The following is a summary of “Bedtime regularity predicts positive affect among veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder: an ecological momentary assessment study,” published in the November 2023 issue of Psychiatry by Song et al.
Regular sleep patterns are a crucial aspect of behavioral therapy for sleep disturbances in PTSD patients, though the underlying connection to symptom improvement is not fully understood.
Researchers investigated the relationship between bedtime and out-of-bed time variability and daytime effects, determining the most suitable time windows for calculating variability.
They collected ecological momentary assessment data on the effect and monitored sleep patterns using mattress actigraphy for 64 male U.S. military veterans with PTSD in a residential treatment program over approximately 30 days. Variability indices for bedtime and out-of-bed time were calculated using different day windows. Multilevel models were constructed to accommodate the nested data structure and assess the influence of bedtime and out-of-bed time variability on daytime effects.
The results showed a more regular bedtime over 6–9 days was linked to a higher subsequent positive effect. However, no comparable impacts were noted concerning out-of-bed time variability and effect.
They concluded that bedtime regularity predicts a positive effect, while out-of-bed time variability was associated with a negative effect. Studying these sleep facets could improve our understanding of sleep and mental health.
Source: bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12888-023-05373-9
