Sleeping less than the recommended eight hours a night is associated with intrusive, repetitive thoughts like those seen in anxiety or depression, according to new research. The researchers assessed the timing and duration of sleep in individuals with moderate to high levels of repetitive negative thoughts (for example, worrying). The study participants were exposed to various pictures intended to elicit an emotional response, and researchers tracked their attention through their eye movements. The researchers found that regular sleep disturbances are associated with difficulty shifting attention away from negative information. This may mean that inadequate sleep is part of what keeps negative intrusive thoughts hanging around and disrupting people's lives.
"We found that people in this study have some tendencies to get thoughts stuck in their heads, and their heightened negative thinking makes it difficult for them to detach from the negative stimuli we exposed them to," the researcher said. . “While other people may receive negative information and move on, the participants had a hard time ignoring it.” It is believed that these negative thoughts make people vulnerable to various types of mental disorders, such as anxiety or depression, the researcher said.
