What is Insomnia?
Insomnia is characterized as a sleep disorder that shows up as either difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep. It’s a very common sleep disorder and according to The American Academy of Sleep Medicine, about 30% of adults have insomnia. Sleep is essential for everyone for their health and well-being as a whole. Lack of sleep attributed to insomnia can cause many health problems in the body.
What Are Some Symptoms of Insomnia?
Some of the symptoms of insomnia can be overlooked or dismissed as normal. They often are. Insomnia can make it difficult to fall asleep despite your body being tired. For others, it may be difficult to stay asleep, once you’ve fallen asleep. It can also take a very long time to fall asleep after you go to bed. This causes exhaustion and makes it difficult to focus and concentrate throughout the day.
What Are The Causes of Insomnia?
There are several causes of insomnia and some have quick fixes, others may take longer. Here are some of the causes of insomnia:
Environmental factors
Living in high-traffic, noisy, or bustling areas can cause insomnia. Too much light can also affect your sleep. All of these interrupt your body’s ability to fall asleep or stay asleep.
Diet and lifestyle
Caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol are some of the major contributors to insomnia. Having sleep patterns that are irregular can contribute as well. Employees who work shifts that are irregular can often develop insomnia.
Stress
Stress is a major cause of insomnia. Concerns about loved ones, finances, career, death of a loved one, divorce, etc. Those are all things that make it difficult to fall asleep and become ways stress contributes to insomnia.
Medical conditions
Some common medical conditions that cause or contribute to insomnia can be depression, PTSD, restless leg syndrome, chronic pain, thyroid conditions, etc. Often the medications to help with these health issues can also contribute to insomnia.
Is There A Treatment for Insomnia
The good news is in most cases, there is a treatment for insomnia. Treatment can be one or more of the following options:
Lifestyle changes
Making changes to your lifestyle can help treat insomnia. Some of those changes can be reducing your caffeine intake, exercising regularly and not too close to bedtime, creating a regular sleep routine, Not eating too close to bedtime, etc. All of these changes can help with insomnia.
Mindfulness and relaxation techniques, such as meditation or yoga can also be very helpful in treating insomnia. Sometimes stress can play a bigger role than you realize in getting a good night’s rest.
Medications
There are medications that can be prescribed to help with insomnia. Among those medications are sleeping pills, which are controlled substances and can only be obtained through a prescription. For over-the-counter remedies, a common supplement people turn to is Melatonin. Melatonin has been shown in research trials to improve sleep disorders.
Therapy
Insomnia can be a symptom of an underlying problem that therapy can be helpful in addressing and treating. There are some mental health diagnoses that commonly cause insomnia. Among those are PTSD, Anxiety, Depression, etc.
Finding a good therapist to help you can improve your insomnia and help you develop beneficial sleeping habits.
When to Seek Medical Attention
You should seek medical attention if the insomnia goes on for more than a few weeks. This could be an indication that something more serious is going on.
Conclusion
Insomnia can greatly affect your health and well-being and sometimes have devastating consequences. It’s important to see your doctor and get treatment for insomnia lasting longer than a couple of weeks. Your health depends on it.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/drugs-supplements-melatonin/art-20363071
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/insomnia
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/insomnia/symptoms-causes/syc-20355167
https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/insomnia
https://aasm.org/resources/factsheets/insomnia.pdf
