Things to Know about Sleep & Stress

By Célyne H. Bastien, PhD

Understanding the relationship between stress and sleep has been essential during the unprecedented times that we have lived in since 2020. The pandemic had a devastating effect on sleep, especially because of the stress caused by situations like isolation, loneliness, financial hardship, fear, and disrupted home routines.

Here are four things to keep in mind as we consider the importance of healthy sleep even during uncertain times.

1.) It is normal in a stressing period to feel that our sleep is not of good quality or has deteriorated. We can take longer to fall asleep, wake up more often during the night, or even wake up in the early hours of the morning without being able to return to sleep. When we experience sleep difficulties, we may start to worry about our sleep and then get anxious about the fact that we are not getting enough sleep. From there, our health might deteriorate because of the lack of sleep.

2.) Sleep can help stress. By sleeping, your body is relaxing, and your mind is at peace (besides the occasional bad dreams which could be punctually disturbing). Thus, if you get a good night’s sleep, your body and your mind is better “equipped” to face stressing situations: your stress coping mechanisms are more effective.

3.) Lighten the mood to lessen the stress. There are many things you can do, and they relate mostly to sleep hygiene and general health hygiene: have a nice sleeping environment, make sure you have plenty of time to recuperate, learn something new (cooking, language, etc.), talk to family members and friends to release some of the stress, exercise (but no later than four hours before going to bed), watch funny movies, do not use any electronics in your bedroom, attend some relaxation/meditation/mindfulness/yoga classes, and eat well to lighten your mental load and mindset.

4.) Stress during the day, instead of at night. One other recommendation is to reserve 30 to 60 minutes during the day to sit down and take the time to write what stresses you. It will not only give you the opportunity to find solutions to what is stressing you, it will also allow you to say “this is my time to worry and to think about all my problems.” This reserved time to “worry” is may help to avoid these feelings while in bed trying to sleep, empowering you to think to yourself “I have already spent my time and energy thinking about this, and there is nothing else to do at this moment about it.” There is no single fix to de-stress and sleep better, but it is important to recognize how sleep and stress interact. Many resources are now available online to help you and offer sleep tips for sleeping better. For example, you can visit sleeponit.ca to find some of these tips

Dr. Bastien of the School of Psychology at Laval University in Quebec City, Canada has been working in the field of sleep for more than 30 years.