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Already known to sleep enough to bring many benefits to the body. Conversely, lack of sleep is also associated with many health problems. Most recently, sleep deprivation is associated with depression and anxiety disorders. This is revealed by a recent study that says that people who sleep less than eight hours suggested tend to have repeated negative thoughts.
Depression and insomnia do have a close relationship. However, if we previously thought if insomnia occurs because we are depressed, many recent studies that just show if insomnia or lack of sleep can actually be a trigger for the emergence of depression. How did this happen?
Health expert who is a professor of psychology from the University of London named Alice Gregory mentions if if we lack sleep in the night, then we will have problems in controlling emotions. If this happens over and over again, then we will also experience depression problems. According to him, there is research done to study the amygdala area, the part of the brain that plays a major role in controlling the emotional level and anxiety of a person, and see the relation to the habit of sleep deprivation. The results of this study indicate the fact that if a person is sleep deprived, the amygdala response tends to increase if we give a negative emotion picture. This increase in response is even more significant when compared with those who sleep well.
Those who are sleep deprived also tend to experience significant decreases in emotional control and ultimately make them more vulnerable to depression. The results of this study also mentions if either lack of sleep or depression will be able to make the immune system decreases and triggers inflammation in the body.
Gregory mentioned if there is to improve the quality of sleep, then we would be better at preventing and overcoming the problem of depression. This study also mentions that the better we overcome insomnia, the more depressed symptoms of depression and anxiety. Another study was also conducted to study whether by overcoming the problem of sleep deprivation we can overcome other psychiatric problems.
Other findings published in the Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry show that lack of sleep can really make us sad. The study also refers to rest as a primary treatment option for certain mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety disorders.
For the study, the researchers looked at the sleeping habits of 52 participants who had moderate to high repetitive thinking. Furthermore, they were assessed using a psychological test known as the Perspective Thinking Questionnaire.
Participants were asked to see pictures and photographs designed to trigger negative emotional responses, such as weapons and knives, and neutral and positive images. The researchers then studied the participants' eye movements, paying particular attention to how quickly participants took their eyes when there were disturbing images.
As a result, people who sleep less (sleep less than 8 hours a day) are slower to turn away from annoying images. The researchers also concluded that this problem can be more severe because people who are sleep deprived may also have difficulty in diverting their attention from negative thoughts or ideas.
Unfortunately, the potential relationship between depression and sleep deprivation is not fully known. According to the National Sleep Foundation, insomniacs are 10 times more likely to be depressed than people who sleep soundly. But scientists see this as a complicated relationship to conclude that sleep can make you feel sad.
If lack of sleep does contribute to depression and anxiety disorders, then overcoming sleep disorders is the key to alleviating this mental state as well.
Given these facts, it's good we start to set up better sleep time so we do not easily experience depression.
