Can lack of sleep cause anxiety?

[Andy699]

Hi guys, I haven't posted on here in a while and I'll try and keep it short. Basically about 2 months ago my anxiety hit an all time high and I started drinking heavily to self medicate. Bad idea considering I was on Prozac at the time. I'm only 19 btw. Anyway, my drinking had become so bad that one day I decided to stop. BAD IDEA. I started to have severe withdrawal symptoms, the shakes, sweating, vomiting, hallucinations, the works. I had to spend a week in hospital undergoing a detox. Whilst I was there my tests all came back normal apart from a slight liver abnormality which I wasn't really worried (it made sense because I was drinking up to 3 bottles of wine per day). I haven't drank since, it was hard at first but it's getting easier every day. This is the strange thing... When I came out of hospital, my anxiety had vanished! Not a single blip of anxiety since. I stopped taking my Prozac because I felt better. Now it's a month later and my sleeping pattern is messed up due to watching tv until 3am. Last night I decided to do an all nighter to fix my sleeping pattern. But around 9am this morning after staying awake all night, out if nowhere I had this HUGE surge of anxiety and almost had a panic attack... Now i'm worried :( can a lack of sleep make people feel anxious? Thanks guys

[fruity]

oh yes definetly. when im sleep deprived my anxietys are realy high.

[Andy699]

Thank god, I thought I was losing my mind. Is your anxiety constant? Mine tends to come in waves. I can go weeks without having a single panic attack and then out of nowhere, I could have 3 in a day and be convinced I have every disease under the sun :(

[anthrokid]

Lack of sleep can definitely increase anxiety. I am naturally more nervous and jumpy when I have had a week of awful sleep.

[Brunette]

Short answer - yes it can. Anxiety is one of your body's ways of telling you you need to be kinder to yourself - eat properly, sleep properly and don't drink to excess.

Ignore it at your peril.

[danielled]

Yes I've heard it can cause anxiety.

[Speranza]

It's a vicious circle for - me one causes the other, then vice-versa.