Rapid Eye Movement Mechanisms in PTSD

Most people with posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) experience ongoing problems sleeping, such as difficulties falling and/or staying asleep and frequent nightmares. Importantly, persistent sleep problems following trauma are not just a symptom, they are considered a key risk factor for developing PTSD.

Sleep plays an important role in how the brain processes emotional experiences. In particularly rapid eye movement (REM) sleep – often referred to as “dream sleep” – is thought to support adaptive recovery processes following trauma. One such process is called extinction learning, or learning that previously threatening situations are now safe.

When REM sleep is disrupted, this learning process may not work as effectively, contributing to the persistence in posttraumatic stress symptoms. Encouragingly, sleep interventions in PTSD have been found to reduce PTSD symptom severity.

Since sleep is both important in PTSD and modifiable, it represents a promising target for interventions to reduce PTSD risk and improve PTSD treatment outcomes. This webinar will provide an overview of sleep in PTSD, explain how sleep influences PTSD processes and discuss what this means for the clinical practice and everyday life.

About the Speaker

Dr Maya Schenker completed her PhD at the John Trinder Sleep Laboratory (University of Melbourne) in 2023. Her research focuses on the link between sleep and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Currently, she is the research manager and engagement coordinator for an NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence looking at treatment predictors of exposure-based therapies in anxiety disorders. Her research interest is in furthering our understanding of how sleep influences the mechanisms underlying PTSD and anxiety disorders, and how it affects symptom expression in everyday life. Maya’s goal is to find better ways to prevent and manage these disorders by targeting sleep.

The event will be hosted by Max Loomes, President of ASTSS