Interrelation between nightmares, suicidal ideation and anxiety symptoms across adolescence

• In Event: Poster Session 04
  In Poster Session: PS 04 Topic - Developmental Psychopathology

Abstract

Nightmares are a multifaceted sleep disorder with a high prevalence in children and adolescents (Levin & Nielsen, 2007). Many studies have reported significant relationships between nightmare occurrence and psychosocial adjustment in adolescents (Gauchat et al., 2020), which is in concordance with the continuity hypothesis. The latter postulates that waking states and concerns are reflected in dreams (Domhoff, 1996, 2011). In adults, nightmare frequency has been repeatedly linked to internalizing problems, such as depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation (Lemyre, Bastien, & Vallières, 2019; Pigeon, Pinquart, & Conner, 2012), but the extent to which such associations characterize adolescent populations remains to be determined. The main goal of the present study was to evaluate the strength and stability of the associations between nightmare frequency, suicidal ideation and anxiety symptoms between the ages of 13 and 18. We included participants from the province of Quebec, Canada that took part in a larger longitudinal birth study on child development. Confidential self-reported measures were collected with a battery of validated instruments. More specifically, measures on nightmare frequency, on the presence of suicidal ideation and on symptoms of anxiety were completed on a yearly basis. Preliminary results from a random intercepts cross-lagged panel model (n = 434) showed that having nightmares at 13 and 14 years of age significantly predicted the increase in the frequency of reporting suicidal ideation between the ages of 13 and 15, regardless of anxiety symptoms. In addition, having anxiety symptoms at 16 years old significantly predicted the increase in nightmares and in suicidal ideation between the ages of 16 and 17. Unlike the associations found in the first years of adolescence, it is the variable of suicidal ideation at 17 years that plays a predictive role in the increase in nightmare frequency between the ages of 17 and 18. These findings suggest that nightmare frequency is potentially a risk factor for suicidal ideation in early adolescence, while the direction of this association may be reversed in late adolescence. These findings also highlight that having anxiety symptoms may be a risk factor for suicidal ideation in middle adolescence. Forthcoming analyses will examine the predictive value of nightmare frequency on suicidal ideation across adolescence, while including levels of depression in the model. Thus, the results could determine if the developmental relationships are specific to anxiety or common to internalizing problems. This ongoing project has both research and clinical implications. First, the results are consistent with the continuity hypothesis. Second, they will allow for a refinement of our conceptualization of nightmares and their relation to internalizing symptoms and suicidal ideation throughout adolescence. Third, collecting information on nightmares and internalizing problems during early adolescence may help in the screening of adolescents presenting with suicidal risk.

Authors

• Mira El-Hourani, Université de Montréal (UdeM)
  Presenting Author

• Antonio Zadra, Université de Montréal
  Non-Presenting Author

• Aline Gauchat
  Non-Presenting Author

• Sophie Parent, Université de Montréal
  Non-Presenting Author

• Natalie Castellanos Ryan, Université de Montréal
  Non-Presenting Author

• Johanne Renaud, McGill University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Richard E. Tremblay, University of Montreal
  Non-Presenting Author

• Jean Richard Seguin, Université de Montréal
  Non-Presenting Author