Do you know the saying: ‘The morning is wiser than the evening’? This expression, from the Russian fairy tale Vasilisa the Beautiful, is used to warn someone about this sleep better with the first response and wait for a response. In many ways, it has to do with sleep’s impact on mental health, because it involves more than just resting after a tiring day.
The relationship between sleep quality and mental well-being is complex, but one that you can improve with some practice and good self-care. We’ll explore this, as well as other ways sleep affects our minds, emotions, and psychological health.
What is sleep?
Sleep is a natural state in the body and mind when certain systems slow down their activities, regenerate, remove toxins and repair. According to American literature, adult humans need 7 to 9 hours of sleep scientific communityalthough a small percentage of people only need six. The reason why we sleep is subject to several theories, all of which offer valid explanations and each of which is true to some extent.
Sleep consists of cycles and each phase has four phases: three non-rapid eye movement or NREM phase and one rapid eye movement or REM phase. During one night you can have multiple cycles that can last between 90 and 120 minutes. In the REM phase, our brain processes memories and emotions, making us feel rested and mentally in good shape.
The difficult relationship between stress and sleep
High levels of the stress hormone cortisol can lead to insomnia and problems fall asleep. As a result, you sleep less and poorly, which means that when you wake up you feel even more stressed than before you went to bed.
To understand why cortisol is the enemy of sleep, you need to know more about its adversary: melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone released at night and is responsible for the sleep-wake cycle. When melatonin is low and cortisol is high, we feel awake and our sleep patterns are affected.
But still, sleep is a great stress reducer. Trying to have a good shuteye when you’re stressed and managing stress when you’re sleep deprived sounds awful. However, if you manage your stress with talk therapy, physical activity, or other means, you can achieve a healthy balance between cortisol and melatonin.
Sleep and depression
According to one Study overview from 2011researchers found that people who suffer from insomnia but not depression are more likely to develop this mental condition over time. Although sleep disorders, such as insomnia, can be signs of depression, these findings have shown that it can also be the other way around. However, insomnia should not be left untreated as it can cause other physiological problems and negatively affect cognitive skills.
Using cognitive behavioral therapy to treat insomnia can reduce depression and improve overall well-being. Feeling rested, energized, and clear-headed after getting the recommended amount of sleep can give you the power to tackle your depression and improve your mental health.
Other mental health issues and sleep
Anxiety is characterized by feelings of worry and anxiety that turn into a state of constant overthinking and feeling overstimulated. While it can cause sleep problems, it can also be exacerbated by the inability to fall asleep and insomnia. Bipolar disorder, PTSD, ADHD and others mental health problems are also followed by sleep deprivation.
Identifying the mental problem can make a big difference to recovery and normal sleep patterns. Medication, therapy, healthy habits and hobbies can help a person regain control of their mental health and live a normal life.
Sleeping can make you happy
We mentioned the link between depression and sleep, or lack thereof. So it’s only fitting to talk about how sleep and happiness go hand in hand. Mental health is a taboo subject in many societies and many people are afraid to get the right help. However, this is changing day by day, thanks to social media and Gen Z be open about their feelings and problems online.
Working on accepting your body, diversity and differencesyou will be more at peace with your inner self. You will find a way to love yourself and others as they are, seeking controlled and respectful solutions at work and in private life. None of this is possible if you sleep for a few hours and wake up tired, irritated and angry because you don’t have time to stay in bed anymore. Loving yourself means taking good care of your health, and a good night’s sleep falls into that category.
When the hormones go crazy
There are many reasons why the hormones in your body stop functioning properly. One of them is a lack of sleep. Poor sleep leads to a chemical imbalance in the brain, which affects our mood and leads to emotional instability. When we don’t get enough sleep, our endocrine system, which regulates hormones, “functions” and disrupts hormonal balance.
For example, the body needs serotonin to produce melatonin, a sleep hormone. If we don’t sleep wellwe become more stressed and our cortisol levels suppress serotonin, a happiness hormone, making us anxious and depressed. Simply put, the better you sleep, the happier you will feel.
Aligning your circadian rhythm
Circadian rhythm is a biological process that can better be explained by analogy with a clock. To indicate the correct time, you must wind it regularly and respect the schedule that it represents. You need to wake up in the morning and go to sleep at night because our circadian rhythm depends on the light and dark cycle of the days.
Mental problems can be one of the things that disrupt your circadian rhythm, keeping you awake at night and sleeping through the day. It can also lead to insomnia, depression, loss of motivation and lack of enthusiasm. You can solve this by adopting daily routines that help you get back into your normal circadian rhythm, such as waking up and going to bed at the same time.
In addition, draw the curtains over your windows to prevent light from coming in and use a sleep mask. Leave your phone out of the bedroom or as far away from your bed as possible and read a book instead. Soothing sounds from a sleep machine can also help, but if you need silence, use earplugs and keep the windows closed to block out traffic.
Environment and sleep quality
It is not enough to go to bed early and have a recommended hour of sleep. You should also ensure that your environment is comfortable and that you can fall asleep easily. From silk pillowcases, soft bedding and suitable mattresses to sound machines and dark rooms, these are all factors that can help you sleep better.
In addition, you should calm yourself down and try not to dwell on negative thoughts when you go to bed. Meditation, breathing techniques, and herbal medicines can calm you down enough to fall asleep, but it’s not something that happens immediately and requires patience. As we said, good sleep and mental health are linked, so to improve one you also need to take care of the other.
Can you catch up on lost sleep?
Unfortunately, the answer is no. You can recover from the sleep loss if you have more hours of shuteye the next day, but this won’t work if you do it all the time. For example, it will last four days to compensate for just one hours of lost sleep. But if sacrificing sleep becomes a habit, it can have serious consequences for your well-being.
Lack of sleep can lead to many health problems, such as heart attack, diabetes and stroke. Mentally it can have a similarly dangerous effect, causing hallucinations, agitation and even brain damage. Schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s disease are also common in people with chronic sleep deprivation.
Things you can do to sleep better
In addition to meditating, a soothing environmentand cognitive behavioral therapy, you can do other things that help you sleep better. For example, start living a healthier life by quitting bad habits, such as smoking and drinking alcohol.
Nicotine creates a dependency that is considered similar to the addiction experienced by heroin addicts. When you sleep the required 7 to 9 hours, your body enters a withdrawal phase and begins to crave a cigarette. You, in turn, may develop insomnia, have nightmares, and often wake up at night to smoke.
Coffee and tea are other potential sleep disruptors if you drink them later in the afternoon and evening. Both contain drinks caffeinea substance that blocks natural processes in the brain, making us tired and sleepy. The good news is that you don’t have to stop drinking coffee, just drink it in the morning and early afternoon, or switch to decaffeinated varieties.
The bottom line
We need sleep like we need air, food and water. The body and mind need time off to keep us going. The power of sleep on mental health and happiness is reflected in the responsibility we have to ourselves – in self-care, self-love and the willingness to change for the better.
Nina Simons is a lifestyle blogger, yoga enthusiast and travel enthusiast with a distinct taste in home decor. She has a passion for learning new things and sharing meaningful ideas. In her spare time she likes to design clothes and furniture. If you want to see what she’s up to, you can find her Tweet.
Featured image courtesy of Andrea Piacquadio.
