The Los Angeles Times reported on Friday an interesting study about the effects of sleep deprivation on genetics. Essentially, lack of sleep caused some genes, such as those involved in stress reactions, to be amplified. Others, such as those involved in healing, were turned down. Read:
Sleep deprivation has genetic consequences, study finds, on LATimes.com.
I found this study interesting for two reasons. First of all, some sociopaths actively try to prevent their partners from getting enough sleep, and the study points to the real health consequences of this subtle form of abuse.
Secondly, the study highlights the fact that genes can change. Here’s a key concept: We are all born with a package of genes, but for the genes to influence our bodies or personalities they have to “express,” or be activated. And whether or not genes express can depend on our life experiences.
This may provide hope for people who discover that they’ve had a child with a sociopath. Even though the child may be at risk of inheriting the disorder because of genetics, it’s not necessarily a done deal.
Donna, thank you for posting this article. There are countless factors of genetic coding. Physical and emotional trauma play important roles on the whole-being scenario.
A lot of food for thought in considering recovery from personal trauma.
Brightest blessings
Donna, this is a great article about an important subject. SLEEP is so important to the mental AND physical health, and has been used for centuries as a punishment by prisons, police, etc and if we are deprived of it for long enough our brain does NOT work. We cannot think logically and yes, our immune system is crapped out.
I have suffered from severe sleep apnea, probably for decades, but have been receiving treatment for it for the last 10-11 years and I can vouch for what lack of sleep will do to a person.
During the first three weeks after Patrick was arrested, I went 7 nights without any sleep at all and for weeks and weeks after that I got little if any sleep, I couldn’t shut my mind off enough to go to sleep, or even to meditate.
The major symptom of sleep apnea is snoring so if you or rsomeone you love snores get them checked out ASAP for sleep apnea, it is life changing to have treatment if you need it.
Worrying, rumination, and stress will cause sleep disturbances or keep you from sleeping, but lack of sleepiing will cause rumination,, worrying and more stress. So you end up with a “positive feed back” situation where you are like a hamster on a wheel,, the faster you go, the faster you get no where.
It is so important that we take care of our physical, emotional, and spiritual needs as we try to heal, and that includes gettiing enough sleep. If you are unable to sleep, you need to see your doctor. Most over the counter sleep medications contain benadryl and while it DOES make you sleepy, the KIND of sleep you get from it is not restorative. The same for using alcohol to get to sleep, you do not get restorative sleep from it.
Sleep medications Rx’d by your doctor can become habituating if used for LONG periods of time but for short term use or intermittent short term use are LIFE SAVERS.
I can vouch for the fact that lack of sleep, restful sleep, can make you crazy as a sheet house rat!
OX Drover….my Spath was doing the keep me awake thing sometimes, I’m sure of it. Another one of those flags I ignored because it was just to exhausting, pointless and traumatizing to confront him about anything. Water under the bridge. I’m wondering if you have had any good experiences with any sleep meds in particular? I tried Lunesta and it seemed to work really well for me but I’m very prone to depression so I didn’t want to stay on it to long. And it’s very expensive. I’m afraid of generic meds and I don’t do well on generic Prozac. Any opinions?
Ex was total expert in terrorizing my sleep. It was his main weapon. It was one of the reasons I NEVER minded stepping on a plane away from him, or putting him on a plane away from me. It meant one thing: REST! SLEEP!
darwinsmom:
Sorry your exspath terrorized your sleep…awful.
I wonder if you have any insight into what happened to me. I never slept when I was with Scousepath and I mean never…not a wink all night. And it’s not because he was doing anything mean or terrorizing me or anything…it was ME, but WHY? I had never not been able to sleep before like that when I was with someone. I do remember one thing and this is so stupid, but I was afraid to move around too much so I would lay there kind of frozen so that probably had something to do with me not being able to sleep, haha, but it was pretty awful. Somehow he knew it though because one morning he asked me if I had slept and I said no. Maybe he was watching me, I don’t know. I don’t think he slept either.
Louise,
after I met the spath, I stopped sleeping. I still can’t sleep.
I can’t really explain it either. He did snore, so I know he was sleeping. But even after I moved into my own room, I couldn’t sleep.
How is your sleep now? Is it better?
skylar:
No, it’s not better because now I’m in menopause so that messes up sleep big time. It’s always something…spaths, menopause…what’s next? 🙂
My sleep deprivation started yrs ago when husband would “interrogate” me in my sleep.It made me so angry that he did this!I even called him a “Nazi” I was so mad!A mutual friend who tried to reason with him,likened it to Chinese water torture…that with each DRIP, drip,wore a person down.Before I actually left him,I had become a “night owl” and wouldn’t get to bed before somewhere between 2-6 am;sometimes later!After I left,it felt wonderful to go to bed when I wanted,but I found that I would wake up crying in the middle of the night.That eventually ‘worked out’ with counseling.Now I’m dealing with restless feet!
When he was alongside me, peaceful… that’s when I could sleep. But I lay awake because when he was on his nightly prawling, coming back and fro, with promises of joining me hanging like a carrot out of reach over and over. And if I had slept and he finally did join me, and I wasn’t even upset but just happy he was finally home, he’d start a fight, play loud music, etc. That was his game: sleep deprivation.
It was almost like I knew something wasn’t right and that’s why I couldn’t sleep. Although, I guess when I look at it realistically, I was so high on love, I think that’s why I couldn’t sleep. 🙁