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Association of hypnotizability and deep sleep: any role for interoceptive sensibility?

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Abstract

The aim of the study was to investigate the possible association of hypnotizability and deep sleep (N3) duration, and whether the interoceptive sensibility influences this association. This was motivated by the proneness of highly hypnotizable individuals to easily change their psychophysiological state, i.e., from wakefulness to hypnosis and sleep, and by the positive association observed between hypnotizability and interoceptive sensibility. Forty-seven healthy participants previously enrolled in a polysomnographic night sleep study completed the questionnaire for Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness (MAIA) and underwent hypnotic assessment through the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, form A (SHSS,A). Results showed that N3 duration is not linearly correlated with hypnotizability. Controlling for a few MAIA scales did not modify the relation between hypnotizability and deep sleep. A polynomial relation indicates that N3 duration and N3 percentage of the total sleep time increase with hypnotizability in the low-to-medium range of hypnotizability and decrease in the medium-to-high range. In conclusion, hypnotic assessment predicts N3 duration and their association is not modified by interoceptive awareness/sensitivity.

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Acknowledgements

Research funded by Finalizzata GR-2011-02348998 Stella Maris and University of Pisa (Fondi Ateneo 2017).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Translational Research and New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Via San Zeno, 31, 56127, Pisa, Italy

    Francesca Diolaiuti, Maria Paola Tramonti Fantozzi, Marco Di Galante, Paola D’Ascanio, Ugo Faraguna, Laura Sebastiani & Enrica L. Santarcangelo

  2. Department of Developmental Neuroscience, IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Pisa, Italy

    Ugo Faraguna

Authors
  1. Francesca Diolaiuti
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  2. Maria Paola Tramonti Fantozzi
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  3. Marco Di Galante
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  4. Paola D’Ascanio
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  5. Ugo Faraguna
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  6. Laura Sebastiani
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  7. Enrica L. Santarcangelo
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Correspondence to Laura Sebastiani.

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Communicated by Carlo Alberto Marzi .

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Diolaiuti, F., Fantozzi, M.P.T., Di Galante, M. et al. Association of hypnotizability and deep sleep: any role for interoceptive sensibility?. Exp Brain Res 238, 1937–1943 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00221-020-05853-4

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