{"id":1422,"date":"2021-05-26T14:07:38","date_gmt":"2021-05-26T14:07:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sleepdunwoody.com\/blog\/?p=1422"},"modified":"2021-05-27T13:47:12","modified_gmt":"2021-05-27T13:47:12","slug":"grief-is-hard-sleep-can-help","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sleepdunwoody.com\/blog\/2021\/05\/26\/grief-is-hard-sleep-can-help\/","title":{"rendered":"Grief is Hard\u2014Sleep Can Help"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Losing a loved one is difficult. The grief that’s experienced directly after a loss can feel overwhelming, and at times unbearable. There isn\u2019t a \u201cnormal\u201d or \u201ctypical\u201d way to grieve\u2014everyone grieves in a way that\u2019s particular to their personality and connection to the loved one lost; but at times, grief transforms into something much more complex and life-altering. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This transformation is called complicated grief. Complicated grief lasts long-term and can cause emotional and relational difficulties due to a severe breakdown in the processing of the grief and consequential mental distress. As found in a 2009 study<\/a><\/strong>, “Bereaved individuals with complicated grief find themselves in a repetitive loop of intense yearning and longing that becomes the major focus of their lives, albeit accompanied by inevitable sadness, frustration, and anxiety.” Complicated grief impacts 10% of bereaved people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

While there\u2019s no way to know for certain whether or not a person will experience complicated grief, researchers believe that certain risk factors amplify the chance that a person\u2019s grief will turn complicated\u2014one of those risk factors being sleep disorders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Science Behind Sleep Disorders and Grief<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Sleep disorders are defined as conditions that change sleep patterns, resulting in negative health impacts. One 2021 study<\/a> revealed incredible findings about the connection between sleep disorders and a person\u2019s likelihood to develop complicated grief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The researchers knew from years of documented research that when grieving, humans experience sleep disruption; but what if a person was suffering from a sleep disorder pre-bereavement? What impact would this have on their mental state and grieving process?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To answer this question, the researchers looked at data from the multiyear Rotterdam Study (an ongoing prospective cohort study targeting cardiovascular, neurological, ophthalmological, and endocrine diseases). The study followed a group of middle-aged and older adults over time and logged various aspects of their physical and mental health.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the purposes of their research, the team focused on participants of the Rotterdam Study who noted sleep disorders prior to the death of a loved one. From the information given by the participants, the team was also able to place the participants in two groups: those who experience what\u2019s medically referred to as complicated grief and those who experience a \u201ctypical\u201d grief response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From this process, the team found that those who suffered from sleep disorders before the death of a loved one were more likely to be in the complicated grief group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sleep Apnea\u2019s Impact on Mental Health and Sleep<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are currently 80 different sleep disorders known by health professionals. One fairly common and potentially life threatening sleep disorder is obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). When untreated, OSA can lead to associated conditions that severely impact a person\u2019s health, such as heart disease and diabetes. This (unfortunately) common sleep disorder poses a real threat to sleep, and a person\u2019s overall wellbeing, due to the fact that sleep apnea causes a person to stop breathing throughout the night. In severe cases, a person can stop breathing up to 400 times in a single night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sleep disruption of this severity can have lifelong negative impacts on a person\u2019s brain. It can impair their ability to learn new information, harm neurotransmitters in charge of multiple physical functions, and hurt their emotional competency. When it comes to overcoming emotional trauma, sleep consistently comes up as a key player in recovery. In one study<\/a>, researchers found that sleep deprivation resulted in subjects not only being unable to embed new information into their memories, but the subjects were also more likely to remember negative emotions than neutral or positive emotions. The same study reasserted that sleep deprivation leads to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n