“Can antidepressants help with insomnia?”

Yes, absolutely. Depression is among the most common causes of insomnia and treating depression can often greatly help insomnia. Now the other part of this question is of course, is it appropriate to treat people without depression with antidepressants? That would be an off-label use. It has not been studied or approved by the FDA. It is however not uncommon. That decision should be discussed carefully with the treating physician. The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends behavioral therapy as the first intervention for insomnia without associated depression or other psychiatric causes. The technique is called cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia.

Sedating antidepressants have been used for insomnia in depressed and anxious patients for a very long time. In non-depressed or anxious patients, they probably don’t work as well.