Do Nightmares and Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Childhood and Adolescence have a Common Genetic Origin?

Coolidge, Frederick L.; Segal, Daniel L.; Coolidge, Christa M.; Spinath, Frank M.; Gottschling, Juliana

doi:10.1007/s10519-009-9310-z

Cited by 41 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…It has also been suggested that at least some of the relationship between GAD and nightmares might be caused by common genes, although the 2 conditions have largely independent genetic influences. 47 In accordance with earlier studies of school children, 48 the current findings suggest sleep disorder to be more strongly associated with symptoms of anxiety than symptoms of depression in young children. Notably, however, anxiety is an early-onset disorder, whereas depression usually occurs later in life; in addition, anxiety is often a precursor to later depression.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Sleep Disorders in Preschoolers

Steinsbekk

Berg-Nielsen

Wichstrøm

2013

Journal of Developmental &Amp; Behavioral Pediatrics

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ABSTRACT:Objectives: This study provide data on the prevalence of diagnosable sleep disorders in preschoolers and examined the relationship between specific sleep disorders and a range of DSM-4-defined psychiatric symptoms. Methods: All children born in 2003 or 2004 in Trondheim, Norway, who attended regular community health checkups for 4 year olds were asked to participate (97.2% attendance; 82.0% consent rate, N 5 2475). A screen-stratified subsample of 1250 children was recruited to participate in an additional comprehensive study that included a structured diagnostic interview (the Preschool-Age Psychiatric Assessment). Nine hundred ninety-five parents (79.6%) completed the interview. Results: The estimated sleep disorder rate was 19.2%. Rates of specific disorders were as follows: primary insomnia (16.6%), primary hypersomnia (0.8%), nightmare disorder (2.2%), and sleepwalking disorder (0.7%). When adjusted for a range of common psychiatric symptoms, primary insomnia was specifically related to symptoms of depression, generalized anxiety disorder, separation anxiety, and specific phobia. When sleep problems were excluded as a symptom of depression, the association between depression and primary insomnia was no longer significant. Nightmare disorder was significantly related to generalized anxiety disorder. Conclusions: This first study of the prevalence and comorbidity of diagnosable sleep disorders in preschoolers indicates that primary insomnia is common in young children, whereas other sleep disorders are rare. Sleep disorders are related to psychiatric symptoms, particularly symptoms of anxiety disorders.(J Dev Behav Pediatr 0:1-9, 2013)

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Sleep Disorders in Preschoolers

Steinsbekk

Berg-Nielsen

Wichstrøm

2013

Journal of Developmental &Amp; Behavioral Pediatrics

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“…The continuity hypothesis, in relation to nightmares, has been supported by previous empirical findings that found associations between the experience of nightmares and unpleasant and/or unusual waking experiences such as dissociative tendencies (Cheung, 2012), trauma (Nadorff, Nazem, & Fiske, 2011), schizotypal traits (Watson, 2001), depression and suicidality (Cukrowicz et al, 2006), anxiety (Coolidge, Segal, Coolidge, Spinath, & Gottschling, 2010), and general psychological distress symptoms (Levin & Fireman, 2001). In addition to what might be considered unpleasant psychological states noted previously, a consistent finding of previous studies has been that nightmares were related to unpleasant trait psychological experiences.…”

Section: Original Articlementioning

confidence: 82%

The Nightmare Proneness Scale: A Proposed Measure for the Tendency to Experience Nightmares

Kelly¹

2017

Sleep Hypn

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This article presents three studies aimed at the development and analysis of a proposed measure of nightmare proneness, the tendency to experience nightmares frequently. In Study 1 a sample of 205 university students was utilized to create the Nightmare Proneness Scale (NPS), consisting of personality and symptomatology items that significantly differentiated between individuals reporting frequent nightmares and controls. Study 2 cross-validated the ability of the NPS to discriminate between frequent nightmare reporters and controls among a sample of 275 students. Study 2 also found that the NPS accounted for unique variance in nightmare frequency above other measures of distress. The NPS possessed adequate internal consistency across all studies. Study 3 demonstrated satisfactory test-retest reliability of the NPS. The results and suggestions for future research were discussed.

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“…Previous findings that parasomnias are related to emotional problems such as a child' s daytime anxiety 46,47 and behavioral problems 22 indicate that stress may be an important mechanism for the association between being bullied and parasomnias. Firstly, being bullied and in particular, chronic victimization, might create a sense of learned helplessness, 48 making this subgroup more vulnerable to stress symptoms.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bullying and Parasomnias: A Longitudinal Cohort Study

Wolke

Lereya

2014

Pediatrics

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BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Environmental factors such as serious trauma or abuse and related stress can lead to nightmares or night terrors. Being bullied can be very distressing for children, and victims display long-term social, psychological, and health consequences. Unknown is whether being bullied by peers may increase the risk for experiencing parasomnias such as nightmares, night terrors, or sleepwalking. METHODS: A total of 6796 children of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) birth cohort were interviewed at elementary school age (8 and 10 years) about bullying experiences with a previously validated bullying interview and at secondary school age (12.9 years) about parasomnias such as nightmares, night terrors and sleepwalking by trained postgraduate psychologists. RESULTS: Even after adjusting for pre-existing factors related to bullying and parasomnias, being bullied predicted having nightmares (8 years odds ratio [OR], 1.23; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.05–1.44; 10 years OR, 1.62; 95% CI, 1.35–1.94) or night terrors (8 years OR, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.10–1.75; 10 years OR, 1.53; 95% CI, 1.18–1.98) at age 12 to 13 years. Especially being a chronic victim was associated with both nightmares (OR, 1.82; 95% CI, 1.46–2.27) and night terrors (OR, 2.01; 95% CI, 1.48–2.74). Being a bully/victim also increased the risk for any parasomnia at ages 8 or 10 years (8 years OR, 1.42; 95% CI, 1.08–1.88; 10 years OR, 1.75; 95% CI, 1.30–2.36). In contrast, bullies had no increased risk for any parasomnias. CONCLUSIONS: Being bullied increases the risk for having parasomnias. Hence, parents, teachers, school counselors, and clinicians may consider asking about bullying experiences if a child is having parasomnias.

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Do Nightmares and Generalized Anxiety Disorder in Childhood and Adolescence have a Common Genetic Origin?

Cited by 41 publications

References 21 publications

Sleep Disorders in Preschoolers

Sleep Disorders in Preschoolers

The Nightmare Proneness Scale: A Proposed Measure for the Tendency to Experience Nightmares

Bullying and Parasomnias: A Longitudinal Cohort Study

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