Insomnia

What is Insomnia?

• Insomnia is a condition where people have difficulty in sleeping.
• It varies from restless or disturbed sleep to a reduction in the usual time spent sleeping and, in the extreme, may involve complete wakefulness.
• Insomnia can take a variety of forms:
• difficulty falling asleep (initial insomnia)
• difficulty staying asleep
• early wakening

• Many elderly people typically sleep lightly and fitfully.
• Some people are kept awake by painful conditions such as arthritis, others are disturbed by the need to urinate frequently or by leg cramps.
• Sleeplessness is also common during pregnancy, especially in the later weeks.

Other causes of insomnia include:

• Previous arguments with family members
• Watching exciting programs on television late at night
• Consuming caffeine (found in tea, coffee or cola drinks), large amounts of alcohol or a large meal close to bedtime
• In most cases, however, the core problem is emotional.

How serious is Insomnia?
It is not a serious medical condition but it can greatly affect the patient’s work and social life.

How long does Insomnia last?
This will depend on your lifestyle changes and/or emotional status.

How is Insomnia treated?
There are a number of ways to help yourself fall asleep more easily:

• Exercising during the day or going for a stroll an hour or so before bedtime.
• Taking a warm bath or drinking a glass of warm milk (milk contains a chemical that is converted to a sleep-enhancing compound in the brain) before bedtime.
• It is often possible to break the cycle of insomnia by deliberately staying awake for an entire night.
• Medicines may be prescribed when the cause of insomnia includes a particularly stressful situation (a bereavement or the loss of a job, for example) or pain from some physical condition.

How do you get Insomnia?
There can be many different causes of insomnia.