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The Sleep of the Bereaved
Timothy H Monk1, Anne Germain, Daniel J Buysse
1Neuroscience Clinical and Translational Research Center Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
Summary
Bereaved seniors experience sleep disruption, falling between good sleepers and those with insomnia. Subjective reports show intermediate sleep quality, but objective measures found no significant differences.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Sleep Medicine
- Psychology
Background:
- Sleep disruption is prevalent among widowed individuals.
- Understanding sleep patterns in bereaved seniors is crucial for targeted interventions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize the sleep quality of spousally bereaved (SB) seniors.
- To compare SB seniors' sleep with good sleeper controls (GSC) and older adults with insomnia (OAI).
Main Methods:
- Employed subjective (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, sleep diaries) and objective (actigraphy) measures.
- Recruited 47 spousally bereaved seniors, 33 good sleeper controls, and 47 older adults with insomnia.
- Collected 2 weeks of sleep data at baseline for all participants.
Main Results:
- Subjective reports (PSQI, diaries) indicated SB seniors' sleep disruption was intermediate between GSC and OAI groups.
- Diary measures showed SB seniors had less total sleep time and lower sleep efficiency than GSC, but better than OAI.
- Objective actigraphy data revealed no significant sleep differences between SB seniors and either the GSC or OAI groups.
Conclusions:
- Subjective sleep disruption in bereaved seniors is intermediate, aligning with diary and PSQI findings.
- Objective actigraphy did not support significant sleep differences in bereaved seniors compared to control or insomnia groups.
- Discrepancies between subjective and objective measures highlight the complexity of assessing sleep in this population.
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