The importance of sleep for your physical and mental health

Many studies explore the relationship between happiness and sleep. In a study by JMIR Mental Health, researchers asked 208 adults to track their mood and sleep patterns. They did this using their phones for six straight weeks. The study found that sleep quality and well-being are related. But the effect of sleep quality on your mood is much more than the reverse. Another study from a team at Ryerson University looked into the connection between depression and insomnia. They found that most patients that resolved their sleeplessness also got free from depression symptoms soon after. This finding is crucial, as about three-quarters of depressed patients have insomnia symptoms. The link between sleep and mood should not be surprising. One of the most vital functions of sleep (especially when you dream) is to regulate emotions. When sleep deprived, your ability to process emotions gets reduced. You become more prone to feeling angry and irritable. Sleep deprivation brings you into a fight-or-flight mode. It increases your heart rate and blood pressure, raising the risk of heart attack and stroke. It also causes you to feel more agitated in general. Many people skip sleep to be able to do more things. But even this is misguided. Sleep-deprived people are not productive. When you try to save time by not sleeping, you end up wasting it instead. Some modern companies know this and even encourage employees to take short naps in the afternoon. Sleep is incredibly vital for your well-being. Virtually everyone needs more than seven hours of sleep each day. From your physical health to your mental health, nothing is left unaffected by how you sleep.