Saturday, October 16, 2010

Insomnia Sleep Easy Information

Insomnia Sleep Easy Information: What is insomnia? Basically insomnia is when you can’t fall asleep easy or stay asleep during the night. Sleep deprivation causes you to be less productive and restless during the day. Insomnia symptoms include: it takes more than 30 minutes for you to fall asleep, your sleep is sporadic, you wake up during the night and can’t fall back to sleep and/or you wake up too early in the morning. There are three types of insomnia; transient, short-term and long term or chronic.

Transient is when you can’t sleep due to an emotional or physical ailment that is temporary. It could be stress over a new job, getting sick, getting too excited about an upcoming big event or just falling in love.

Short-term insomnia lasts about 2-3 weeks and is cause by worrying over money matters or a physical condition such as being pregnant that makes falling asleep difficult because you are uncomfortable. Once this reason is resolved you insomnia will often disappear.

Long-term or chronic insomnia could be a result of a severe medical or emotional issue such as heart disease, rapid heart rate, acid reflux, diabetes, anxiety or depression. Other factors for chronic insomnia may be due to an addiction to drugs or alcohol, medications that interfere with sleeping or an unhealthy lifestyle. When determining if you suffer from chronic insomnia it is important to seek medical treatment and/or counseling to determine the cause. Once the cause is determined treatment can be established. Defining the amount of sleep you need or the type of sleep can be established by a trial and error period where you adjust the hours each night until you feel energized during the day. While most people require 7-8 hours of uninterrupted sleep during the night which is known as a monophasic sleep pattern, some can split their sleep into two segments or biphasic sleep. Biphasic sleep is where you get 5-6 hours during the night and sleep (nap) 1-2 hours during the day. Toddlers and the elderly are known to have a biphasic sleep pattern.

Balancing your life and trying to establish a healthy lifestyle and sleep routine may be difficult at first but it is imperative as sleep deprivation not only is caused by physical or emotional issues it can also be the reason you have or will have health problems in the future. If you don’t take time to calm down each night, enjoy your life and get a good night’s sleep you may experience diabetes, heart disease, and cancer. Prolonged lack of sleep even causes premature-aging. Sleep is the time when the body renews and rejuvenates itself; it is a time of rebalancing, detoxification, and the re-booting of the immune system. Cortisol, a natural anti-inflammatory, is produced during the day and prevents natural cell repair from occurring. During sleep, cortisol levels are lowered, allowing normal growth and repair to take place. If your cortisol levels remain high due to lack of sleep it is one of the main causes for weight gain, especially belly fat. Melatonin, another body hormone, is released at night, and works to fight against abnormal cell growth. Melatonin also keeps your sleep/wake cycle in check. Taking care of yourself during the day by maintaining your weight, eating a healthy diet and getting plenty of exercise is one step towards keeping your health in general which will make it easier for you to sleep better at night .

Allowing yourself to establish a sleep routine that includes calming your mind and body down prior to going to bed will allow you to reflect on issues that are important to you. You can meditate, take a leisurely bath, read, take a walk or keep a journal. One note about keeping a journal, if you are suffering from chronic insomnia and considering seeing a physician it is advised to take notes on your sleep behaviors. A sleep journal can help the doctor determine the cause and severity of your insomnia. Also, if you are experimenting with different sleep patterns such as biphasic or monophasic, it is a good idea to record how you feel the next day to clarify which type of sleep or the amount of sleep works best for you.

If you are sleep deprived you will not only be less productive during the day your reflexes will also slow down. It is important to note that you need to be very careful when handling dangerous machinery or drills, saws, electric knives, etc. It is not safe to drive as statistics have shown that sleepy drivers are as dangerous as intoxicated drivers. It has been reported that people who fall asleep at the wheel cause 40,000 injuries and 1,500 deaths each year. Having insomnia is only now beginning to get the attention it deserves and why people need to be responsible for themselves as well as others and don’t drive.

If work is a major priority in your life it is often the cause of a lot of stress and anxiety. Yes working pays the bills and provides for your family, but you also need time for yourself and your family. Leading a life that is full and satisfying is one of the best defenses against insomnia. Keeping work at work and especially out of the bedroom is one way to help your mind and body relax at night and prepare for sleep. Yes, there will be times when you take your work home for instance to prepare for a big meeting, but if you do it night after night you might just end up falling asleep during the meeting. After a heavy meal, if a room is too warm or a business meeting are the main reasons when insomniacs have a hard time staying awake during the day. If your stress and anxiety is causing you to toss and turn for hours on end every night it may be due to a serious emotional issue and a professional counselor should be contacted.

If your sleep deprivations is not due to your ability to fall asleep as it is in regards to staying asleep this is a sign of depression and/or anxiety. It could also be caused by other sleep problems like acid reflux or restless leg syndrome (RLS). Others find it difficult to go back to sleep because they have something important on their mind. At this point it is better to get up and write down what is bothering you. Just getting it down on paper and out of your head may be just enough for you to fall back to sleep. Then you can deal with the situation in the morning. This could also be the reason why you wake early in the morning.

Aging causes many factors why we wake up in the middle of the night and one of reasons might be that we need to get up and go to the bathroom. First try to lessen the amount of liquid you drink before bedtime. If you are getting up every night, eliminate beverages at least 2-3 hours before to see if this helps, otherwise, it could be a sign of a medical condition and require medical treatment. Medical conditions could be prostate cancer, enlarged prostate, bladder infection, kidney infection, elevated blood sugar or even diabetes. These serious medical conditions should not be left untreated and you should see your doctor right away.

When we get older we may require less sleep or our ability to get a full night’s sleep may be due to our hormone levels. The hormones that once helped you to fall asleep have been reduced and you may consider hormone replacement therapy. Many women find relief from symptoms of menopause which include sleeplessness once they are taking hormones. Remember that hormone replacement therapy may help with menopausal symptoms but they also have side effects. See Sleep Easy with Menopause for natural alternatives and tips.

So if you have transient or short-term insomnia a healthy lifestyle with a sleep routine may be all you need to resolve your sleep deprivation, while chronic insomnia could not only be caused by medical or emotional issues, it could also cause health issues in the future. The content provided in Insomnia Sleep Easy Information is for information purposes only, intended to raise the awareness of different solutions for insomnia and should not be considered medical advice. For medical diagnosis and treatment, please see your qualified health-care professional.
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