Hurtful Words and Actions Can Disrupt Sleep

Children's sleep can be affected by what peers do and say.

Reviewed by Margaret Foley

Key points

• Children and adolescents may experience many kinds of discrimination.
• These experiences create emotional distress and can lead to disrupted sleep.
• Parents should be aware that distressing experiences can be a cause of their children's sleep problems.

Despite the old saying about sticks and stones, others’ words really can be hurtful. It is an unfortunate aspect of growing up that many children and teens are frequently mean to one another. Ridicule, exclusion, discrimination, and bullying of others are pervasive and can be based on many characteristics, including attractiveness, body shape or size, gender, race and ethnicity, nationality, social class, clothing, religion, politics, language and speech, intelligence and academic ability, or physical ability (did I leave anything out?). These kinds of situations are not new, of course, but the availability of social media has amplified the opportunities and even afforded anonymity in some instances (e.g., the number of “likes”).

Rejection by peers can have devastating effects, including emotional distress, anxiety, depression, eating disorders, and self-harm. Do these experiences also influence sleep? Sleep disruptions, including the inability to fall asleep or stay asleep, nightmares, and nocturnal enuresis, are common in children and adolescents, but the research on the relationship between distressing experiences and sleep is relatively sparse. So what has the research revealed?

Dr. Tiffany Yip and colleagues have provided an excellent recent review of research in this area. Their focus is on racial/ethnic discrimination and sleep, with discrimination documented in most instances through daily diaries and sleep measured in various ways including self-report and objective measurement with wrist actigraphy. The evidence is clear: Experiencing discrimination and even witnessing others being discriminated against is associated with shorter sleep duration, more difficulty falling asleep, poorer sleep quality, and daytime sleepiness. These effects are even seen in longitudinal designs where sleep can be affected weeks or months later.

Sleep is a modifiable behavior, and the authors describe numerous studies that have shown some effective interventions to help children and adolescents sleep better. Improvements in sleep hygiene (e.g., reducing caffeine intake and use of social media in the evenings), cognitive behavioral therapy, and education about sleep are among interventions that have had success. Unfortunately, the authors could find no intervention studies specifically aimed at those who experience discrimination, and they highlight the need for such studies.

Interventions by psychological, medical, and educational professionals are beneficial but rarely available to those who might need them. But talking to children daily about their interactions with others at school or on social media is something any parent can do. While it is impossible to shield children from distressing experiences, processing them with a parent or an older sibling can be beneficial. Parents can also take note when their children are not sleeping well and recognize that discrimination can be a cause.