Sleep and mental health are closely related. Sleep disturbances typically affect 50-80 % of patients in a mental health practice. Sleep disturbances could occur as a simultaneous symptom of a psychiatric disorder but many times contribute to a diagnosis. If you do not get 7-9 hours of quality sleep it can severely influence your motivation and emotions. A good nights sleep boosts mental and emotional resilience and at the same time sleep depravation contributes to emotional vulnerability, and negative thinking patterns. Ultimately, these alterations likely will affect your family and social relationships as well. Even small amounts of sleep depravation can have a significant affect on your happiness. People who suffer with insomnia, a disorder that makes it difficult to fall and stay asleep, have greater incidence of anxiety and depression than those individuals who sleep normally. Insomniacs are 10 times as likely to suffer from clinical depression and 17 times as likely to suffer with clinical anxiety. Obstructive Sleep Apnea, when a person frequently wakes in the night, briefly, are five times as likely to suffer with depression because sleep is disrupted over and over and it alters the chemicals in the brain that are responsible for mood and anxiety. The emotional changes related to sleep are complex because anxiety and depression can compound and further disrupt sleep. If you find yourself struggling with sleep issues, sleeping too much or too little, it is important to discuss with your mental health professional and medical doctor to look at your physical and mental health to decide what treatment plan is necessary.