The relationship between mindfulness, PTSD-related sleep disturbance, and sleep quality: Contributions beyond emotion regulation difficulties.

Abstract

Objective: Emotion regulation difficulties have been associated with traumatic event exposure, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and associated sleep disturbances. Dispositional mindfulness, the tendency to experience the present moment, on purpose with acceptance and nonjudgment, can be conceptualized as adaptive emotion regulation. While dispositional mindfulness has been associated with adaptive posttrauma outcomes, it has not been examined in relation to trauma sequelae, such as sleep disturbance. The current study aimed to expand upon previous research to further explore the relationship between dispositional mindfulness and trauma sequelae. Method: Participants (N ϭ 217) were recruited using Amazon's Mechanical Turk to complete online surveys assessing PTSD symptom severity (PTSS), sleep disturbance, emotion regulation difficulties, and mindfulness. Results: After controlling for PTSS, the results suggest that dispositional mindfulness is associated with lower frequency of PTSD-related sleep disturbance and better sleep quality (daily disturbances). Additionally, the results suggest that specific dispositional mindfulness domains remain significant when emotion regulation difficulties domains were included in the model. Conclusions: Future research should further examine this relationship to inform mindfulness-based interventions for PTSD and sleep disturbance. Clinical Impact StatementThe results of the current study suggest that the effectiveness of mindfulness-based treatments for trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) related sleep disturbance should continue to be evaluated. Combined treatment may be especially useful considering the effect of sleep on cognitive processing necessary for successful participation in interventions.

Emotion dysregulation mediates the association between acute sleep disturbance and later posttraumatic stress symptoms in trauma exposed adults

“…This suggests that awareness may not be an essential element of emotion regulation, as proposed in a revised DERS model by Bardeen et al ( 2012 ). However, other studies that measure emotional awareness with DERS (Short et al, 2014 ) or its related construct (Nagy et al, 2020 ; Smith et al, 2020 ) have reported significant association between awareness, sleep, and PTSD, suggesting the need for further research to elucidate the mixed findings.…”

Be present now, sleep well later: Mindfulness promotes sleep health via emotion regulation.

“…Indeed, previous work finds that higher state mindfulness is associated with better sleep quality (Lee et al, 2021;Pawsey et al, 2021) and lower daytime sleepiness (Lee et al, 2021). Higher trait mindfulness has similarly been associated with enhanced sleep quality (Allen & Kiburz, 2012;Howell et al, 2008;Nagy et al, 2022) and lower frequency of posttraumatic stress disorder-related sleep disturbance (Nagy et al, 2022).…”

Combating Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in Nurses by Improving Sleep

“…Mindfulness is a strategy that can be used to break the cycle of sleep disturbance and PTSD symptoms [27]. The intervention consists of purposely directing one's attention to the present in a non-judgmental way, diminishing psychological arousal and increasing intentional control [28].…”