Violence affects teenagers even in sleep

• May 3, 2024

Changes in the body's internal clock are not the only reason why teenagers They lose hours of sleep. According to the pediatricians of the US Institutes of Health, many individuals suffer from insomnia, or have difficulty staying asleep.

The most frequent cause is stress. However, there are many factors capable of disturbing sleep: physical discomfort (like, having a stuffy nose or a headache ), Emotional problems (family problems or difficulties in other types of relationships), including the environment in which you sleep (a room that is too hot, cold or noisy). However, there is another factor that in recent times has become relevant, at least in Mexico , in the problems of anxiety and stress and its impact on sleep: it is the climate of violence who lives the country.

Stress among teenagers and young Mexicans

Most adolescents experience more stress when they perceive a situation as dangerous, difficult or painful and they do not have the resources to face or deal with it, as adults can. According to the doctor María Elena Medina Mora , director of the National Institute of Psychiatry, nowadays there has been an increase in the stress levels of the population, mainly among young people in relation to previous generations.

The current generation of young Mexicans has twice the risk of suffering from a mental disorder, mainly depression, due to the post-traumatic stress caused by the acts of violence that take place every day, says the specialist. Estimates that 3% to 4% of the population suffers posttraumatic stress , of which a third part evolves to severe depression , with the consequent risk of complications, especially suicide.

According to official figures, in the past 2 decades, the number of suicides of people from 14 to 24 years old . Some symptoms of post-traumatic stress, practically impossible to overcome individually, are the difficulty to sleep or wake up very early , body weight changes without justification, difficulty making decisions and face daily life.

Nightmares: a condition that disturbs a teenager's sleep

Violence also generates nightmares . Most teenagers suffer from time to time, but if they are frequent they can interrupt the sleep and wake up to the person during the night. The lack of break it can also generate poor school performance and lack of concentration; in addition to, as the doctor points out Francisco Javier Cuamea Piña , psychiatrist of the Unit of Child Therapy of the Center for Mental Hygiene Dr. Carlos Nava, Hermosillo, Sonora, generate cases in which the person avoids sleeping for fear of experiencing nightmares. There are multiple factors that can cause a greater frequency of bad dreams , like some medicines , the drug and the alcohol . The most common causes of a higher frequency of nightmares are emotional, such as stress or anxiety. If the nightmares are interfering with the dream and begin to to affect the employment situation or Social of the person, it is necessary to request support.

Video Medicine: Through Our Eyes: Children, Violence, and Trauma—Introduction (May 2024).