{"id":8843,"date":"2020-09-29T17:22:06","date_gmt":"2020-09-29T15:22:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/?p=8843"},"modified":"2021-12-08T10:40:10","modified_gmt":"2021-12-08T09:40:10","slug":"anxiety-and-sleep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/disturbmenot.co\/anxiety-and-sleep\/","title":{"rendered":"Explaining the Deep Relationship Between Anxiety and Sleep"},"content":{"rendered":"
Imagine going to bed joyfully fatigued. You comfortably hug your pillow as you leave the day behind. And then you rest, calmly and refreshingly. Sound familiar? Unfortunately, such a scenario is less likely to happen if you have <\/span>anxiety and sleep<\/span> issues. Or maybe it was just a hard night?<\/span><\/p>\n Well, hard nights come and go\u2014the problem is when they stick with us. Sleep deprivation can cause us to feel irritated and chronically tired.<\/span><\/p>\n Up to <\/span>18% of healthy adults<\/span><\/a> have chronic insomnia, and <\/span>31.2% of adult Americans<\/span><\/a> experience symptoms of anxiety. As it happens, these two are interrelated by more than just numbers. We set out to examine this connection and establish causality. As we dove deep into the research, certain patterns emerged. Read on, and see what we\u2019ve concluded.<\/span><\/p>\n We\u2019re aiming to break the stigma of anxiety as a terrible psychiatric disorder. Not to overstate, but this condition is rapidly becoming a constant companion in the modern world. However, with the right help, there are ways to keep it from holding you back.<\/span><\/p>\n In terms of symptom severity, serious types of anxiety are classified within the <\/span>DSM-5 psychiatric criteria<\/span><\/a>. On the other hand, the quieter forms of anxiety may be virtually undetectable. In fact, these underlying symptoms often cause both physical and behavioral issues that fail to be diagnosed, thus undermining one\u2019s quality of life.<\/span><\/p>\n Regardless of the severity of symptoms, the relationship between <\/span>anxiety and sleep deprivation<\/span> is ever-present. To understand its complexity, we need to further discuss both disorders.<\/span><\/p>\n Although commonly referred to as the \u201caugmented sense of fear,\u201d anxiety is experienced through a convoluted mixture of physical and psychological experiences. According to the <\/span>evidence<\/span><\/a>, the following includes the most common signs and symptoms of anxiety:<\/span><\/p>\n A <\/span>study<\/span><\/a> from 2012, which described the connection between the <\/span>lack of sleep and anxiety<\/span>, stated that as much as 45.5% of people with diagnosed anxiety disorder have chronic sleep problems.<\/span><\/p>\n What\u2019s more, up to <\/span>33.7% of the population<\/span><\/a> has some form of anxiety. An interesting fact is that the <\/span>prevalence deteriorates<\/span><\/a> with aging. Namely, only 15.3% of those older than 60 have symptoms, regardless of the additional pathology. On the other hand, more than 35% of those younger than 60 have an anxiety diagnosis.<\/span><\/p>\n Anxiety can be conditioned with other illnesses, such as depression, heart attack, or mood disorders.<\/span><\/p>\n However, the most common external causes are the following:<\/span><\/p>\n Further reading on <\/span>sleep deprivation and anxiety<\/span> reveals that they are <\/span>both stress-related<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Failing to catch a good night\u2019s rest can be burdensome. According to the <\/span>research<\/span><\/a>, the usual causes of insomnia are these:<\/span><\/p>\n As it happens, the consequences of insomnia introduce yet another relationship between <\/span>sleep and anxiety<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n In otherwise healthy people, the lack of sleep can cause more than just the need for an extra cup of coffee. According to <\/span>scientific evidence<\/span><\/a>, long-term insomnia causes several physical and mental problems:<\/span><\/p>\n The reviewed evidence reveals the bifunctional relationship between sleep-deprivation and the occurrence of mental health issues.<\/span><\/p>\n As shown, both disorders are caused by stress. Additionally, trouble sleeping can be a leading symptom of an anxiety disorder, while anxiety remains one of the better-known <\/span>sleep deprivation symptoms.<\/span> To put it simply,<\/span> both conditions can be caused by the same thing, and each can cause the other to occur<\/span>.<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n For more than two decades, scientists have tried to determine the diagnostic <\/span>separation <\/span>of <\/span>anxiety and sleep <\/span>disorders. Prominent <\/span>authors<\/span><\/a> state that changes in <\/span>sleeping patterns<\/span> dominantly feature in three major anxiety disorders.<\/span><\/p>\n Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)<\/b> is associated with trouble initiating and maintaining sleep and is often followed by nightmares with trauma-related content.<\/span><\/p>\n Insomnia is also one of the main symptoms of <\/span>generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)<\/b>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n However, in <\/span>panic disorders (PDs),<\/b> trouble maintaining quality sleep is the main issue, as it\u2019s associated with frequent sleep-induced panic attacks. These instant episodes of <\/span>anxiety at night<\/span> are also known as <\/span>nocturnal panic attacks<\/span><\/a>, which last only a few seconds but can keep the person from falling asleep again, thus fueling the progression of chronic insomnia.<\/span><\/p>\n These severe cases of anxiety are often related to other mental health problems, such as depression or mood changes. In other cases, anxiety disorders can be caused by psychological trauma.<\/span><\/p>\n Additional <\/span>studies<\/span><\/a> concur with the statement that, in the case of anxiety disorders, insomnia is a symptom. Therefore, treatment aims at relieving the causes of anxiety with behavioral therapy and by alleviating agitation, sometimes by the use of <\/span>sleep meditation for anxiety and depression<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n Reliable <\/span>sources<\/span><\/a> define this as a form of anxiety related to <\/span>sleep itself<\/span><\/a>. It\u2019s also referred to as \u201cthe sleeping dread\u201d and is associated with tossing and turning all night long, without the relief of sleep.<\/span><\/p>\n After a longer sleepless period, the known <\/span>sleep deprivation effects<\/span> only amplify worry about falling asleep. Consistent irritation grows as <\/span>stress and anxiety<\/span> take a firmer hold. This type of anxious behavior is described as a type of <\/span>performance anxiety<\/span><\/a> and can progress into a more severe state of sleep phobia. In this case, sleep deprivation is a cause.<\/span><\/p>\n Sleep anxiety treatment<\/span> usually includes mild sedatives, which will aid sleep and restfully alleviate anxiety symptoms.<\/span><\/p>\n This condition is best described as an episode of wakefulness with the inability to speak or move. It\u2019s a traumatizing experience often associated with hallucinations and the sense of an external or internal presence.<\/span><\/p>\n The causes of this condition are unknown. Recent <\/span>studies<\/span><\/a> indicate that 8% of the population experiences it. It\u2019s presumed that the main cause of sleep paralysis is shifting <\/span>sleeping patterns<\/span> within the brain, induced by various external stimuli. Although regarded as not life-threatening, it often causes anxiety.<\/span><\/p>\n The treatment of <\/span>sleep paralysis and anxiety<\/span> is based on two different approaches. In order to avoid the alteration of <\/span>sleep patterns<\/span>, patients are advised to undertake a full sleep hygiene regime. On the other hand, anxiety must be treated with medication, according to the intensity of the symptoms.<\/span><\/p>\n Also known as underlying anxiety, this is the most common mental health condition related to sleep. The majority of the population lives in this enchanting cycle of mutual sleep-anxiety incitement without even knowing it. In this case, both the symptoms of <\/span>anxiety and lack of sleep<\/span> increase over time and are stress-induced.<\/span><\/p>\n Existential crises burden us all the time. An overextended state of worrying actually increases stress-hormone levels over time and alters our <\/span>sleeping patterns<\/span>. As time progresses, sleep deprivation fuels the anxiety until both become unstable.<\/span><\/p>\n According to the <\/span>research<\/span><\/a>, eradicating one condition is harder to achieve without treating the other. Therefore, a combined approach is best, and it consists of applying good <\/span>sleep hygiene practices<\/span><\/a>, stress-relief actions, and the use of proper medication.<\/span><\/p>\n When breathing is obstructed and ceases during <\/span>sleep apnea<\/span><\/a> (usually briefly), it disrupts the regenerative processes in the brain. Over time, this increases the levels of stress hormones in the body and often leads to depression. An anxiety episode <\/span>usually follows<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n The time it takes to treat sleep apnea can be problematic for anxiety. Put simply, although there are several approaches available, successful treatment might take a long time. And during this period, mental health symptoms are usually exacerbated.<\/span><\/p>\n In this particular case, prescription sleeping pills are out of the question. Therefore, most treatments can only rely on the use of <\/span>vitamins for sleep and anxiety<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n This condition is induced by separation-related trauma, but it\u2019s also genetically conditioned and more common in certain personality types. It affects <\/span>all ages<\/span><\/a>, ranging from toddlers to fully developed individuals and is <\/span>estimated<\/span><\/a> to affect 4% of children 7\u201311 years of age, as well as 6.6% of adults.<\/span><\/p>\n As the anxiety progresses, the <\/span>Anxiety and Sleep Problems<\/b><\/h2>\n
Symptoms of Anxiety<\/b><\/h3>\n
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Causes of Anxiety<\/b><\/h3>\n
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Causes of Insomnia<\/b><\/h3>\n
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Known <\/b>Sleep Deprivation Effects<\/b><\/h3>\n
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Anxiety and Sleep:<\/b> Which Comes First?<\/b><\/h2>\n
Anxiety Disorders and Sleep<\/b><\/h3>\n
Sleep Anxiety<\/b><\/h3>\n
Sleep Paralysis<\/b><\/h3>\n
Mild Sleep-Related Anxiety<\/b><\/h3>\n
Sleep Apnea and Anxiety\u00a0<\/b><\/h3>\n
Separation Anxiety<\/b><\/h3>\n