It's an astonishing fact that
on any given night, more than half the adults in America suffer
from insomnia to some degree. Insomnia has been defined as a difficulty
falling asleep, and/or staying asleep, or disturbances in sleep
patterns that result in inadequate amounts or quality of sleep.
Sleep is necessary for survival. Humans spend about one third of
our lives asleep. During sleep, the body takes the opportunity to
cleanse and regenerate. Through the sleep cycles, the body is actively
producing hormones that put humans in a growth state and allow for
recovery and healing of muscles and tissues. It was once believed
the brain was dormant during sleep, but researchers now know this
to be untrue. While the body is at rest, the brain restructures
new neuro-networks and helps solve problems. Sleep is also instrumental
in reinforcing memories and in processing complex emotions.
Because of sleep's importance, insomnia presents a huge challenge
and carries significant consequences. Insomnia can eventually affect
every area of your life as lack of a proper night's sleep can mean
difficulties with memory, logical reasoning and concentration. Sleeplessness
will make you feel fatigued, irritable, forgetful and stressed.
It is estimated that lost productivity
and reduced work quality due to sleep deprivation costs as much
as $100 billion annually. Chronic insomnia, for whatever reason,
significantly affects your health, performance, safety, and pocketbook.
An increased risk of accidents is also common. Studies show that
someone who has been awake for 24 hours has the same mental acuity
as a person with a blood alcohol level of 0.1, which is above the
legal limit for driving. The amount of sleep that a person needs
to function normally depends on several factors, such as age. Infants
sleep most of the day (about 16 hours); teenagers usually need about
9 hours a day; and adults need an average of 7 to 8 hours a day.
Although elderly adults require about as much sleep as young adults,
they usually sleep for shorter periods and spend less time in deep
stages of sleep. About 50 percent of adults over the age of 65 have
some type of sleep disorder, although it is not clear whether this
is a normal part of aging or a result of medications that older
people commonly use.
Those with insomnia typically experience:
Sleepiness
Fatigue
Poor concentration
Decreased alertness and performance
Muscle aches
Depression during the day and night
An over-emotional state (tense, worried,
irritable and depressed)
Many of us experience temporary insomnia
from a few days to a few weeks. This kind of insomnia usually results
from normal events in our lives such as:
A stressful event
Emotional stress
Illness
Temporary pain
Disturbances in sleep hygiene (environmental
factors under your control that may contribute to disturbed
sleep and insomnia)
Disruptions to circadian rhythm (the 24-hour
rhythmic regulation of our body processes)
With rare exceptions, insomnia is a symptom
of a problem, and not the problem itself. Good sleep is a sign of
health. Poor sleep is often a sign of some malfunctioning and may
signal either minor or serious medical or psychiatric disorders.
Insomnia can begin at any age. And, it can last for a few days (transient
insomnia), a few weeks (short-term insomnia), or indefinitely (long-term
insomnia).
Many people who face the challenge of insomnia are unable to identify
with any of the common. They may not be drinking coffee, working
the night shift, experiencing hot flashes, taking prescription medications
or suffering from a health challenge that robs them of sleep. Why
then, are they still unable to get the rest they need to make it
through the day with energy to spare? The answer may lie in their
brain waves, in the intrusion of wakeful alpha and/or beta waves
into the delta brain waves that characterize sleep. Following the
path from cause to symptom, the culprit is often stress. Chronic
stress is a "hormone wrecker," responsible for imbalances
in the endocrine system. Out-of-balance hormones lead to insomnia,
which over time causes a change in brain wave patterns, disallowing
normal, restful sleep. In cases of insomnia, the hormones most apt
to be imbalanced are melatonin and cortisol.
It's an astonishing fact that
on any given night, more than half the adults in America suffer
from insomnia to some degree. Insomnia has been defined as a difficulty
falling asleep, and/or staying asleep, or disturbances in sleep
patterns that result in inadequate amounts or quality of sleep.
