| Description |
Childhood trauma is associated with increased mental and physical illness in adulthood. Disrupted sleep may be one mechanism by which trauma adversely affects health. Current literature states that sleep is essential in restoration of cognitive functioning and stress regulation. In addition, insomnia is associated with increased mortality and morbidity. The current study examined pre-sleep arousal, a vulnerability factor for the development of insomnia, and self-reported sleep quality in adults reporting childhood trauma. Participants included 76 healthy young adults (age 20-45; M = 27.2) who did not meet criteria for insomnia. During a baseline laboratory assessment, participants completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), a retrospective measure of childhood abuse and neglect; the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), a self-report measure of sleep quality over the previous month; and resting impedance cardiography, which provides measures of sympathetic (i.e., pre-ejection period; PEP) and parasympathetic (i.e., respiratory sinus arrhythmia; RSA) nervous system activation. During two consecutive nights in daily life, participants completed the Pre-Sleep Arousal Scale (PSAS), a measure of cognitive and somatic activation, prior to falling asleep. Objective indices of pre-sleep arousal were obtained via Actigraphy and ambulatory impedance cardiography. Reported childhood trauma was not associated with overall reported sleep quality, but did predict subjective and objective measures of pre-sleep arousal including increased sympathetic nervous system activation. These findings suggest that a history of childhood trauma may influence stress physiology in subtle, but important ways including, increased risk for poor sleep secondary to heightened pre-sleep arousal. Understanding the relationship between childhood trauma, pre-sleep arousal, and insomnia will assist in preventing, and treating insomnia. |
