Good Sleep Can Keep Bad Memories Away: Study

There are often days when you do not sleep well and your mood is sour. This is when bad memories come rushing back in your mind, which further fouls your mood. But most of us do not make the connection between a bad day and resurfacing of a bad memory. That may not be a coincidence! A new study suggests that the fact that you are remembering bad memories on days you did not have a good sleep could be a psychological impact. Sleep plays a major role in the recovery and healing of our body. It is no surprise that you feel a lot more tired and fatigued when you are sick because that is your body’s way of conserving energy so that it can be used to heal you instead. Many studies show that even when you have psychological issues like depression, anxiety etc. you are more likely to feel sleepy as your body is still in ‘fix it’ mode.

Sleep plays a big role in keeping our minds healthy, and a recent study done by the Universities of York and East Anglia in the United Kingdom which was published in PNAS looked at how sleep affects our ability to control bad memories. Researchers wanted to understand why some people struggle more with traumatic experiences than others, and they suspected that sleep might be a key factor. They knew that poor sleep makes PTSD more likely after a traumatic event, but they didn't know exactly why.

Disrupted Sleep Makes it Harder to Forget Bad Memories

The study looked at healthy young adults. Some participants slept normally, while others stayed awake all night. Everyone looked at pictures, some of which were linked to upsetting scenes. The next day, they were asked to either remember or try to forget these scenes while their brain activity was scanned. The people who hadn't slept well had trouble suppressing the bad memories. Their brains weren't working as effectively in the area that helps control emotions and unwanted thoughts. Those who slept well were much better at pushing the bad memories aside.

This suggests that when we don't get enough sleep, our brains have a harder time dealing with upsetting memories, which might contribute to problems like anxiety, depression, and PTSD. Scientists believe this is because sleep helps our brains regulate emotions and keep unwanted thoughts at bay.

Medical & Life Science News tells us that when the brain experiences something extremely traumatic, it sometimes tries to protect itself by blocking out the memory. This is called dissociation, and it's like detachment from reality. It's the brain's way of coping with something overwhelming. Dissociation can range from mild, like getting lost in a book or daydreaming, to severe. Severe, ongoing dissociation is linked to certain mental illnesses, including dissociative identity disorder which used to be known as multiple personality disorder.

What This Means for Mental Health

This research is important because it helps us understand how sleep and mental health are connected. While this study looked at healthy people and short-term sleep loss, it gives us clues about how long-term sleep problems could affect people with mental health conditions. More research is needed to fully understand this link, but this study is a good start. Experts say this is a well-done study and will likely lead to even more research on how sleep and our ability to control thoughts are connected. It helps us think about how sleep might help us manage difficult emotions and memories. Many studies believe that it can act as a double-edged sword, because on the one hand it protects you and on the other it may cause you to forget other memories as well. However, it's important to remember this study doesn't directly show how long-term sleep problems impact specific conditions like PTSD.