May

The Importance of Sleep

Sleep is essential to the maintenance of mental health. Sleep helps to regulate mood and process emotional information and experiences into memory. Insufficient sleep is associated with increased emotional reactivity and emotional disturbance. Often, sleep and mental health disorders exist in bi-directional relationship to each other, with each condition influencing the other.

Poor sleep can contribute to the onset and severity of mental health disorders, and mental health problems can create and exacerbate sleep issues. Treating sleep problems may deliver therapeutic help for mental health conditions, just as sleep may improve as mental health disorders are treated. The National Alliance on Mental Illness stressed the co-morbidity between sleep and mental health. In addition to being good for your mental health, getting a good night’s sleep is essential for concentration, mood, and memory. So good luck with Finals Oles, and be sure to get some sleep!