Sleep and mental health
There is overwhelming evidence that one’s mental health is directly related to their quantity and quality of sleep. For me, sleep has been a factor in maintaining my mental health, especially my anxiety. Before I developed a mental illness, sleep was not too high of a priority. As a college student, I could stay up until 3:00 working on an assignment then wake up at 7:00 to get to class. Between drinking caffeine and driving with radio on loud, I could go through my day as if I had gotten a full 8 hours of sleep. Although I don’t attribute developing a mental illness to my poor sleep habits, not paying enough attention to my health or listening to my body definitely contributed to the severity of my mental breakdown. If I had taken better care of myself during the semester, I don’t think my symptoms would have begun so abruptly. Throughout my battle with mental illness and my recovery, paying attention to my sleep has been essential. Getting too much or too little sleep during the ni