Mums, are you overtired and snappy? You could just be slangry

We’ve all heard of ‘hangry’ – that particular feeling where you’re so hungry you can’t help but turn into a cranky, irritable so-and-so. But have you heard of the latest buzzword, slangry? As mums we’re pretty sure you can guess what it means, but just in case, we’ll tell you: ‘slangry’ is when you’re so tired, you become over-sensitive and snappy. You’re sleepy and you’re angry – you’re slangry.

Okay, we hear you say, I know this, I’ve experienced it many, many times; how is this news?

Well, at the moment ‘slangriness’ is getting a lot of media attention due to a scientific study ‘Losing Neutrality: The Neural Basis of Impaired Emotional Control without Sleep’ which was carried out to explore the influence of sleep deprivation on the brain. And yep, it’s real science people, the findings showed that lack of sleep “alters our emotional reactivity”.

So without a proper, undisturbed night’s sleep, we have a reduced ability to process our emotions and stop ourselves from lashing out at others or becoming tearful or irrational.

So the next time you snap at your partner because he forgot to put the milk back in the fridge, or if you're in a mood because you stepped on a Barbie and hurt your foot, make sure you tell your loved ones you have no control over it – you’re just slangry. It might encourage them to let you have a few hours kip!