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For both insomnia and depression, we’ll see replete and deficient symptoms.

For replete-type insomnia, it’s either 龙胆泻肝汤 or 黄连温胆汤. Both tackle heat, but the former is more suitable for a type A personality - easy to anger, with fire symptoms in the head, eyes and tongue. The latter is more for a person with damp in the middle jiao and a propensity to phlegm accumulation.

For replete-type depression, it’s all gotta do with stuckness. 柴胡疏肝汤，逍遥散 and 丹栀逍遥散 will be considered and chosen depending on (1) whether or not the spleen needs strengthening and; (2) the amount of heat expressed.

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Now, the main story is this: in both illnesses, we see the same two deficient patterns: 心脾两虚 (use 归脾汤) and 心肾阴虚 （use 六味地黄丸，交泰丸 or 天王补心丹 depending) .

The following is a possible way to link things together: depression causes insomnia and its associated deficiencies.

What follows are two hypothetical assertions:

• depression causes lack of sleep.
  • some chinese herbs/prescriptions, when applied to a situation of deficiency, are able to alleviate the consequences derived from the lack of sleep. These consequences are broadly divided into spleen or kidney deficiencies.

• excessive thinking is a important reason why depression and insomnia are able to continue its onslaught.
  • some chinese herbs/presciptions, when applied to a situation of deficiency, are able to affect the mind and to cause it to stop thinking so much, hence reducing depression and insomnia.

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Of course there’s also the 心胆气虚  pattern for deficient-type insomnia. It uses 安神定志丸 and 酸枣仁汤 to tonify the heart-mind, while clearing heat if the need arises.