Rest is important for the mind — which is why you can feel so foggy and unfocused after a few nights of bad sleep. However, it is not just about fatigue. Sleep deprivation can have major effects on mental health, from focus to mood.
Here, we’ll explore the importance of sleep for mental health. For other sleep and wellness tips, check out Why you might want to stop sleeping with your pet And When do you replace your mattress.
Why is sleep important for the brain?
In general, we should all have at least seven hours sleep every night. However, life can be busy, nights get late, and early warnings creep in. According to the Cleveland Clinic, 70 million Americans You suffer from sleep disorders such as insomnia.
This leads to more than just fatigue. Found the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention sleep deprivation It makes you 2.5 times more likely to deal with mental distress.
How does sleep affect mental health in such an important way? It all comes down to what you have The brain does while resting. (Hint: It’s a lot.) As you fall asleep, your brain:
It facilitates communication between nerve cells.
Detoxifies.
Process what you learned during the day.
Without enough sleep, you will lose out brain plasticity, which means that your brain can’t adjust to stimuli as well as it should. This brings us back to the relationship between mental health and sleep. When your brain can’t consolidate memories or learn new things, you don’t feel mental peace.
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Six ways sleep deprivation affects mental health
Let’s dive into specific ways that lack of sleep translates into mental health challenges.
1. Mood swings
Prolonged sleep deprivation affects your ability to do so Regulate your emotions. You may have experienced the following scenario: You slept terribly the night before, and the next day you feel like you might cry or explode with anger.
Studies show that lack of sleep negatively affects our mood. It can make you more prone to anger And emotionally Generally. These mood changes don’t just make you feel groggy as you go about your day. can affect The ability to make a decisionalso.
2017 study She found that sleep deprivation makes us more sensitive to stressful stimuli and emotional arousal. Sleep is an integral part of our ability to manage our emotions and daily stressors.
2. Perception of the world
When you don’t get the sleep you need, it becomes more difficult to interact with the world — because it is. Go for a long time without sleep and you can even start hallucination. Sleepless nights directly affect how you perceive what is happening around you. Sleep deprivation can change how you interpret situations, and thus how you respond to them.
Sleep affects how we see the world, too. One study showed that not getting enough sleep can make a difference How do we see color?.
3. Dealing with stress
Sleep and stress have an interesting relationship. Being stressed can make it difficult to get quality sleep. But lack of sleep can make you more stressed.
In a recent survey, the American Psychological Association found that 21% of adults They reported a slight increase in their stress levels when they did not get enough sleep. If you’re already stressed, the problem is compounded. Forty-five percent of the people who reported high levels of stress in the study said that lack of sleep increased their stress the most.
Many participants reported other adverse effects of stress causing poor sleep, including:
Laziness (53%)
irritability (38%).
Difficulty concentrating (29%)
Lack of motivation (25%)
4. Focus and brain fog
sleep deprivation Makes it more difficult So your brain can form memories, maintain focus, and learn new things. That tired feeling that comes with a lack of quality sleep often translates into brain fog that can interrupt your day.
In fact, if you have trouble concentrating, check your sleep habits. Research has shown Sleep deprivation can make your reaction times longer and make it harder for you to pay attention.
Lack of sleep is also associated Attention deficit/hyperactivity disturbance. The relationship between ADHD and sleep is very complex and two-way: People with ADHD may experience restless sleep, and those who struggle to get quality sleep may experience symptoms of ADHD.
5. Hormone disorder
As mentioned before, sleep does not necessarily mean low energy for your body and mind. In fact, your system uses the time you sleep to do some important work. It includes some major hormonal processes.
Specifically, all of these hormones go to work while you are sleeping:
growth hormones
melatonin (controls the sleep-wake cycle)
Thyroid stimulating hormone
cortisol (stress hormone)
Hormones that affect your appetite
Since your hormones control a wide range of things in your body — many of which directly affect how you feel — this is important for both your mental and physical health.
The flip side of this is also true. A hormonal imbalance can cause sleep problems, which is a particularly common problem in women Going through menopause. If you’re dealing with persistent insomnia, talk to your doctor. In some cases, correcting the hormonal imbalance leads to consistent, high-quality sleep.
6. Contribute to and exaggerate mental illnesses
There is a clear relationship between lack of sleep and mental health. But if you’re already struggling with a mental illness—or even dealing with some of the symptoms of one—sleep becomes even more important.
Why? Let’s look at the circular relationship between sleep and some specific mental illnesses:
Anxiety: You can’t Get rid of anxiety Through adequate sleep, but rest is certainly important. Insomnia can Operator Symptoms of anxiety. On the other hand, anxiety can Make it harder to fall asleep.
Depression: sleep disturbances are a hallmark symptom Major depressive disorderwhile insomnia can Step up risk of depression.
seasonal affective disorder: sad It causes most people to experience symptoms of depression in the winter (although some experience them during other seasons). When medical professionals diagnose someone with social anxiety disorder, they look out for it sleep problems Because it is one of the main symptoms.
Bipolar disorder: This condition can wreak havoc in your sleep cycles, whether you’re having a manic or depressive episode. This is especially bad because sleep disorders can trigger your symptoms worst.
Borderline Personality Disorder: Working on your sleep becomes even more important when you have it BPDThis condition makes you more prone to sleep problems, but sleep deprivation also exacerbates symptoms.
If you’re dealing with persistent sleep problems combined with symptoms of a mental health condition, talk to a professional.
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