What is insomnia?
Insomnia is a sleep disorder characterized by difficulty in falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up too early. It can be short-term or long-term and may come and go. Acute insomnia lasts for one night within a week, while chronic insomnia occurs at least three nights within three months.
What are the types of insomnia?
Insomnia can be classified into two types: primary insomnia and secondary insomnia.
Primary insomnia
This type of insomnia is not linked to any health condition.
Secondary insomnia
This type of insomnia is related to an underlying health condition, such as asthma, depression, cancer, heartburn, or the use of substances like alcohol or pain medication.
What are the causes of insomnia?
The causes of primary insomnia include stress-related to essential events, noise, temperature, shift work, and bad habits. Secondary insomnia can be caused by mental health issues, medication, pain, discomfort, caffeine, tobacco, alcohol, and medical conditions like sleep apnea or restless legs syndrome.
What are the risk factors of insomnia?
Insomnia affects women more than men and older people more than younger ones. Other risk factors include long-term illness, mental health issues, working night shifts, illegal drug use, adolescents, young adult students, pregnant women, menopausal women, and travelers.
What are the symptoms of insomnia?
The symptoms of insomnia include difficulty falling asleep, waking up during the night, waking up too early, daytime tiredness, irritability, depression, anxiety, difficulty paying attention or focusing on tasks, difficulty remembering, increased errors or accidents, ongoing worries about sleep, difficulty in personal relationships or at work or school, mood disturbance, cognitive impairment, fatigue, unrefreshing sleep, and waking up too early in the morning.
When to call your doctor?
Call your doctor immediately if you have trouble sleeping for more than one month, severe snoring, fall asleep without warning in the daytime, stop breathing for a while during sleep, or if the medicine for insomnia you are taking is not working correctly.
How is insomnia diagnosed?
The diagnosis of insomnia depends on your condition and may involve a physical exam, sleep habits review, or sleep study.
What are the treatments for insomnia?
Changing your sleeping habits and addressing any underlying issues can help improve your sleep. Cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia is a first-line treatment that helps you develop good sleeping habits. Prescription medications like Eszopiclone, Lunesta, Ramelteon, Rozerem, Zaleplon, Sonata, Zolpidem, Ambien, Edluar, Intermezzo, or Zolpimist may also be recommended by your doctor.