Originally presented 16 October 2019
This webinar explores the bidirectional relationship between sleep and substance use disorders clinicians may encounter in their practice. First, we provide a grounding in prevalence rates of these disorders among Service members and Veterans in the context of military culture as a contributing factor. We consider how the brain regulates normal sleep in order to inform how both abnormal sleep can impact substance use disorder etiology and pathology while substance use can impact sleep regulation and parameters. To mitigate this reciprocally negative relationship, we recommend beneficial sleep-focused screening practices for patients with substance use disorders and identify gold standard treatment recommendations to which clinicians should refer patients with sleep disorder comorbidities.
For a brief summary of the course, from the presenter Dr. Diana Dolan, you can listen to the Bottom Line Up Front (B.L.U.F.) by clicking here.
Learning Objectives:
- Describe the prevalance of insomnia and sleep disorders experienced by military personnel.
- Anticipate at least two adverse impacts of the presence of a sleep disorder on substance use pathology.
- Interpret a sleep-focussed screener in patients with substance abuse.
