Sleep quality buffers the effects of negative social interactions on maternal mood in the 3-6 month postpartum period: a daily diary study.

Sleep and social relationships are two key determinants of psychosocial health that undergo considerable change across the transition to motherhood. The current study investigated the bidirectional relationship between daytime Positive and Negative Social Interactions (PSIs & NSIs) and nighttime sleep quality on maternal mood across 1 week in the 3-6 month postpartum period. Sixty healthy, non-depressed first-time mothers completed 7-consecutive days of daily social interaction and sleep diaries. Results indicated that higher than average sleep quality buffered the effect of higher than average NSIs on maternal mood (i.e., buffered mood reactivity) and appeared to promote mood recovery following a particularly "bad day" (i.e., higher than average NSIs). In addition, although PSIs were more common than NSIs overall, the most frequent and positively rated PSIs were with baby as were the most frequent and negatively rated NSIs. To our knowledge, our results are the first to characterize the impact of PSIs on postpartum maternal mood, assess maternal-infant social interactions in daily diary study of postpartum social relationships, and demonstrate the role that maternal sleep quality plays in social discord-related mood reactivity and mood recovery processes in the 3-6 month postpartum period.

Evaluation of waist-worn actigraphy monitors for the assessment of sleep in older adults with and without Alzheimer's disease.

OBJECTIVES: Evaluate differences in sleep characteristics between older adults with and without mild Alzheimer's disease using waist-worn actigraphy monitors. METHODS: Actigraph GT3X+ monitors and self-reported sleep and activity logs were used for one week and compared between older adults (N = 85) with (n = 35) and without Alzheimer's disease (n = 51). RESULTS: Participants with Alzheimer's disease had greater total sleep time and spent more time in bed than nonimpaired older adults. Estimates for sleep efficiency and total sleep time for the total sample were elevated compared to previous studies of wrist-worn devices in similar populations, while estimates of sleep onset latency and wake after sleep onset for the total sample were lower. CONCLUSIONS: Actigraphy-based sleep studies in older adults with Alzheimer's disease should consider discrepancies between objective and subjective estimates of sleep and monitor placement to maximize the ability to measure both activity and sleep.

The Association of Daytime Maternal Napping and Exercise With Nighttime Sleep in First-Time Mothers Between 3 and 6 Months Postpartum.

OBJECTIVE: This study investigated the relationship of daytime maternal napping, exercise, caffeine, and alcohol intake to objective and subjective sleep indices. PARTICIPANTS: Sixty healthy, nondepressed, first-time mothers between 3 and 6 months postpartum. METHODS: Seven consecutive days of online behavior diaries, sleep diaries, and wrist actigraphy, collecting Total Sleep Time (TST), Sleep Onset Latency (SOL), and Wake After Sleep Onset (WASO). RESULTS: After controlling for infant age, employment status, infant feeding method, and infant sleeping location, mixed linear models showed that longer average exercise durations were associated with longer average TST, and longer average nap durations were associated with longer average WASO durations. Significant within-person differences in TST and SOL were also observed, such that, on days when participants exercised and napped longer than average, their respective TST and SOL durations that night were longer. CONCLUSION: Shorter nap durations and longer exercise durations were associated with longer TST, shorter SOL, and reduced WASO. Even small changes in daily exercise and napping behaviors could lead to reliable improvements in postpartum maternal sleep.

Gender and cognitive-emotional factors as predictors of pre-sleep arousal and trait hyperarousal in insomnia.

OBJECTIVE: Elevated pre-sleep arousal has been consistently associated with insomnia, yet the cognitive-emotional mechanisms involved in sleep-related arousal remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of pre-sleep arousal and trait hyperarousal from a set of variables that included self-reported affect, sleep-related cognitions, locus of control, and gender. METHODS: Cross-sectional data were analyzed for 128 participants (89 females) who met criteria for psychophysiological insomnia and completed a set of questionnaires that included the beliefs and attitudes about sleep (BAS), positive and negative affect schedule (negative subscale (nPANAS) and positive subscale (pPANAS)), sleep locus of control (SLOC), Pre-Sleep Arousal Scale (PSAS), hyperarousal scale (HAS) and demographic information. Step-wise regression was conducted with a set of independent variables, with PSAS and HAS serving as separate dependent variables. RESULTS: Trait hyperarousal was associated with higher levels of both negative and positive emotionality, as well as negative beliefs about sleep, in both genders. Pre-sleep arousal was associated with greater negative emotionality and internal sleep locus of control, varying by gender. Among women, high pre-sleep arousal was associated with negative emotionality, while in men greater pre-sleep arousal was associated with an internal sleep locus of control. CONCLUSION: These findings have clinical implications, suggesting that men and women may require different cognitive targets when addressing pre-sleep arousal.