A link to clinical depression can be made from lack of sleep. An extremely common problem in the US is insomnia, affecting one out of every three adults at some point in their lives. It grows more common as the age is higher, leaving older adults (usually due to chronic physical illness) and women (experiencing significant hormonal changes). Insomnia is often a key characteristic in diagnosing depression. It is an inability to sleep or maintain sleep throughout the night is the key contributing factor for depression.
When you are feeling sad or hopeless because of a personal situation, these feeling can interfere with your usual sleeping habits, as the thoughts spinning in your head keep you up at night. Sleep is a restorative state where your body and mind are simply recharging their batteries and memorizing the important events of the day. Should that state be interrupted, it will cause you to feel fatigued, leading to a declining in fitness level and lack of exercise. This can continue to grow to be a vicious cycle of sleeplessness and inactivity.
This is How Many Hours of Sleep you Need to Avoid Depression
Lack of sleep can be brought by things like OSA (Obstructive Sleep Apnea), which interferes with sleep and prevents a person from experiencing the restorative effects of sleeping. OSA interferes with the supply of oxygen to the body by messing with a person’s airway. This makes the person wake up often at night. People with depression are five times more likely to have OSA symptoms, having OSA itself being linked to depression.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a type of depression triggered when the days are being shorter during the fall season. Shorter days mean less sunlight, and can have huge impacts on the person’s circadian rhythm. The circadian rhythm is a biological process that helps keep a regular sleep/wake schedule. Should that rhythm be disrupted, it can cause sleep disorders, one of them is insomnia, which will contribute to depression. The symptoms of depression are eliminated in springtime and with more sunshine, for most people who suffer from SAD.
Lack of sleep, or rather the interruption of it, can lead to depression and cause it to last longer.
If you suffer from OSA, a machine that provides continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) can increase the airflow to your lungs, helping you sleep tight and preventing you from waking up in the middle of the night.
Listening to soft music or medication before bed can increase the relaxation and focus your mind on emotionally neutral or pleasant topics.
You should compile a list of things you need to do the following day to calm your mind and prevent it from obsessing the things you need to do.
Exercise might help you out by lowering your tension and relieving stress, as well as getting you tired and fatigued for bed. Going to bed tired is a safe way to get a good night sleep, along with the endorphins released during your exercise which stimulate your mood and ease your depression. Just have one thing in mind, don’t exercise a few hours before bed.
Yoga and deep abdominal breathing can lead to states of relaxation that will help you to get to sleep easier.
Limit the use of nicotine, alcohol and caffeine before going to bed. These act as stimulants and keep you from falling asleep. Take a warm shower before going to bed as your body will relax more as it cools down.
The average adult needs seven to nine hours of sleep per night to feel fully rested, thus preventing symptoms of depression. Too little sleep and you might feel irritable and fatigues. Too much sleep can lead to negative effects and a deeper, longer lasting depression.
Take care of your body, limit activities and stimulating foods before bed, meditate, do yoga, practice deep breathing. Do whatever you prefer to have a good night sleep.