About Insomnia

Insomnia is defined as "difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep". Sleeping sounds easy; it is a basic function, and necessary to good health. Yet almost everyone suffers from even short-term insomnia at some time in their lives, and one out of ten people OFTEN find themselves not able to sleep well. On an evolutionary scale, one can imagine why occasional insomnia was a good thing: Whether your tribe is migrating through an area with a proliferation of saber-toothed tigers, or you're a soldier in constant danger of sniper-fire in the Middle East, there are some very good reasons not to completely relax.

You would think that sleeping isn't something one needed to work at. I love sleeping; last night I slept almost ten hours. This is the exception, however: a 10-hour crash session is usually preceded by four days, sometimes a week, of very poor sleep, often only three or four hours a night. As this has been going on for about two months now, this is known as acute insomnia, which is the mid-range of the 3 basic classifications of insomnia. "Acute" means one has difficulty sleeping most nights, for a period ranging from six weeks to six months. It is generally caused by stress: work-related issues, changing jobs or work schedules, a divorce or death in the family, moving, or any number of other events that cause us anxiety or depression. Also can be brought on by certain medications, with hypertension and asthma drugs being frequent offenders.

To give a for-instance on a personal level, I've spent the last two months in a new town. Work has been hard to find, I'm registered with several different "temp" agencies but still haven't worked more than 3 weeks out of the last eight. I left my husband of 5 1/2 years: he's been a drug addict for the past year, and repeatedly refused to get help. So I haven't been sleeping well. Before you accuse me of being an unfeeling monster who should have stuck it out and FORCED him to get help, consider this: it took him 3 days after I had left to contact me, and only to ask about our truck; he had a girl living with him within 2 weeks after I'd moved out. The only sleep HE was losing was from being strung-out on crack, not due to pining away over me.

The other two classifications of insomnia are transient and chronic. Transient insomnia is short-lived, not lasting more than 2 weeks. This type can be due to jet lag, a particular project or deadline at work, or a shift-change, while your body adjusts it's internal clock ~ everyone is different, for some this can take a week, for others, a month.

Chronic insomniacs you'll recognize by the matching set of suitcases under their eyes. These poor souls get as much sleep in three weeks as you do in one. People suffering from depression, bipolar disorder, and those in very high-pressure occupations often have chronic insomnia. Those with clinical depression may sleep too much, not enough, or swing back and forth between the two. As everyone has their own internal-clock regulator and their own reactions to certain medications, we all have different tolerances for, and reactions to, stressful situations.

Women are more subject to insomnia than men, and older people tend to be more susceptible than younger folk. Sleep deprivation has been rated as being on par with moderate drunkeness in causing accidents on the road: being very tired affects your motor skills and your judgment, not to mention having the danger of (finally?) falling asleep.

Excess weight in women has been linked to stress AND to lack of sleep; not surprising, these two almost naturally go hand-in-hand. Our immune system relies on sleep for a recharge ~ when our immune system is compromised, we not only get sick more readily, but it affects our energy level, our sex drive, and our ability to metabolize nutrients.

Some ways to help get a better nights' sleep? Be consistent, keep your waking and going-to-bed times about the same every day. Don't eat a large meal within three hours before bedtime. Try to get at least 30 minutes of exercise every day, but don't work out within 3 hours of bedtime. Invest in heavy drapes or a sleep-mask if you must sleep during daylight hours. Don't make a habit of watching TV or eating in bed; you'll be more likely to sleep if you reserve the bed for sleeping and sex. I find it helps to read before sleep: it unwinds me better than watching TV, even if I end up spending up to an hour with a book.

Finally, if you're just laying there, tossing and turning, get OUT of bed and do something else. Write a letter, watch TV, surf the web, whatever. When you're ready to sleep, your body will tell you. And try not to worry about the sleep you aren't getting!