Is Lack of Sleep Fuel Anxiety?
Written by Alexia Eller, LCSW, this blog reflects her expertise in mental health, trauma recovery, and substance use. Drawing on her experience working with diverse populations, including first responders and survivors of crime, Alexia provides practical guidance for personal growth and resilience.
Do you ever feel like you lack sleep and that it is fueling your anxiety in several ways? A lack of sleep can significantly fuel anxiety in several ways. Grasping for mental clarity while your mind is teetering on no sleep and the precipice of panic can cause major stress.
Here are some effects you may be experiencing from lack of sleep:(3)
Impaired Regulation of Emotions: Sleep plays a critical role in regulating emotions. During deep sleep stages, the brain processes emotions and consolidates memories. When sleep is disrupted or insufficient, the brain struggles to manage stress and emotional responses, making it harder to cope with anxiety-provoking situations.
Heightened Stress Response: Sleep deprivation activates the body's stress response, which includes the release of cortisol, the "stress hormone." Elevated cortisol levels can make the body more reactive to stress, leading to increased feelings of anxiety. Over time, this heightened stress response can cause anxiety to become chronic.
Cognitive Impairment: Lack of sleep negatively affects cognitive functions, including attention, concentration, and memory. When you're sleep-deprived, you're more likely to ruminate on negative thoughts and worry excessively, which can exacerbate anxiety. We can find it harder to think clearly or put things into perspective, making it easier to feel overwhelmed.
Increased Sensitivity to Stress: Research shows that people who are sleep-deprived have an increased sensitivity to stress. Sleep loss disrupts the balance of brain regions involved in threat detection and emotional regulation (such as the amygdala), making you more likely to perceive neutral or minor stressors as threatening or overwhelming, thus triggering anxiety.
Reduced Ability to Relax: Sleep deprivation can interfere with the brain's ability to relax and recharge. When you don't get enough sleep, the body's ability to return to a calm, balanced state after a stressful event is compromised. This makes it more difficult to manage anxiety throughout the day.
Disruption of the Nervous System: Chronic sleep deprivation can alter the functioning of the autonomic nervous system, leading to an imbalance between the sympathetic (fight-or-flight) and parasympathetic (rest-and-digest) systems. This imbalance can increase physical symptoms of anxiety, such as an elevated heart rate, sweaty palms, and shallow breathing.
Impact on Mental Health: Chronic sleep deprivation is strongly linked to the development or worsening of mental health issues like generalized anxiety disorder, panic attacks, and depression. The relationship between sleep and anxiety is bidirectional—while anxiety can interfere with sleep, poor sleep can also make anxiety symptoms worse.
American Psychological Association (1) states that in our largely sleep-deprived society, quantifying the effects of sleep loss on emotion is critical for promoting psychological health. Sleep is essential for rest, but for emotional regulation and mental well-being. A lack of sleep creates a vicious cycle, which can increase anxiety leading to poorer sleep, which amplifies anxiety.Prioritizing good sleep hygiene and ensuring sufficient rest can help break this cycle and improve both sleep and anxiety levels.
If you feel that you are not sleeping well or feel ridden with anxiousness and there may be a correlation, feel free to reach out to a medical professional for an analysis and a therapist to chat more about alternative solutions or options to assist in reducing your anxiety through various therapy modalities such as Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). (2)
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