STUDY: Sleep Helps Us Let Go Of Negative Emotions

TIME:

Dreams may not be the secret window into the frustrated desires of the unconscious that Sigmund Freud first posited in 1899, but growing evidence suggests that dreams -- and, more so, sleep -- are powerfully connected to the processing of human emotion.

According to new research presented last week at the annual meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies in Seattle, adequate sleep may underpin our ability to understand complex emotions properly in waking life. "Sleep essentially is resetting the magnetic north of your emotional compass," says Matthew Walker, director of the Sleep and Neuroimaging Lab at the University of California, Berkeley.

Read the whole story: TIME

Comments

[bmonaghan]

There is an excellent article linked below that discusses sleep and the lack thereof. One of the interesting things I found out was that we on average sleep an hour and half less than our great grandparents - and the sleep we are getting is of substantial less quality. There are studies now (below) that show what this means in terms of our health and mind.

http://www.prlog.org/10254993-lack-of-sleep-reported-to-cause-brain-damage-premature-death-and-other-health-issues.html

[MelanieWatson]

I also read another interesting article on how sleeping habits and various school subject have a correlation when it comes to performance in the classroom. Read http://www.citizensreport.org/2009/06/15/sleep-habits-affect-grades-by-subject/

[swingerofbirches]

I need naps in the afternoon--even if I only fall asleep for a few minutes, if I get one, it completely resets me--I consider it my reset button and am very lucky if I can happen to fall asleep for a short while like that.

[graci3la]

According to this http://www.norml.org/index.cfmm?Group_ID=6192) THC helps you forget bad as well as good memories. At least, that's my interpretation based on the fact that the rats they gave it to forgot "prior conditioni­ng."

Wonder if anyone in the US is using pot for PTSD. On a doctor's order, I mean.

[zizyphus]

In Israel, they are using cannabis to treat PTSD. It helps them to forget the traumatic events they witnessed.

[swingerofbirches]

This is also supposed to be very effective in treating psychosis and anxiety, but is not legal:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannabidiol

It's part of the marijuana plant and according to that wikipedia article sounds like is useful for a number of things.