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Category: Sleep
Why Sleep-Deprived People Push Everyone Away (And It’s Contagious)
Almost half of all Americans report feeling lonely or left out.
Almost half of all Americans report feeling lonely or left out.
Sleep deprivation makes people feel more lonely.
Not only that, but lack of sleep makes people less likely to engage with others, so compounding the problem of loneliness.
The reason is that people feel socially unattractive when they don’t get enough sleep.
And others spot this: loneliness is spread, almost virally, from sleepy people to the well-rested after only a short encounter.
The study’s findings show that lack of sleep and loneliness interact with each other to make the problem worse.
Professor Matthew Walker, study co-author, said:
“We humans are a social species.
Yet sleep deprivation can turn us into social lepers.”
Sleep’s social cost
For one study, the researchers scanned people’s brains while they watched videos of strangers walking towards them.
Brain activity in the sleep deprived showed they would rather avoid social contact.
Professor Walker said:
“The less sleep you get, the less you want to socially interact.
In turn, other people perceive you as more socially repulsive, further increasing the grave social-isolation impact of sleep loss.
That vicious cycle may be a significant contributing factor to the public health crisis that is loneliness.”
Dr Eti Ben Simon, the study’s first author, said:
“It’s perhaps no coincidence that the past few decades have seen a marked increase in loneliness and an equally dramatic decrease in sleep duration.
Without sufficient sleep we become a social turn-off, and loneliness soon kicks in.”
Professor Walker thinks the lack of a safety net is why sleep deprivation can be so harmful:
“There’s no biological or social safety net for sleep deprivation as there is for, say, starvation.
That’s why our physical and mental health implode so quickly even after the loss of just one or two hours of sleep.
On a positive note, just one night of good sleep makes you feel more outgoing and socially confident, and furthermore, will attract others to you.”
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The study was published in the journal Nature Communications (Simon & Walker, 2018).
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3 Simple Ways To Improve Your Sleep Recommended By Sleep Scientists
Follow these simple tips from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
Follow these simple tips from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
Having a regular sleep schedule, bedtime routine and prioritising sleep, all help people sleep better, scientists have found.
The advice is based on recommendations by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine.
1. Regular sleep schedule
Go to bed at night and rise in the morning at roughly the same times.
Keep this routine though the weekend — don’t be tempted to sleep in to ‘catch up’.
Dr Paruthi, an expert on treating sleep problems, explained:
“People who sleep in on a Sunday morning may not be sleepy by their usual bedtime on Sunday evening, which can make waking up on Monday difficult.
This can throw off the week’s schedule.
When possible, it is best to try to get to bed and get up at same time (at least within an hour) seven days a week.”
2. Bedtime routine
The body and brain need time to wind down before bed.
Going through the same procedure in the run-up to lights-out will help you sleep better.
Dr Paruthi said:
“Even a 10-minute routine where you do the same things each night to prepare yourself for going to bed is a good idea.
Our brains need a wind-down period to go from ‘on’ to ‘sleep time.”
3. Prioritise sleep
Try setting your alarm clock for 30 minutes before bedtime, not just when you get up in the morning.
Dr Paruthi said:
“If you know you have to get up at 6 a.m. the next day, set your alarm clock in the evening for 9:30 p.m.
That alerts you that you have a half hour before you need to go to bed and you can begin to wind down.”
Screen-free zone
Finally, turn the bedroom into a screen-free zone, Dr Paruthi said:
“We are so ‘go, go, go’ that people are on all the time now.
There have been studies showing that the light emitted from electronic devices decreases the release of melatonin, a hormone that helps us feel sleepy.”
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