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Volume 14
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10.3390/bs14080646
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Article

Parasomnias in Post-Secondary Students: Prevalence, Distress, and Coping Strategies

by
Catherine S. Fichten
1,2,3,4,*,
Eva Libman
3,4,
Sally Bailes
3,4,
Mary Jorgensen
2,
Alice Havel
1,2,
Yuxuan Qin
2,5,
Laura Creti
3,4,
Huanan Liao
2,5,
Bianca Zlotea
1,2,
Christine Vo
2,
Jillian Budd
2,6,
Abigaelle Vasseur
2,5,
Tanya Pierre-Sindor
2,5 and
Georgiana Costin
2,5
1
Department of Psychology, Dawson College, Montreal, QC H3Z 1A4, Canada
2
Adaptech Research Network, Montreal, QC H3Z 3G4, Canada
3
Behavioural Psychotherapy and Research Unit, Jewish General Hospital, Montreal, QC H3T 1E4, Canada
4
Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 1A1, Canada
5
Department of Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 1A1, Canada
6
Department of Education, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 1A1, Canada
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Behav. Sci. 2024, 14(8), 646; https://doi.org/10.3390/bs14080646
Submission received: 2 April 2024 / Revised: 5 July 2024 / Accepted: 23 July 2024 / Published: 26 July 2024
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Abstract

Parasomnias are a group of sleep disorders characterized by abnormal and unpleasant motor, verbal, or behavioral events that occur during sleep or during transitions between wake and sleep states. They disrupt sleep and can have a detrimental impact on the individual experiencing them. Our goal was to identify types of parasomnias and their prevalence in the current and recent post-secondary student population and to explore their coping strategies for parasomnias they found distressing. Seventy-seven post-secondary students completed the 21-item Munich Parasomnia Screening (MUPS) frequency scale. They also rated, on a 10-point scale, how disturbing each parasomnia experienced was. Not only did 92% percent of students report at least one parasomnia, but our results also indicate that the vast majority of students experienced several parasomnias. This led us to investigate the likelihood of the co-occurrence of different parasomnias. With respect to the level of subjectively experienced distress, the most prevalent parasomnias were not always the more disturbing. Coded open-ended responses about what students do about the disturbing parasomnias indicate that grounding strategies (i.e., coping strategies that help manage distressing feelings) and physical manipulation of one’s body were the most common, although most participants indicated that in spite of distress, they do nothing to cope. In conclusion, our study found a strikingly high prevalence of parasomnias in this sample of young adults and a lack of knowledge about effective means of dealing with these. Therefore, we provide some accepted ways of dealing with these.
Keywords: parasomnia; college student; prevalence; disturbance; coping parasomnia; college student; prevalence; disturbance; coping

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MDPI and ACS Style

Fichten, C.S.; Libman, E.; Bailes, S.; Jorgensen, M.; Havel, A.; Qin, Y.; Creti, L.; Liao, H.; Zlotea, B.; Vo, C.; et al. Parasomnias in Post-Secondary Students: Prevalence, Distress, and Coping Strategies. Behav. Sci. 2024, 14, 646. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs14080646

AMA Style

Fichten CS, Libman E, Bailes S, Jorgensen M, Havel A, Qin Y, Creti L, Liao H, Zlotea B, Vo C, et al. Parasomnias in Post-Secondary Students: Prevalence, Distress, and Coping Strategies. Behavioral Sciences. 2024; 14(8):646. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs14080646

Chicago/Turabian Style

Fichten, Catherine S., Eva Libman, Sally Bailes, Mary Jorgensen, Alice Havel, Yuxuan Qin, Laura Creti, Huanan Liao, Bianca Zlotea, Christine Vo, and et al. 2024. "Parasomnias in Post-Secondary Students: Prevalence, Distress, and Coping Strategies" Behavioral Sciences 14, no. 8: 646. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs14080646

APA Style

Fichten, C. S., Libman, E., Bailes, S., Jorgensen, M., Havel, A., Qin, Y., Creti, L., Liao, H., Zlotea, B., Vo, C., Budd, J., Vasseur, A., Pierre-Sindor, T., & Costin, G. (2024). Parasomnias in Post-Secondary Students: Prevalence, Distress, and Coping Strategies. Behavioral Sciences, 14(8), 646. https://doi.org/10.3390/bs14080646

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