The Importance of Sleep

Many people know that sleep is important. Researchers at Harvard Medical School still can’t figure out why we sleep but when people don’t sleep, it can have terrible consequences to their health. When rats are deprived of sleep, they eventually develop severe problems and pass away. All that researchers can say is that sleep is necessary for survival. It’s one of the many factors of good mental health.

It’s not only important to sleep, but it’s also the quality of sleep, how much a person is waking up, and if people are having dreams compared to nightmares.

All of these are issues to bring up in therapy sessions. Therapists find gold mines in your sleep habits. Lack of sleep or interrupted sleep can be indicative of mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, trauma, stress, and even medical conditions. If a person’s sleep issues are brought up in therapy, the therapist can help determine what the issue is and what a person can do to help themselves.

Some people aren’t helped by therapy alone, especially if there’s a medical issue. A person can consider doing a sleep study, if available. Sleep problems like sleep apnea can contribute to mental health issues as well.

I’ve had a couple of clients who have done sleep studies to find out that they have sleep apnea. Some of their symptoms of depression, executive functioning, Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, anxiety, stress, and others have been somewhat alleviated with the use of a CPAP machine at night. But sometimes there are issues with finances, insurances and with the devices that some clients don’t continue to use the CPAP machine at night.

Consider if you have sleep issues and if they are mental health related, a good therapist can assist with coming up with a night routine that could help.