Chronotherapy for Depressive Episodes

Chronotherapy involves three different interventions. Sleep deprivation/wake therapy will be conducted for 34 hours. To assist wake and to ensure that the participants adhere to the sleep deprivation, outpatients will be admitted to a one-night stay at the inpatient ward that is connected to the outpatient clinic at Nidaros DPS. Patients already admitted to inpatient treatment will be temporary transferred to the ward selected to oversee the sleep deprivation. Upon discharge, participants are encouraged to adhere to the sleep schedule which presents the sleep-wake phase advancement and later stabilization of the sleep-wake phase. Light therapy is provided for half an hour every day from day four in the study. In addition to the chronotherapeutic interventions, the participants will receive treatment as usual (TAU) with their assigned therapist.

Participants allocated to receive TAU alone, will receive standard treatment for a depressive episode in the outpatient or the inpatient clinic. This study will not give restrictions or guidelines on how this treatment should be performed. The TAU-group will receive the treatment the responsible therapist considers and evaluate best fitting in the situation. Typical interventions administered in therapy for a depressive episode includes medication, cognitive behavioral therapy, and other psychotherapies.