Unveiling Coronasomnia: Pandemic Stress and Sleep Problems During the COVID-19 Outbreak

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Si Chen

Hong Kong

: Int J Ment Health Psychiatry

Abstract

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Statement of the Problem: The COVID-19 pandemic posed an unprecedented challenge to public well-being, necessitating an examination of its health impact. This review discusses the relationship between pandemic-induced stressors and individual sleep patterns and quality. The pandemic stressors include lockdown or physical distancing measures, direct virus exposure, and the dissemination of misinformation and disinformation. Main Findings: In general, the pandemic led to delayed sleep-wake cycles, except for healthcare professionals, and an overall worsened sleep quality among general public. The prevalence of insomnia was higher for women due to pre-existing conditions and susceptibility stressors such as lockdown stress and family responsibilities. Healthcare professionals, who experienced worsened work conditions during the pandemic, reported higher rates of insomnia and sleep difficulties due to infection anxiety and post-traumatic stress from direct virus exposure. For the general population, stress stemmed from social isolation under lockdown and overwhelming false information available online, resulting in sleep problems. This review has also identified key stressors that were linked to the decrease of sleep health during the pandemic. For the general public, lockdown stress, infection anxiety, and the infodemic have been identified as the most prevalent stressors that led to sleep disturbances and interrupted sleep cycle. For women, the stress accompanied by family responsibilities and fear of contracting the virus was more prominent. As for health-care professionals, who were one of the most at-risk groups, their stress mainly stemmed from the challenge posed by irregular and demanding work conditions. Conclusion and Significance: Taken together, the findings highlight the importance of promoting social interactions, providing psychological support services, and caution in navigating health information on social media platforms. In summary, this review underscores the need for individual- and group-centered approaches in ongoing research and interventions to address pandemic-related stress and sleep issues during.

Biography

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Si Chen has her expertise in the impact of COVID-19, especially the effect of social media during the pandemic, on individual’s sleep health and general wellbeing. On a related note, her current line of research takes the focus on examining the digital aspect of individual well-being. On the topic of the pandemic’s health impact, Si has done reviews discussing the benefits of psychological resilience and risks associated with problematic social media use. Moreover, she is also working on the conceptualization of the construct of digital well-being by adopting a network approach to comprehensively examine the affective, cognitive, and social factors that are at work in influencing individual subjective well-being in the digital space.