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Do you often toss and turn in your sleep? Sleep is one of the fundamental pillars of both physical and mental health. It’s not just about being rested and refreshed after a long day; It supports a wide range of physiological and psychological functions. Beyond the physical aspect, sleep is also important for mental health. Behaviors like trouble sleeping, tossing and turning, or waking up frequently may also point to deeper issues like stress, anxiety, or depression.
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Since getting good sleep is so important to stay healthy, neglecting it can have serious consequences on both body and mind. This is why you need to pay more attention to any unusual sleep habits.
To understand more about the connection between sleep and mental health, HT Lifestyle reached out to Dr. Samant Darshi, Interventional Psychiatrist at Yatharth Hospitals and Director, Cymet Healthcare. According to him, sleep problems can be linked to symptoms of depression.
Sleep’s connection to mental health
There is a two-way relationship between sleep and mental health. Different mental health disorders affect sleep in different ways.
“While people with depression can easily have terminal insomnia, where they have difficulty falling asleep because they usually wake up in the middle of the night and can’t go back to sleep, people with anxiety disorders have difficulty falling asleep because of their worries, thus causing initial insomnia,” he explained.
Depression affects sleep differently, depending on what condition the person is experiencing. “Sleep cycles may also vary depending on each type of depressive phase. “In a patient with unipolar depressive disorder, sleep levels are usually low, which makes them tired,” the psychiatrist shared.
How does poor sleep affect daily life?
If you don’t get enough sleep, it can seriously interfere with your daily life. Dr. Darshi explained that cognitive functions are majorly affected, and along with this, the person may also feel irritable, experience low energy, and struggle with poor concentration and lack of focus in everyday activities.
Therefore it is very important to get quality sleep. Even minor discomforts like tossing and turning, waking up too much, or not being able to sleep can indicate underlying mental health problems. There is a bidirectional relationship between sleep and mental health, which suggests that poor sleep can worsen conditions like depression and anxiety, while these conditions in turn can make sleep more disturbed.
Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions you may have about a medical condition.
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