What is Anxiety to Sleep?
What is Anxiety to Sleep?
Sleep anxiety is the result of worry and tension that takes precedence over sleep. Studies show that sleep quality declines significantly with severe sleep problems. Anxiety to sleep can take several forms; it can be persistent worrying about health, money, family problems, or even things that cannot be changed.
There are numerous reasons for anxiety to sleep. The most common is co-sleeping, which is also called bedtime sickness. When one baby sleeps in a room with another baby, they share the worries and the feelings, and when they wake up they feel worn out and anxious. This type of anxiousness to sleep stems from the fact that the baby who is co-sleeping with you doesn’t get a uninterrupted night’s sleep. With chronic co-sleeping it can lead to anxiety to sleep because both babies feel tired and don’t get the shut eye needed for good sleep.
One of the ways to treat sleep anxiety is to take prescription medication, but if this isn’t controlling the problem, then other methods should be considered. Benzodiazepines are very effective medications that help people to relax during the day and fall asleep at night. Valium and Ativan are two benzodiazepines that are often prescribed to help people to calm down in the day, and to help them relax into a deep sleep at night. These drugs do work, however the long-term use of these benzodiazepines can be addictive and have many unpleasant side effects.
Other treatment options include therapies that combine medication and psychotherapy. One type of therapy that combines medication and psychological therapy is called double-mask therapy. During this therapy, one baby is kept awake at night with a mask on his/her face, while a different baby is kept awake in a dark room with a mask on his/her face. The child that is kept awake with the mask is believed to suffer from anxiety and depression symptoms similar to those suffered by the patient with the benzodiazepine. Double-mask therapy is also commonly combined with neurofeedback to help patients to treat sleep difficulties caused by depression or anxiety.
Sleep anxiety treatments can also be as simple as getting up in the mornings and taking a short walk around the house. This simple task helps both children that are suffering from anxiety and depression to stay active during the day and feel more like themselves. Another treatment method is used in hospitals where doctors will prescribe anti-depressants to patients who have depression and anxiety disorders. These drugs act as a mild form of therapy for patients. They improve moods and the patient may begin to see new symptoms of depression and anxiety, like feelings of sadness for no apparent reason and headaches that aren’t caused by a cold.
When anxiety to sleep is the cause of poor sleep then chronic co-sleeping may be a cause of anxiety to sleep. Chronic co-sleeping is when a parent is unable to get their child to go to bed alone because they are co-sleeping with them. When parents co-sleep they find themselves exhausted during the night and this leads to poor sleep and inability to fall asleep.
Anxiety to sleep can also be caused by other factors such as a change in family life and environment. Parents may feel uncomfortable when their teenage children sleep in the same room as them. It can also be caused by the change in family dynamic. Some families have children who skip days of school while staying with their parents. The condition known as ‘camping out’ by some families can be a factor in poor sleep quality.
There are other possible causes such as urinary tract infections, an infection in the neck, or a physical disturbance in the body. In all these cases it is important that the parents speak with their doctors about the anxiety to sleep problems and co-sleeping. If a sleep disorder is diagnosed, there are treatments available which include prescription medication and psychotherapy. The most common form of treatment for insomnia in adults is psychotherapy combined with medication and cognitive behavioral therapy which helps patients to recognize and change unhealthy patterns of thinking.
