Hi, thanks for that, and very sorry to hear about your problems with depression.
That paragraph you quoted:
"Physical activity is highly beneficial for improving symptoms of depression, anxiety and distress across a wide range of adult populations, including the general population, people with diagnosed mental health disorders and people with chronic disease. Physical activity should be a mainstay approach in the management of depression, anxiety and psychological distress."
is the one I was referring to. What I had written Robert is he mis-read it and misstated it. Nowhere in that paragraph or anywhere else in the study does it even IMPLY that physical activity is MORE effective that medication and therapy.
In fact, nowhere does the study indicate that, if you had tested two separate groups, one with only exercise, and one with only medication and/or therapy, that exercise would be equally effective.
I even granted him, there are some studies suggesting that for MILD or possibly MODERATE depression, 30 minutes of exercise "could be" as effective as medication, but most definitely not for severe depression nor for anxiety.
All the study says is exercise - IF YOU CAN DO IT (as you say, it's VERY hard for depressed people to exercise regularly, which unfortunately Robert left out of the article) should be PART of a comprehensive treatment program for anxiety and sleep.
Robert doesn't appear to have responded but I would say, since he is not a professional in these areas, it remains highly irresponsible not to modify the title and claims of the article he wrote, since they are simply wrong.
As far as cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT I - which, full disclosure, I'm certified in), (1) it only works for about 50% of the people who try it (which is a better success rate than anti depressants, but that's another story!); (2) it should come with a comprehensive program of sleep hygiene, which from what I've seen, it rarely does; (this includes a full program of exercise and healthy eating as well as exposure to sunlight, carefully timed intake of caffeine, tobacco and alcohol if you partake of them, a very carefully developed "wind-down" period before sleep and more; (3) it is generally NOT applicable to people with severe anxiety and depression diagnoses; at least, without very careful adaptation to their needs; (4) is supposed to be modified based on individual needs in the case of toddlers, women going through menopause, people with sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome and other diagnosed sleep disorders, issues related to aging, shift work, and more. (5) anyone doing CBT I at this point who doesn't not incorporate the extensive research showing that mindfulness (when well taught, which is rather rare) dramatically improves the effectiveness of CBT I - if they don't include that they're not being responsible;
(6) AND finally, there are extensive studies of yogic practices (related to what is known as "yoga nidra") that may be the most effective sleep aids available, but which almost nobody doing CBT I OR teaching mindfulness tends to include as part of a comprehensive sleep program.
Best wishes to you and I hope you find more relief from your suffering. Maybe one day you will recover more of your athletic abilities from your earlier days!