Safe Enough to Sleep: Sleep Disruptions Associated with Trauma, Posttraumatic Stress, and Anxiety in Children and Adolescents

Sleep disturbance is an essential symptom of posttraumatic stress disorder, and recent evidence suggests that disrupted sleep may play an important role in the development of posttraumatic stress disorder following traumatic stress. The authors review several aspects of sleep as it relates to posttraumatic stress disorder. First, there is an association between traumatic stress and different components of disrupted sleep in children and adolescents. Second, sleep disruption appears to be a core feature of other pediatric anxiety disorders, and the authors consider if this preexisting sleep vulnerability may explain in part why preexisting anxiety disorders are a risk factor for developing posttraumatic stress disorder following a traumatic event. Third, the authors consider attachment theory and the social context of trauma and sleep disruption. This article concludes with a consideration of the therapeutic implications of these findings.