starving your brain of oxygen and not even know it.

Sleep Apnea Stats:

Sleep apnea affects between 12 to 18 million Americans every year. Sleep apnea doubles your risk for having a stroke and triples your risk of dementia and depression. People who are obese have four times the risk of developing sleep apnea than people who are a normal weight. And sorry guys, men are twice as likely to have sleep apnea as women. Long-term complications of sleep apnea can include an increased risk for heart disease, stroke, diabetes, obesity, and memory problems. Sleep problems also increase your risk of developing psychiatric disorders. Chronic sleep loss can lead to car accidents, poor job performance, low grades in school and higher susceptibility to other mental and physical conditions. Since missing out on sleep can have a devastating impact on your life, here are 5 ways to avoid the dangers of sleep apnea:

Maintain a Healthy Weight

Being overweight increases your chances of developing sleep apnea since fat deposits around the upper airway can obstruct the natural breathing process. One of the best ways to maintain a healthy weight is to eat a diet high in fiber and healthy fats. Also, using adaptogen herbs, such as ginseng and Rhodiola, can help with conditions that lead to weight gain (like thyroid issues, leaky gut and cellular toxicity).

Humidify Your Room

Sleeping with a humidifier in the room has been known to decrease snoring and congestion. Using essential oils in a humidifier, such as eucalyptus oil (which is an active ingredient in Vicks VapoRub), can help to open nasal passages and improve breathing while you sleep.

Avoid Substances

Don’t drink any caffeinated beverages and avoid chocolate, nicotine, and alcohol in the late afternoon and evening. One reason why people get lower-quality sleep after drinking alcohol is that it blocks REM sleep, which is often considered the most restorative type of sleep. With less REM sleep, you’re likely to wake up feeling groggy and unfocused.

Don’t Take Naps

Taking naps is one of the biggest mistakes you can make if you have trouble sleeping. Daytime naps will disrupt your nighttime sleep cycle.

Adjust Your Sleep Position

Sleeping on your back tends to make snoring worse because the tongue slides toward the back of the throat. Sleeping on your side with a pillow that keeps your head slightly elevated is usually recommended to reduce snoring and the symptoms of sleep apnea. If you aren’t getting enough sleep, or if you’re not feeling refreshed after sleeping, Amen Clinics can help. Our goal is to help you achieve and maintain peaceful sleep without the use of sleeping pills or sedatives. One of the best ways we can improve the quality of your sleep is with brain SPECT imaging. If you or someone you know is struggling with the effects of sleep apnea, find out how we can help improve the quality of your sleep. Call us today at 888-288-9834 or visit us online to schedule a visit. Here are some alarming statistics that may keep you up at night… 35% of American adults and 69% of high school students don’t get adequate sleep. It’s estimated that as many as 70 million Americans have trouble sleeping and the problem is progressively getting worse with the proliferation of gadgets and bad habits. Another unsettling fact is that sleep problems increase your risk of developing psychiatric disorders. People who suffer from insomnia are four times more likely to develop major depression compared to those with healthy sleeping patterns. Sleep problems lead to anxiety disorders over 25% of the time and depression over 67% of the time. Skimping on sleep can affect your health in more ways than you might imagine. Getting less than 6 hours of sleep each night has been associated with lower overall brain activity, which affects productivity, physical safety, and maintaining a healthy weight. When you miss out on sleep, your brain pays the price. Insomnia is characterized by difficulty falling and staying asleep and is linked to concentration and memory issues, excessive tiredness, irritability, stress and other health risks.

Insomnia can be caused by:

• Environmental factors (light, noise, temperature, etc.) • Stress (home, work, school, etc.) • Emotional distress (financial, occupational, familial, etc.) • Physical discomfort (Restless Legs Syndrome, chronic pain, etc.) • Medications • Irregular sleep schedule (shift work, jet lag, etc.) If you are tired of being tired, here are ten practical ways you can prevent the harmful effects of insomnia:

Maintain a Regular Sleep Schedule

Regardless of how much sleep you got the night before, go to bed at the same time each night and wake up at the same time each morning—even on weekends.

Create a Restful Environment

Make sure your bedroom is comfortable. Adjust the temperature so that your room isn’t too hot or cold. Also, keep your room as dark as possible while sleeping.

Don’t Take Naps

Taking naps is one of the biggest mistakes you can make if you experience insomnia. Daytime naps will disrupt your nighttime sleep cycle.

Use Sound Therapy

Soothing nature sounds, soft music, wind chimes, white noise makers or even a fan can induce a peaceful mood and lull you to sleep.

Technology-Free Bedroom

Remove all electronics from your bedroom and turn off all devices an hour before bedtime to allow enough time for your brain to unwind. Create a relaxing environment, free from the distractions of the outside world.

Don’t Eat Before Bedtime

Food is fuel, so don’t eat for at least two hours before going to bed. Late night snacking is unhealthy and prepares your body to stay up rather than shut down for the night.

Get Regular Exercise

This is very beneficial for insomnia. However, don’t exercise within four hours of the time you go to bed—vigorous exercise late in the evening may energize you and keep you awake.

Beware of Stimulants

Don’t drink any caffeinated beverages and avoid chocolate, nicotine, and alcohol in the late afternoon and evening.

Move Your Clock

If you wake up in the middle of the night, refrain from looking at the clock. Checking the time can make you feel anxious, which will only make it harder to go back to sleep.

Practice Good Sleep Hygiene

Though often associated with cleanliness, hygiene also applies to behavioral practices designed to sustain optimal health. Sleep hygiene is extremely important for a person’s brain health, physical health, and overall well-being. Follow these proven strategies to improve your sleep hygiene. If you aren’t getting enough sleep, or if you’re not feeling refreshed after sleeping, Amen Clinics can help. Our goal is to help you achieve and maintain peaceful sleep without the use of sleeping pills or sedatives. One of the best ways we can improve the quality of your sleep is with brain SPECT imaging. SPECT can specifically help people with insomnia or sleep disorders by: • Discovering if there are co-occurring or underlying conditions that need treatment • Identifying areas of low activity and blood flow • Helping patients gain a better understanding of their brain through visuals • Determining if existing treatments are working properly Insomnia is hazardous to your health. We can help improve the quality of your sleep. Call us today at 888-288-9834 or visit us online to schedule a visit.