Processing encoded traumatic memories through REM sleep

Abstract

The role of sleep in emotional regulation and memory processing has drawn considerable interest over time, especially its preferential enhancement of emotional memories and incorporation into autobiographical memories during REM sleep. A trauma film paradigm was employed to investigate how sleep differentially affects the processing of traumatic films versus neutral films, with assessments of the participant’s affect, recollection of the films, and their intrusive re-experiences for the next 5 days. Significant differences were found between the neutral and trauma conditions for all three of these assessments, and it was also found that post-sleep assessments in the trauma condition significantly predicted the distress, vividness and number of intrusions for the next 5 days. Greater REM sleep duration was significantly correlated with lower anxiety in the post-sleep assessments of the trauma condition, but it did not significantly with any other post-sleep or intrusion metric. Further implications and future directions for research and mental health interventions are discussed.