Mental Health and Sleep - Ms. Zehewa Swada A, II B.Sc Psychology (2024 - 2025), MKJC

HOW IS MENTAL HEALTH RELATED TO SLEEP?

Brain activity fluctuates during sleep, increasing and decreasing during different sleep stages that make up the sleep cycle. Each stage plays a role in brain health, allowing activity in different parts of the brain to ramp up or down and enabling better thinking, learning, and memory. Research has also uncovered that brain activity during sleep has profound effects on emotional and mental health.

SLEEP AND SPECIFIC MENTAL HEALTH:

The way that sleep and mental health are intertwined becomes even more apparent by reviewing what is known about how sleep is tied to a number of specific mental health conditions and neurodevelopmental disorders.

 HEALTH PROBLEMS:

●   DEPRESSION: Historically, sleeping problems were seen as a consequence of depression, but growing evidence suggests that poor sleep may induce or exacerbate depression. The difficulty in identifying clear cause and effect reflects what is believed to be a bidirectional relationship in which sleep problems and depressive symptoms are mutual

●   SEASONAL AFFECTIVE DISORDER: seasonal affective disorder is a subtype of depression that most often affects people during times of the year with reduced daylight hours. For example, people in northern climates may experience seasonal affective disorder during the fall and winter.

●   ANXIETY DISORDER: Anxiety disorders have a strong association with sleeping problems. Worry and fear contribute to a state of hyperarousal in which the mind is racing, and hyperarousal is considered to be a central contributor to insomnia  Sleep problems may become an added source of worry, creating anticipatory anxiety at bedtime that makes it harder to fall asleep.

● BIPOLAR DISORDER: people with bipolar disorder, sleep patterns change considerably depending on their emotional state. During manic periods, they usually feel less need to sleep, but during depressed periods, they may sleep excessively.

●   SCHIZOPHRENIA : Schizophrenia is a mental health disorder characterized by a difficulty in differentiating between what is and is not real. People with schizophrenia are more likely to experience insomnia and circadian rhythm disorders. Sleeping problems may be exacerbated by medication that are used to treat schizophrenia

●  ADHD : ADHD is a neurodevelopmental disorder that involves reduced attention span and increased impulsiveness. ADHD is usually diagnosed in children but it may last into adulthood and is sometimes only formally diagnosed when someone is already an adult. 

● AUTISM SPECTRUM DISORDER: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a term that encompasses several neurodevelopmental conditions affecting communication and social interaction. These conditions are usually diagnosed early in childhood and may persist in adulthood. People with ASD have a higher prevalence of sleep problems including insomnia and sleep- disorder breathing.

WAYS TO IMPROVE BOTH MENTAL HEALTH AND SLEEP:

This multifaceted relationship between sleep and mental health makes for complex connections between sleep and psychiatric disorders, but it also means that treatment for both issues can go hand-in-hand. Steps to improve sleep may even form part of a preventive mental health strategy.

COGNITIVE BEHAVIORAL THERAPY:

Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) describes a type of counseling known as talk therapy. It works by examining patterns of thinking and working to reformulate negative thoughts in new ways. For many patients, help from a trained counselor to reframe their thinking can meaningfully improve both their sleep and mental state.

IMPROVE SLEEP HABITS:

A common cause of sleeping problems is poor sleep hygiene. Stepping up sleep hygiene by cultivating habits and a bedroom setting that are conducive to sleep can go a long way in reducing sleep disruptions.

CONCLUSION:

Sleep loss is likely to increase susceptibility to mental illness, as seen through anxiety and depression, decreased positive mood, poor emotion regulation, negative perception of neutral stimuli and poor problem solving.

A Blog By

Ms. ZEHEWA SWADA A

II B.Sc PSYCHOLOGY

PG DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY

MARUDHAR KESARI JAIN COLLEGE FOR WOMEN (AUTONOMOUS)

VANIYAMBADI