Health Care

There are as many as 40 million people in the United States who suffer from chronic long term sleep disorders while as many as 20 million suffer from occasional sleep disorders. Sleep is very necessary to good health, even though scientists and medical professionals have not completely understood this phenomenon. There are three major types of sleep disorders, and one of them is insomnia sleep disorder.

Insomnia means that the person is not able to fall asleep; this is a very common sleep problem experienced by millions on occasion. An insomnia sleep disorder results in disruption of normal daily life, with the person is feeling tired for most of the time and often ends up worrying about this lack of sleep. There are a number of factors that may cause insomnia sleep disorder, including excessive intake of caffeine or alcohol, emotional difficulties, stress and other underlying diseases. Lack of sleep by itself is not really a disorder, but only an indication that the person is getting inadequate sleep — although it can harm the immune system.

Insomnia can be categorized into three categories, namely predisposition, precipitation, and perpetual. Predisposing factors concern the person’s built-in traits that make them vulnerable to insomnia sleep disorder. Precipitation factors can come out of certain events that have occurred during the person’s life and which end up triggering a period of disturbed sleep. An example of this may be a sudden change in the schedule of a person that may provoke insomnia, like jet lag or change of shift while at work.

Perpetual factors are those behavioral patterns that keep the insomnia at those levels as is evidenced in irregular sleep habits or intake of drugs. Alcohol abuse, heavy smoking, and such extreme actions can perpetuate insomnia and though sleeping pills may temporarily alleviate the malady, they are only a short-term solution. Sleeping pills are not effective for chronic insomnia cases.

The treatment of insomnia sleep disorder is varied and may include psychological strategies as well as taking medications. However, good sleeping habits, sleeping when feeling tired, and sleeping only in the bedroom are some of the recommended steps to take that should be followed to alleviate insomnia sleep disorders. In addition, getting up at the same time each morning, abstaining caffeine and nicotine, establishing a daily exercise routine, avoiding alcohol, and learning and practicing relaxation techniques are the other recommended measures for curing insomnia sleep disorders.