The Connection Between Sleep and Anxiety

While trying to keep up with a changing and evolving world, we humans sometimes grow weary from this stress and intensity without even realizing it. This prolonged lack of awareness, combined with stress, can lead to anksiyete sorunlarına in our bodies that must be addressed psychologically.

This anxiety, which has become integrated into our daily lives during intense periods, can affect many of our traits. The most significant of these is sleep. Sleep is the process during which the brain and body shut down to rest.

Throughout the day, our bodies produce energy (ATP). As this energy is consumed, ATP fragments are generated, which increase our desire to sleep. In addition, the hormone “melatonin,” secreted between 11:00 PM and 3:00 AM, supports the sleep process by enabling us to have efficient and high-quality sleep at night.

Sleep is a crucial habit that plays a vital role in organizing our daily lives and improving our quality of life. However, when this sleep habit begins to deteriorate due to anxiety and we fail to prevent its decline, it significantly impacts us daily. We can overcome this problem by examining the causes of anxiety and entering a treatment process.

What exactly is anxiety?

Anxiety is a common psychological disorder that causes individuals to exhibit excessive and uncontrollable reactions to emotions such as worry, fear, and apprehension. People with anxiety disorders experience intense and persistent feelings of worry and unease. When this condition continues indefinitely, it leads to an overwhelming sense of restlessness that becomes unbearable. We can resolve this by addressing its root cause: a constantly active brain and an unrelenting inner voice. To cope with these issues, staying constantly occupied, exercising, and engaging in social environments may help. However, it is essential to consult a specialist alongside these efforts.

How can we sleep despite anxiety?

Although this situation may seem impossible for those experiencing it, it can be overcome through various treatment methods. The most commonly preferred approach is cognitive behavioral therapy (BDT), which helps us gain control over our inner voice. CBT focuses on altering how individuals perceive, interpret, and assign meaning to events, targeting distorted perceptions, incorrect interpretations, and dysfunctional automatic thoughts. Individuals who learn cognitive and behavioral techniques can identify their cognitive errors and, even after therapy ends, avoid negative thoughts during stressful situations, thereby preventing future recurrence of their problems.

Such anxiety treatments contribute to restoring a healthy sleep pattern. However, even after anxiety is managed, sleep problems may persist. In such cases, treatment for sleep disorders must also be pursued. Sleep disorder treatment begins with establishing an accurate diagnosis and identifying the underlying cause. Accurate diagnosis is fundamental to effective treatment. In some cases, gathering a detailed medical history—known as anamnesis—is sufficient for diagnosis, while in others, laboratory tests and/or sleep studies are required. The first step in treatment is reviewing and correcting unhealthy sleep behaviors. In addition, pharmacological treatment and/or therapy using devices that deliver pressurized air for respiratory issues may be employed.

In addition, there are small tasks we must undertake to improve our sleep patterns. We can make our sleeping environment more comfortable by minimizing exposure to light—especially blue light from phone screens—and noise, thereby distancing ourselves from factors that disrupt sleep. At the same time, we can keep ourselves occupied during daily life through hobbies and physical activity.