Sleep Patterns And Mood Disorders

Adolescents today face a widespread chronic health problem: sleep deprivation. Research shows that getting enough sleep is a biological necessity. Sleep is essential for a person’s health and wellbeing, according to the National Sleep Foundation (NSF). Teens are among those least likely to get enough sleep; while they need on average 9 1/4 hours of sleep per night for optimal performance and health and brain development, teens average fewer than 7 hours per school night, and most report feeling tired during the day (Nationwide Childrens, 2003). The root of the problem is early school start times.

         When children hit puberty they experience a delay in their biological block which in turns causes a shift in melatonin. Melatonin is the natural hormone in a person’s body that notifies them if it is time to sleep or time to wake up. A distraction in this can cause many behavior health and mental health issues such as substance abuse, depression or sadly suicide. Only about a tenth of the population actually get the right amount of sleep they need. The minimum amount someone should sleep is eight full hours. In the

Sleep is essential for cognitive, emotional, and physical wellbeing, especially those who are developing into young adults. Proper sleep hygiene, defined as “those practices of daily living that promote good sleep and daytime function” is considered to be a rising issue among adolescent high school students.9 An average adolescent would require between 8 and 9 hours of sleep per night to be considered well rested.5 One survey of American adolescents in high school reported that only approximately 14% of those students actually received an adequate amount of sleep.10 Another study estimates that approximately one-third to one-fourth of adolescent population does not obtain adequate sleep.3 Poor sleep hygiene can lead to many factors that will negatively influence high school student’s wellbeing. Lack of sleep has been proven to be a root cause for multiple negative health outcomes, such as: an increase in depressive symptoms, sedentary behavior, decrease in emotional stability, and reduced physical development.1,5 As depressive behavior increases and motivation decreases, it leads to a significant decline in academic performance and consequently affecting daytime function.4 Practicing proper sleep hygiene and building a foundation of good habits begins with the early stage of adolescents in high school.

Lack of sleep will affect a child’s development. A child needs sufficient sleep to be able to concentrate and be able to learn. Lack of sleep can also cause emotional, social and behavioural problems, this is because if a child is

Different age groups of people require different hours of sleep. Children and adolescents require nine to eleven hours of sleep per day. Adults need 7-9 hours, yet some people feel better sleeping lesser hours even with those guidelines. It is true that alcohol helps people sleep faster, but sleep is disrupted once the level which is in the blood starts to fall. It might lead to waking up and difficulties to fall back to sleep. It is true that depression and anxiety may lead to lead to insomnia but for a short time. People should understand that insomnia is not only brought by depression, but chronic pain, bad side-effects of a particular medication, worries and stress are also known to cause long-term insomnia (Okun et al., 2009). Depression and anxiety should not keep an individual awake for a long time but only for a short time. Additionally, the myth that it is right the lie in bed sleepless is not true. Everyone requires sleep during the day or at night, and it is necessary for the body and the brain to function properly. Notably, sleep is good for relaxing the brain in adults and in children, sleep is important for development (Szelenberger, 2006). One should not be fooled that sleep is not necessary, but those people with insomnia should practice relaxation techniques for them to fall asleep. It is true that people tend to sleep few hours as they

Sleep disorders alter ones sleep pattern and often results in the inability to either sleep or sleep soundly. They often cause you to feel restless, tired, fatigued, and irritable. It is estimated that nearly 75 percent of adult Americans experience sleep disorder symptoms at least a few nights per week. At the same time, sleep disturbances in some form are seen in as many as 25 to 30 percent of infants and children (“Sleep Disorders” 2013). Clearly a huge conundrum in the world, sleep disorders affect an inordinate amount of people. Millions of people suffer or have suffered from a sleep disorder at one point in their lives and if mistreated can impact organ systems functioning negatively. Physical disturbances, medical issues,

Sleep loss can take a devastating toll on the mind and body at any stage of life from early childhood to older adulthood. But, for teenagers, who are at a critical stage of development, skipping out on sleep can be particularly dangerous. One standout finding is that a lack of sleep affects the body the same way that drinking alcohol does. And like alcohol an insufficient amount of sleep can lead to impairments of mood, affect regulation, attention, memory, behavior control, executive function, and quality of life. In a study of nearly 28,000 suburban high school students, published earlier this year in the Journal of Youth and Adolescence, found that each hour of lost sleep is associated with a 38 percent risk of feeling sad or hopeless and a 58 percent increase in suicide attempts. As well teens who sleep an average of six hours per night are also three times more likely to suffer from depression, a 2010 study found. Thus, the correlation between sleep deprivation and depression go hand in hand among teenagers. Also, losing sleep can also have a long-term negative effect on a teens physical health with poor sleep quality being linked to diabetes and obesity risk for teens. Sleep correlates with the well-being of teens, but it also closely relates with academic

Candice Alfano, who is a clinical psychologist and psychology professor created the National Institute of Mental Health. This is the study of whether children who have experienced inadequate or disrupted sleep are more likely to develop later in life depression or anxiety. I believe that she is researching this study very well. Alfano and co-investigator Cara Palmer are performing an experiment by restricting sleep on 50 children between ages 7 and 11. They are performing this experiment to figure out exactly what sleep deprivation does to the behavioral and psychological patterns of emotional risk. The results of this experiment proves that inadequate sleep has an impact on children's emotional health by creating negative emotions and turning positive ones into negative.

In the article Teachers,Students and Sleep, author Dave Stuart address the effects of different qualities of sleep have on students. Stuart covers the causes for poor sleep and the consequences this can have. The author repeatedly references the work of Harvard graduate Maria Konnikova, along with Shawn Stevenson who has a bachelor's degree, thus they appear to be reliable sources. Stuart cover the negative effects of artificial light close to sleep, and the many positive effects of regularity in other activities on the sleep cycle. Dave Stuart makes his readers reevaluate how important sleep is.

According to the “National Sleep Foundation”, it is said,”The relationship between sleep and depressive illness is complex – depression may cause sleep problems and sleep problems may cause or contribute to depressive disorders. For some people, symptoms of depression occur before the onset of sleep problems. For others, sleep problems appear first. Sleep problems and depression may also share risk factors and biological features and the two conditions may respond to some of the same treatment strategies. Sleep problems are also associated with more severe depressive illness,”. This means that while we might not make this mental connection, not getting a propers night of sleep could have a grave effect on your mental health. But, lets say we pushed school back an hour or so, that means an additional hour of sleep and a chance for teenager’s temperaments to increase and level

Sleep deprivation is a serious concern among college students, who are "among the most sleep-deprived age group in the United States," (Central Michigan University, 2008). It is important to study the causes of sleep deprivation, or sleep disorders, among college students. According to Park (2009), "dozens of studies have linked an increase in nightly sleep to better cognition and alertness." A study by Central Michigan University (2008) found that sleep deprivation can lead to poor academic performance, impaired driving, depression, and behavioral problems. There are several variables that may affect sleeping patterns among college students. One is genetics or biological issues. It is highly

As a busy teen in high school, involved in many activities, I do not have much time for myself to relax and let my mind rest. When I come home from a long day of school, I still have homework that needs to get done. I go to sleep late and have to wake up early the next morning to get ready for school. Evidence from this article by Maria Konnikova proves that the stress I experience from my lack of sleep is not an exaggeration. Because I do not get quality sleep and I do not sleep long enough, my mind fogs throughout the day and my mood worsens because of my drowsiness. As I get more tired throughout the day, I become more hyper, having little control over my actions and responses. This coincides with the theory that inadequate sleep results

There have been reports which have said sleep deprivation not only increases sleepiness but it also accelerates deterioration of mood (Kaida and Niki). Sleep and mood are closely connected; poor or inadequate sleep can be the source of irritability and anxiety, while healthy sleep can enhance well-being (Sleep and Mood). Therefore, sleep is crucial to have a pleasant mood and outlook on life on a daily basis. The typical adult requires about seven to eight hours of sleep for each night to have good well-being. University of Pennsylvania researchers found that subjects who were restricted to only four and a half hours of sleep a night for one week reported feeling more stressed, angry, sad, and mentally exhausted (Sleep and Mood). Furthermore, college students who

Sleep Patterns and Symptoms of Depression in College Students discusses how individuals with sleep disturbances may be at risk for development of depression. In this study, 156

Recent research has proven that children just are not getting the sleep they need these days. Kids today seem to be doing poorer in school and have less attention spans. Most parents are not aware of a common problem effecting thousands of children in this country: sleep disorders. Parents often fail to follow there children's sleeping patterns which can result in some serious side effects if that child has a sleep disorder. A study done at Tulane University in New Orleans studied about 300 first graders that preformed poorly in school. They found that 18 per cent showed signs of a sleeping problem. The percentage of children with bad grades found to have sleeping problems