How have you been sleeping lately? Be honest, are you one of the 40% of people who suffers with sleep issues*?

I am, my sleep sucks. I am nearly always tired, need buckets of caffeine to function and could happily go back to sleep before 11am most days. By all accounts I am massively sleep deprived!

For as long as I can remember I’ve struggled with sleep. There are times when all I want to do is sleep but can’t and times when all I do is sleep. I hardly ever wake up feeling refreshed and it’s quite normal for me to feel so tired that I crash out by mid-afternoon. It’s extremely annoying.

My reaction to most things is to try and learn about them in an attempt to live out the idea that ‘knowledge is power’ (which explains how I came to be a professional nerd) - the more you understand about something, the more likely you are to find a way to fix it. Or at least that’s what I tell myself, and it’s why I loved catching up with GP and Lifestyle Medicine Physician Dr Alka Patel to chat about the links between mental health and sleep. I feel better already and I hope you will too.

What’s the link between sleep and mood

Did you know that sleep is our emotional regulator? Every moment of every day we’re faced with emotional signals and sleep provides us with the mechanism to understand what those signals mean and helps us process them so that we can regulate the tone of our emotions and our response. If we’re not getting enough sleep then we don’t have the opportunity to process our emotions and that in turn affects our mood.

It’s all in the Amygdyla

The amygdyla is a fascinating set of neurons buried deep in the brains medial temporal lobe. Part of the limbic system, it plays a key role in processing emotions (you can read about it’s impact on orgasms here) and provides a crucial link between your sleep and your mood. However, if you’re struggling with sleep the amygdyla’s communication with other areas of the brain will be inhibited and your emotional empathy will reduce negatively impacting your mood. Your outlook on the world really does impact how you feel.

The Three ‘P’s of Poor Sleep

Given all of that, when you’re dealing with sleep problems it’s important to try and understand what’s going on at a deeper level that could be the cause of those problems and the three ‘p’s is a really helpful tool for this.

1. Predisposing factors - what is it about you that increases the likelihood of poor sleep? I have a history of chronic anxiety and worrying that means I’m more predisposed to poor sleep simply because there’s so much going on in my head and I’m prone to ruminating as soon as I try to switch off. When you’re trying to understand why you might be experiencing poor sleep start off by identifying anything in your history that might predispose you to issues.

2. Precipitating factors - what has triggered your poor sleep? Is anything stressful going on in your life? Are you experiencing lots of change? Have your routine changed? All these things can trigger poor sleep, so reflect on recent happenings in your life, you might find it’s something very small that has triggered your sleep issues.

3. Perpetuating factors - what is it that means you’re continuing to sleep poorly? There are loads of things that can contribute to ongoing poor sleep - if you’re spending lots of time alone (so have more time to ruminate); less contact with people who help bring a bit of balance to your life; information overload; lack of routine; not getting enough sunlight (crucial for regulating your circadian rhythm); too much blue light at night, and a whole myriad of other factors. Again, the factors perpetuating your sleep issues could seem relatively small, but it’s worth reflecting on what’s going on because it could have a big impact on your wellbeing.

Insomnia v. Sleep Deprivation

Sleep deprivation and insomnia are not the same. Insomnia is defined as experiencing problems falling asleep or staying asleep at least three nights a week consistently over three months. In contract sleep deprivation is failing to get enough sleep.

Three simple questions can help you work out if you’re sleep deprived:

Right now I can say yes to every one of those questions, and based on data from Babylon Healthcheck it seems I’m not alone in my sleep deprivation. 46% of members who answered questions about sleep reported difficulty falling asleep, 47% said they woke up through the night and 32% said that they would wake up early and be unable to get back to sleep. Sleep deprivation is so horrible that just typing that felt triggering!

The Magic Number 8

8 is the magic number when it comes to sleep. According to the National Sleep Foundation* adults aged 18 to 64 should get 7 to 9 hours sleep a night and those over 65 should get 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night. But guess what…based on data from Babylon Healthcheck 41% of users get sleep than they should, and I’d bet you’re the same because the WHO has declared a sleep epidemic in industrialised countries because a disproportionate number of people are getting poor sleep/less than 8 hours a night.

If you think declaring a sleep epidemic sounds extreme keep in mind that SLEEP KEEPS US ALIVE! Seriously, if. you’re consistently getting less than 4 hours a night you’re reducing your life expectancy by 15% (around 12 years) according to data shared by Dr Alka. That’s terrifying (goodness knows how many years I’ve lost due to chronic anxiety, depression and all that entails!).

Changing the equation

Now that we’re all thoroughly terrified let’s switch the focus to what we can do to make things better, and it’s as simple as changing the equation.

As I explained at the start, sleep helps regulate our emotions and process all the emotional signals we are bombarded with every day. Without decent sleep we can’t keep up and we’re therefore more likely to dwell on the negative stuff, which in turn affects our sleep. I appreciate it sounds a little patronising to say we simply need to change the equation when it comes to improving our mental health and our sleep, but that’s the bottom line and there are some really simple things you can do to get the ball rolling:

1. Sleep music - Music can be a great way to unwind, reduce stress and relax. Choose something soothing to listen to before bed (or something specifically composed to help you sleep, like ‘Sleep Better’ by Tom Middleton) and avoid any lyrics that’ll get stuck in your head (I learnt the hard way that Girls Aloud does not help a good night’s sleep).

2. Sleep mask - Light has a huge impact on your circadian rhythm and it’s smart to use it to your advantage. During the day aim to get as much natural light as possible, and at night keep your bedroom as dark as possible. If you can’t get hold of blackout curtains try a sleep mask to keep the light from disturbing you.

3. Sleep alarms - Most of us rely on alarms to get us out of bed, but I bet you’ve not thought to set an alarm to go to bed. Fixed sleeping and waking times can help regulate your natural sleep cycles and setting a third alarm an hour before bed makes sure you’ve got time to unwind before you hit the sheets. Babylon Healthcheck is a really handy tool for this as it allows you to set alarms.

4. Sleep therapy - CBT has been shown to be really effective for all sorts of sleep disorders and there are several apps that mean it’s available to you at home, try Sleepio and CBTI Coach as a starting point.

5. Sleep monitoring - a lot of Dr Alka’s advice relies on individuals taking the time to reflect on what’s going on in their lives that could be triggering their sleep problems, and that’s not always an easy process. Babylon Monitor is a great solution as it helps you track your mood and understand more about how external factors can affect your mood, if you use it alongside Babylon Healthcheck you’ll be able to monitor your energy levels and discover your optimal sleep pattern to overcome your sleep problems.

Of course if you’re having ongoing sleep problems go and see your GP to discuss your personal circumstances. Sleep issues can be truly debilitating and the sooner you get them sorted the better.