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" Sleep disturbances experienced by military personnel and veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom "
Taylor R. Plumb
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Latin Dissertation
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| Language of Document
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English
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| Record Number
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53840
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| Doc. No
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TL23794
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| Call number
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3377427
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| Main Entry
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Taylor R. Plumb
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| Title & Author
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Sleep disturbances experienced by military personnel and veterans of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom\ Taylor R. Plumb
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| College
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Alliant International University, San Francisco Bay
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| Date
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2009
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| Degree
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Psy.D.
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| student score
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2009
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| Page No
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118
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| Abstract
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The present study investigated the types, severity and correlates of sleep disturbances experienced by military personnel (N=375, 84.7% male) who served in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) or Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). Participants consisted of an on-line sample of non-deployed current or former military personnel. Participants completed the following standardized measures: Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index for PTSD (PSQI-A), PTSD Checklist - Military version (PCL-M), Combat Exposure Scale (CES), Patient Health Questionnaire 9: Depression Screen (PHQ-9), and GAD-7: Anxiety Screen (GAD-7). Participants also completed 13 additional items, which included non-standardized multiple choice and open ended questions that gathered information on specific types of sleep problems, use of sleep aids, course of sleep problems, and participants' perception of the success of interventions. This survey found that a high percentage of military personnel reported disrupted sleep since returning from their deployment(s) to Iraq and/or Afghanistan, even many months following deployment. The reported sleep problems were complex and variable, with symptoms experienced at least 3 times a week including delayed sleep onset (40.5%) and middle of the night awakenings (58.6%). Other reported sleep symptoms experienced at least once a week included feelings of general nervousness (46.1%), anxiety/panic (26.7%), and nightmares (trauma related: 30.2%, not trauma related: 26.9%). A large percentage of military personnel reported sleep onset, sleep efficiency, and total sleep time at levels similar to those of persons with sleep disorders (45.4%, 55.9% and 21.4% respectively). In addition, 56.3% of participants reported their sleep as "bad" or "very bad" within the last month. Although sleep problems were considerably more common and severe among individuals who scored over clinical cut-points for PTSD, depression and anxiety, sleep problems were also extremely common among those who did not exceed cut-points for these disorders. Participants who had greater combat exposure, who were female, and who were divorced or widowed reported significantly greater sleep problems. Higher education and increased rank also predicted significantly less sleep problems in this study's sample. These results suggest that individuals working with OEF and OIF military personnel and veterans need to provide regular and detailed assessment of sleep. There is also a need to adapt and evaluate behavioral treatments for insomnia and nightmares to address sleep disturbances among OEF and OIF personnel and veterans.
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| Subject
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Psychology; Sleep; Sleep disturbance; Veterans; Military; Operation Enduring Freedom; Operation Iraqi Freedom; Clinical psychology; 0622:Clinical psychology
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| Added Entry
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Alliant International University, San Francisco Bay
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