Anxiety modifies the emotional effects of sleep loss

It is well known that lack of sleep increases anxiety and degrades mood in a dose-response fashion, but it is also increasingly clear that higher levels of pre-existing anxiety amplify the emotional effects of poor sleep. The current paper discusses recent findings that provide evidence of these effects and considers potential mechanisms through which these relationships may manifest. We suggest a focus for future research that includes greater attention to anxiety as a meaningful contributor to observed inter-individual differences in emotional vulnerability to sleep loss. Given the ubiquitous nature of anxiety symptoms across developmental stages as well as psychiatric, medical, and healthy populations, the implications of such work are vast.