If you’re feeling down in the dumps lately and wonder if you suffer from the mental health disorder depression, you may want to pay attention to how much sleep you’ve been getting. According to the National Sleep Foundation, most Americans get about 6.9 hours of sleep a night. Now this is an average so that means some people get much less than this and it’s not healthy.
Sleep and Depression
Having insomnia or simply not getting enough sleep can cause depression. When your body and mind don’t have enough time to repair itself during REM sleep, it functions at an alert state. This means you are more sensitive to situations around you and have a more difficult time dealing with challenges. When this happens, since you are without sleep and lack energy, you start to feel hopeless. This hopelessness may turn into helplessness, which spirals out of control into other symptoms of depression.
Genetics Role in Sleep Deprived Depression
How does genetics play in sleep deprivation and depression? Well, we all know that some people are more susceptible to depression because they may have a chemical imbalance of the neurotransmitters serotonin and norepinephrine. What this means is that they are more sensitive to the affects of insomnia, which is the reason why some people can function without as much sleep and do completely fine.
Sleep for Depression Relief
Therefore, if you have a family history of depression and you are in the habit of not sleeping at least seven to nine hours a night, you may be at risk for depression. Keep this in mind when you start to feel like you can’t do things as you used to do or you don’t enjoy life as much. To help yourself feel better, you may just need to schedule more zzzzz’s.
Photo: lovelypetal
Tue, Mar 30, 2010
Mental Health