Sleep & Mental Strength

Unwanted or intrusive thoughts and memories, also known as ruminating, play a role in mental health conditions such as anxiety, depression, and PTSD. Scientists were interested in the relationship between sleep and mental health.

The fight-or-flight stress response is initiated in the amygdala in the emotional brain. It is our threat detector. Our brain has an on-task network (cognitive control) and an off-task network (default mode). We use our cognitive control network when we engage in work, family, or volunteer tasks or projects. Our default mode network is engaged when we are resting or reflecting. Scientists believe that when we want to work on goal-directed tasks, the default mode network must disengage, and the cognitive control network must be activated to support focus and attention.

Researchers tested a theory that sleep disturbances negatively impact mental health. They divided 85 male participants, average age 20 years, into 2 groups: one that endured an entire night of sleep deprivation (43) and one that enjoyed an entire night of restful sleep (42). All participants then completed a memory suppression task while having MRI brain scan data collected, which illustrated which brain networks were engaged.

They learned that the capacity to suppress unwanted thoughts, an adaptive process in the brain that weakens the circuit of brain cells that memories travel on, is “critically dependent on sleep.” Sleep deprivation also weakens the cognitive control network ability to moderate the panic button amygdala during threat-related information processing, temporarily increasing anxiety levels.

In sleep-rested participants, longer REM sleep duration was associated with greater activation of the cognitive control network and greater deactivation of the default mode network. Getting sufficient REM sleep likely decreases next-day brain reactivity to emotional experiences by calming the amygdala and suppressing the default mode network. Well-rested people can effectively suppress unwanted thoughts and memories, leading to better mental health.

Takeaway: Getting sufficient sleep is likely to enhance emotional well-being via regulation of unwanted thoughts or memories.

Well-being is a journey, not a quick fix.

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Source

Marcus O. Harrington, et al., Memory control deficits in the sleep-deprived human brain | PNAS, Dec. 31, 2024.