The EMU study aims to study the role that sleep plays in processing emotional memories. When we sleep, there are several regions of the brain that activate to process all sorts of experiences. We hope that by studying how this process works, we can learn more about anxiety and the brain, and, in the future, inform prevention and treatments to help improve children's quality of life.
Even though we study anxiety, kids who do not experience frequent anxiety or worries may also be eligible to participate in our study.
Activities
View the Steps to Participate in Our Study
- Prior to starting participation, parents will complete a phone screen with a research assistant, where they will be provided with more detailed information about the study.
- Participation involved 3 visits to FIU
- During the first visit, parents and youth will be asked to complete an interview and questionnaires. This visit will last two hours and will take place at FIU.
- Kids are asked to wear a wristwatch, called an actiwatch, that measures movement to track their sleep throughout the study. They will also complete a sleep diary asking how was their sleep the night before.
- Kids who are eligible will be asked to complete computer tasks in a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Kids will be asked to sleep for one night with their parent at Nicklaus Children's Hospital while being monitored by polysomnography (PSG). During the last visit, kids will complete computer tasks in an MRI.
- Families who participate will receive a 3-dimensional souvenir of their brain, and be compensated for each part of the study they completed!