Sleeping well is a sign of keeping a dozen of health problems at bay Youre safeguarding yourself from mental health problems keeping your heart healthy allowing yourself to work with a 100 charged mind and the list of benefits goes on
But wait
What if you are not taking this mandatory time off for your body Are you compromising your sleep for the sake of money a job or some worries Its an alarming situation that needs your attention immediately
Imagine the opposite scenario when you are not sleeping enough Youre lacking focus at work feeling lazy all the time youre eating schedule is disrupted and getting all those gloomy feels that you never expected And it can make you hit the rock bottom
The Invisible Link between Sleep and Psychiatric Disorders
People with sleep troubles are mostly suffering from mental health problems too Taking this vice versa psychiatric disorder patients are having troubles with their sleep This makes us think about the connectivity between sleep hygiene and mental health
The brain activities are fluctuating while youre asleep In other words the sleep cycle is formed of many sleep stages that increase and decrease in sleeping mode Digging this deep sleep cycle is divided into two stages REM NREM sleep When youre in REM sleep the brains activity is at its peak and so intense dreaming happens here In the case of NREM sleep quick bursts of energy can be experienced but the brains activity slows down
What you should notice here is your brain is still active when youre sleeping The thoughts churned here trigger better thinking memory and learning Many research revealed that your brains activity during sleep has profound effects on your mental and emotional health
Your brains capabilities of memorizing things and processing emotional information are facilitated well when you get sufficient sleep It influences positive mood and emotional activities
In the opposite scenario when you are not getting enough sleep suicidal thoughts and behaviors mood swings negative emotions etc kick in Thus we can see that the relationship between sleep disorder and mental health is bidirectional Fluctuation in one affects the other
Sleep disorders can be found as a cause and consequence of mental health problems
What happens to you when you have sleep problems
A series of mental health problems may knock you down if youre having sleep problems Here are the common ones you should know
Depression
Anxiety disorders
Seasonal affective disorder
Bipolar disorder
ADHD
Schizophrenia
Autism Spectrum Disorder
To say more sleep deprived people attract negativity They start feeling the struggle to make decisions and feel lonely Things seem to get worse only As a result family life and work life are disturbed
Moreover OSA may worsen the conditions Obstructive sleep apnea aka OSA is an aspect of sleep linking to mental health conditions It is the pause in breathing pace during sleep time and the lowered oxygen levels happening to the body while asleep It creates sleep disturbances and fragmentation
Psychiatric patients experience OSA more frequently It disturbs their physical health also leads to serious mental distress
Is sleep disorder responsible for mental illness
Lets have a look at the data before blaming sleep disorder as an underlying cause for mental illness
10 18 of adults in the USA are suffering from chronic sleep problems
65 90 of adults having depression also have sleep disorders
50 of Anxiety disorder patients suffer from sleep disorders
20 25 of children with ADHD experience sleep troubles
Help Yourself Treat Sleep Disorders Resume to High Quality Lifestyle
How long can you stay sleep deprived This lack of sleep will drain you out Look at the broad spectrum youll ultimately be living a low quality life So what will be the crucial steps you should undertake once you know that sleep disorder or mental illness is hurting like hell
Consulting the doctor will help you discover some important aspects of sleep life It will boost your confidence that you can still bring your life back on track with natural supplements like Modalert Modvigil that are not sleeping pills but brain boosters
Next you may be recommended to make some little lifestyle changes as follows
Regular exercising for at least 30 40 minutes
Avoiding tea coffee and excess alcohol consumption before bedtime
Trying to maintain the sleep routine with the same sleep and wake up timings
Using bed only for sleep or intimacy
Meditation before bedtime
Listening to relaxing music to calm your mind
Not worrying about things unnecessarily
Such little lifestyle adjustments can make a huge difference to your sleep hygiene If youre doing a few of these already you know what it means
Final Thoughts
Aligning your life around the bodys biological clock could be one of the best things you can ever do to yourself One of the medications thatll help support your intentions is Waklert
When sleep disturbances become a common part of your life you should rush to normalize them first Everything else will fall into place automatically Also your mental health problems can be cured effectively if you start treatment from sleeps end
If you are suffering from restless nights and not feeling that the sleep you do get is restorative it may be time to talk with your primary care physician or a sleep specialist about your treatment options No one should have to suffer from a sleep disorder At The Alaska Sleep Clinic our goal is to help all Alaskans achieve regular quality sleep every night of the week
If you want to discuss your symptoms with one of our qualified staff members to see if a sleep study or cognitive behavioral therapy is right for you click on the link below and one of our sleep educators will contact you shortly
The Alaska Sleep Clinic would like to thank Dr Angie Randazzo for her contributions to this article
Angie Randazzo PhD is a licensed clinical psychologist at St Lukes Sleep Medicine and Research
Center St Louis MO She received her doctorate from the University of Missouri St Louis and her masters from Southern Illinois University She began her sleep medicine career in 1989 when she joined James K Walsh PhD at the Sleep Disorders Center at the former Deaconess Hospital in St LouisShe began treating sleep disordered patients at the Sleep Medicine and Research Center at St Lukes Hospital in 1993 She has 25 years of experience treating all types of sleep disorders including insomnia delayed sleep phase sleep apnea shift work and daytime fatiguesleepiness using behavioral techniques Behavioral interventions target behaviors and thinking that maintain or worsen sleep disturbances and the techniques teach patients self management skills to improve their sleep and resume healthy normal sleep
Dr Randazzos primary research interests include insomnia clinical pharmacology sleep deprivation and the relationship of sleep and behavior She has conducted more than 100 clinical research trials and she is the author of 18 publications on the topic of sleep including sleep restriction in children for which she received the 1997 American Sleep Disorders Association Young Investigator Award
Impaired sleep can seriously affect your quality of life and productivity Behavioral changes implemented under the guidance of an experienced clinician can improve sleep quality and help you feel more alert and functional on a regular basis Sleep is a third of your life make it count
Alaska Sleep Clinic is the most comprehensive multisite sleep lab in Alaska with clinics in Anchorage Wasilla Fairbanks and Soldotna and we continue to expand our services to those with sleep disorders Angie Randazzo PhD is a specialist in cognitive behavioral therapy CBT with expertise in sleep disorders No other CBT sleep specialist provides care in the state of Alaska She is available to Alaska Sleep Clinics patients via telemedicine through SleepTM
