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Insomnia: The Causes, Types and Cure

Insomnia

Insomnia is the inability to fall asleep for long periods of time and causes the routine of life to be effected due to lack of proper rest. Insomnia can be described as being unable to fall asleep, unable to stay asleep once you have fallen asleep or it could be sleep that is not long enough or good enough to make you feel rested.

While the average sleep period at night is 8 hours many adults can sleep an average of 4-6 hours and feel rested. Some people require less sleep than others as long as the rest has been complete. You feel alert throughout the day if you are getting the proper amount of sleep. If you are able to lie down during the day and fall asleep within five minutes you probably did not get enough sleep the night before. During the day, a person who suffers from insomnia may have any of these traits: tiredness, lack of energy, difficulty in concentrating, irritability.

Causes of Insomnia

The causes of insomnia is of three types:

• Psychological Problems

• Social Problems

• Medical Problems
  
  There are three stages of insomnia:
  
  1- Transient insomnia
  2- Chronic insomnia
  3- Intermittent insomnia
  
  People more likely to experience insomnia are their in advanced years, women and those with a history of depression.
  
  Transient insomnia occurs in people who are temporarily experiencing any of these conditions: stress, noise, hot or cold temperature changes, jet lag and side effects from medications.
  
  Chronic insomnia is mainly due to depression, misuse of caffeine and alcohol or shift work.
  
  Insomnia is found in both men and women, but with women in the menopause years it is most common.
  
  Insomnia is diagnosed with a medical history and a sleeping log. A sleeping can be done through journal entries, telling the time you went to bed and the number of times you awaken during the night.
  
  Insomnia is treated differently depending on the stage. Transient and intermittent may not require treatment. Chronic is different. The reason it is different is because the underlying cause must first be found.
  
  The following are a few handy tips to avoid Insomnia:
  
  1) Do not go to bed until you feel sleepy.
  
  2) Do not use the bed for anything else but sleeping (i.e. no eating or watching TV)
  
  3) If you do not fall asleep within 15 minutes get up and do something else.
  
  4) Do not take naps during the day.
  
  5) Avoids alcohol and caffeine before bed.
  
  If you want to eradicate this problem simply follow the tips for getting some proper sleep. Change your living style, try making some changes in your bedroom setup which may help you feel relaxed and eventually fall asleep.