In today’s competitive and mechanical world, the word insomnia is much too common. Insomnia is the physical condition where the person suffering from it experiences difficulty getting sleep or staying asleep. If, this insomnia occurs for a long period of time, it is termed as chronic insomnia.
Insomnia should not be mixed up with general sleeplessness, that all of us experience at some point of time or the other, but they are temporary. Chronic insomnia is generally seen more in older people than the young.
Insomnia Cause
The more general causes of insomnia includes:
Stress
Worry
Depression
Physical illness and pain
Environmental noise
Shift work
Consumption of too much caffeine or alcohol
Side effects of medicines, including certain stimulants, herbs, etc
Drugs like cocaine
Hormonal problems
Menopause in case of women
Diseases like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, general anxiety disorder
Poor sleep hygiene
Parasomnia, includes quiet a number of things that disrupts sleep such as
nightmares
sleepwalking
violent behavior while sleeping
REM behavior disorder, in which a person moves his/her physical body in response to events within his/her dreams
Fatal familial insomnia is a rare genetic condition that can cause a permanent and eventually fatal form of insomnia.
Symptoms of Insomnia
The symptoms of insomnia re easily detectable such as:
Sleepless nights
Excessive daytime tiredness, which in turn may be responsible for accidents
Recurrent infections
Poor concentration
Irritability
Work and relationship problems
General inability to cope.
Types of Insomnia
Among the different degrees of insomnia, the following three are most important:
Transient
The form of insomnia that lasts from days to weeks is called Transient insomnia. The cause of it can be any other disorder, or changes in the sleep environment, by the timing of sleep, or even by stress.
Acute
The inability to sleep well consistently for a period of between three weeks to six months is called Acute insomnia.
Chronic
Insomnia that lasts from months to years is Chronic insomnia. Another disorder can cause this, or it can be a primary disorder. The effects vary according to its causes. These include sleepiness, muscular fatigue, and/or mental fatigue; but people with chronic insomnia often show increased alertness.
Phases of Insomnia
The different phases of insomnia are s follows:
Initial insomnia—This leads to difficulty falling asleep at the beginning of the night. This is often associated with anxiety disorders.
Middle insomnia—The problem of waking during the middle of the night, and difficulty maintaining sleep is middle insomnia. This is often associated with pain or medical illness.
Terminal insomnia—This is the problem of waking up early morning.
Diagnosis of Insomnia
Delayed sleep phase syndrome is often wrongly diagnosed as insomnia. The difference depends on the pattern of sleep of the individual. Therefore the normal pattern of sleep of an individual has to be studies in order to diagnose insomnia.
Insomnia Treatment
The reason for delayed treatment for insomnia is that people either do not realize the depth of the disease, or they tend to neglect it for a long time. This might also be aggravated by amateurish intake of medicines over the counter. The various treatment of insomnia includes:
Good condition of sleep, like dark room, cool atmosphere, no disturbances, etc
Maintaining the time of sleep and waking up regularly
Sleeping tablets are given in minor cases
Avoid stimulants like caffeine, alcohol, etc that hamper sleep
Having warm milk before going to bed
Psychological help or counseling
Antidepressants
Alternative therapy, like aromatherapy, jasmine oil, etc
Acupuncture therapy
Proper diets
Exercise and working out to use pent up energy
Hypnotherapy or self hyopnosis
