Are you combating depression and mood disorders? Allow sleep to help you.

Sometimes life gets us, and wefeeldepressed or have bad moods. It is normal to have a bad day,but it’s not a good sign to have these types of feelings for a prolonged time. If you feel this way often,please donot ignore these symptoms.Though mental illnesses are still unfortunately stigmatized in our country, according to a WHOreport,the prevalence of depressive disorders among Indian population is as high as 4.5%.

We all know how irritated and moody we get if we don’t sleep enough for just one night. Now, imagine, what happens to your brain if you have trouble sleeping for a prolonged period of time – days, weeks maybe even months!The relationship between sleep deprivation and mental illness is complicated. Chronic insomnia can cause various mood disorders and hence imbalance your overall quality of life. Lack of sleep, in turn, makes it more challenging to handle the symptoms of mental illness and limits the impact of treatment. While sleep can be both a cause and a symptom of mental illness, getting enough sleep offers many benefits.

Here are three major mood disorders that can be controlled by managing sleep deprivation.

Depression

Almost everyone nowadays knows someone who has suffered from depression, be it a celebrity or a personal contact. Depression is one of the emerging health problems in India leaving its sufferers deprived of both social and economic opportunities. WHO states in its 2017 report that an estimated 57 million Indians are victims of depression. It has also been seen over the years that women across all age groups are more vulnerable to depression than men. A recent study of January 2019 reports that the decrease in the level of brain-derived neurotrophic factor could be a key reason behind depressive-like behaviors caused by sleep deprivation. It is very hard to say what happens first. Is it lack of sleep that can cause depressive symptoms or is it the depressive thoughts that can adversely affect sleep? Though a study reports that both the conditions might share a bidirectional relationship, It is undebatable that sleeping well can help in keeping depression at bay and manage its symptoms.

Anxiety

It has been recently reviewed that sleep disturbance exacerbates the symptoms of most anxiety and related disorders. One of the possible mechanisms by which sleeping less could contribute to developing anxiety is the impairment of executive functions of the brain. These are a set of processes that help in managing mental control and self-regulation.

Bipolar disorder

Bipolar disorder is associated with extreme mood changes ranging from low to high moods. It has been reported that men are more likely to have bipolar disorder than women. Several studies in the past have proved that lack of sleep may take a toll on you and may even trigger mood episodes (mania). It is a well-known fact that bipolar disorder just like depression can lead to sleep problems but if you already are suffering from this mental disorder (whether it has been diagnosed or not), skipping on sleep can be detrimental to your health and may even exacerbate the disease.

Serotonin, also known as happy chemical, is manufactured in the brain. It acts as a neurotransmitter that helps in relaying signals from one part of the brain to another. Psychiatrists believe that changes in serotonin levels could lead to depression. However, there is a contradiction in the relationship of serotonin with depression and is still under investigation.

I hope you are now more than convinced that not getting enough sleep affects your mental and emotional wellbeing. Frequent low moods, anxiety and extreme mood swings are some insomnia symptoms we all must watch out for. You might have to wait to know the exact mechanisms behind having mood disorders because of insomnia, but you don’t need to wait to improve your sleep quality. There are many allopathic products on the market to help you sleep.If you are skeptical of taking such strong medications, you can consider a natural sleep remedy as an insomnia cure. Essentium Phygen, that focuses on using the science of plants for alleviating health problems, brings a supplement for restful sleep, a wholesome product of its kind in India. Made with their proprietary Optimum Concentrated Extract technology, Vittum Melatonin tablets help you fall asleep faster and easy way.

So, don’t wait. Tuck in for the night!