Sleep deprivation and oversleep both pose problems

Posted January 2021

By Farhiya Mohammed

Cub Reporter

Sleep deprivation and oversleep—did you know that sleep deprivation is becoming such a common thing nowadays? And oversleeping is a symptom of a sleep disorder.

There are many symptoms for it, such as drowsiness, the inability to concentrate, impaired memory, reduced physical strength, and the diminished ability to fight off infections. According to the Columbia University Irving Medical Center, some ways to prevent this would be to exercise at least 20-30 minutes each day, and to keep away from anything that contains caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol.

As reported by Health.Harvard.edu, getting enough sleep keeps you healthy. Lack of sleep can get in the way of good health. It says, “Longitudinal studies suggest that insomnia and other sleep problems worsen before an episode of mania or bipolar depression, and lack of sleep can trigger mania.”

Serious sleep deprivation, over time, includes increased risk of depression and mental illness, and the risk of stroke and heart disease and asthma attacks. Also, hallucinations and severe mood swings may appear. Sleep deprivation happens for many reasons, including aging, illness, and sleep disorders.

Oversleeping is not much better and may be connected to depression. According to psychologytoday.com, sleeping too much carries the same health risks as sleeping too little. The symptoms for oversleeping are sleeping for extended hours at night, difficulty waking up in the morning, trouble rising out of bed and starting the day, and trouble concentrating.

“Particularly among younger Sleep deprivation & oversleep adults and teenagers, oversleeping can be a signal of depression," states psychologytoday.com.

A cause of oversleeping includes neurological disorders, like Alzeimers, Parkinson’ s disease, and Multiple Sclerosis. Another cause is being overweight and obese. Something that is good about sleeping a lot is that sleeping’s wide-ranging benefits for physical and mental health. Another thing is that sleeping improves an effective immune system and heightens brain function. As well as sleep enhancing someone’s mood. Not getting enough sleep can cause or worsen feelings of depression.