The Issue of Insomnia and Its Management - Essay Example

The Issue of Insomnia and Its Management In the modern world of the frantic pace of life it isnot surprising that people suffer from various disorders of the nervous system, in particular, from violations of a good sleep. Moreover, this problem takes the magnitude of a universal one. Statistical data, as well as widespread distribution and use of sleeping medicine indicate that great many people afflict with sleep disturbance. It can be of a small scale or even threaten a human life. In any case, most men experience a sleep disorder at least occasionally. In this assignment I will consider the issue of such a sleep problem as insomnia, for it relates to me extremely directly for a long time, and I believe I know the true reason of its occurrence, but let’s see am I right or not. Insomnia is the most frequent manifestation of a temporary malfunction of the nervous system in response to various stressors. There is no specific nature of insomnia appearance, as in different cases it can peer out in different ways. “While theres no standard definition for insomnia, suggested criteria include taking more than 30 minutes to fall asleep, waking up too early, or sleeping less than 6 1/2 hours a night...” (Beals). This is three types of the disease. Many factors may cause the problem including chronic disease of different kinds, overwork, overexcitement, and all this is worsened by unhealthy lifestyle, negative attitudes towards the world and people on the whole, and oneself in particular. If to cast a bit detailed glance at seeds of insomnia, the most frequent among them are psychological problems, violation of the usual regime, as well as other diseases (heart, liver, etc.), or the use of psychotropic drugs, alcohol, or a cup of strong coffee before going to sleep, overeating in the evening hours, especially junk greasy food. Insomnia can be affected by intense mental work, noisy games, compulsive reading at bedtime or even smoking. It also occurs in the cases of constant expectation of poor sleep and related experiences, as well as can be a result of insufficient physical activity. The specific side of the disease is connected with the fact that “Although many patients can link the start of their insomnia to a particular cause, others have a form of insomnia with no underlying connection to another disorder” (The New York Times). In such a case there is a need of seeking medical advice if a sleep is not normalized in short terms. Depending on duration of disturbance, there are three forms or phases of insomnia, namely: a transient or episodic one lasting up to one week, a short-term insomnia lasting from one to six weeks, and a chronic form, which can cause sleep troubles for more than six weeks. Among negative consequences of insomnia for humans’ health are chronic fatigues, rapid fatigability, irritability, inability for concentration, nervous collapses, as well as general immunity weakening. As for my personal situation of insomnia, it bothers me from time to time that’s why I have not even caught myself on the thought that I have a kind of a serious sleep problem for a spell. It has started as innocent toss and turn sleeplessly in bed in the middle of the night. But the repeating from night to night for a week has resulted in slow response, inhibition of thinking processes, forgetfulness, impatience, an effect of heavy head non-activity at all. So I have realized that it is insomnia, and in the absence of other visible reasons for it, I am strongly convinced that its cause is hidden in my addiction of caffeine. I have found out that “Caffeine is linked to many cases of insomnia, as a matter of fact it is the biggest substance linked to insomnia’ (Bailey). It appears that my habit of drinking coffee during a day has deprived me from sound sleep. I realize that insomnia’s scopes have reached the point of my unhappy feelings for the most time. Specifically, what scares most of all is the world, which has been started to be seen in black. So it is natural, that such a condition must not be set aside, and has to be treated. In practice, insomnia makes the humankind to suffer for so long time, that there are numerous methods of its cure. Still there is no unique one, as every case is extremely individual, and needs special approach and deep analysis of possible backgrounds. Among the simplest ways of first help for insomnia state in domiciliary is the diagnosis of its possible causes. The question is about the slight form of sleep disturbance, when people are able to solve the problem by counteraction to insomnia factors. For example, if the cause is caffeine-containing products, their volumes must be decreased to the minimum, or to be replaced by analogues. Naturally, it is of a great importance not to allow the easy-phased insomnia to become the chronic one. If only it obtains that horrible form, which may threaten people’s mental and physical health, it is extremely necessary to seek medical advice right then and there. At any rate, an unassisted by specialists (neurologists or psychiatrists) rush of swallowing the medicine for insomnia can not only soothe the problem, but also can create side effects. Usually, after the examining of deep reasons for the disease by medical men, the treatment order comes. In the most complex cases unless the combination therapy, there is a possibility of observed treatment. Currently one of the most popular methods of insomnia cure is a cognitive behavior one. “Cognitive behavior therapy techniques include restricting sleep, relaxation techniques and therapy directed at thought patterns that perpetuate insomnia. Cognitive behavior therapy can be as effective as medications and can be used in combination with medications” (Walker). There is a significant complication of insomnia treatment, that is, the possibility of disease’s existence without any essential or visible reason for it. In particular, it is the factor preventing the effective management of some cases of the issue. So my personal feeling is that there must be some more time-taking and specific tests and observations, which are able to get to the bottom of every reason, even those ones not clear after primary analysis. The explanation for such a proposition is in the fact that there are no effects without causes. In this respect, there can be a support program for strengthening of efforts thrown for treatment of insomnia, namely: a kind of club for people suffering from insomnia on starting level (slight one), which aim is prevention of disease worsening. The possible audience is ones who have some problem with sleep, feeling that its cause cannot be solved all alone, so they can visit gatherings within the club having an opportunity to receive not only knowledgeable assistance of psychiatrists and neurologists, but also to share the issue of sleep disturbance with the people who have the same situation. There even can be intra-club division according to symptoms and causes of insomnia for sector-specific help. Anyway, it is easier to fight the problem together than alone. All things considered, insomnia appears to be a kind of paralyzing issue of nowadays. In the case of early diagnostics of the disease, as well as its causes, it may save people from horrible aftereffects assisting to chronic insomnia, which is a great threat for health. So our primary aim in stressful times of rushing tempos is to protect our life from such negative aspect as insomnia, thereto we already know the enemy in the face. Works Cited Bailey, Karen. Caffeine and Insomnia. Web. 4 Nov. 2012. Retrieved April 09 from http://www.magnecare.co.uk/Insomnia/html/caffeine_-_insomnia.html Beals, Rachel Koning. Cost of a Good Night’s Sleep. Chicago Tribune, 15 Mar. 2012. Retrieved April 09 from http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/sc-cons-0315-save-sleep-20120315-story.html The New York Times. Does Insomnia Always Have an Underlying ‘Cause’? The New York Times, 23 Jun. 2014. Retrieved April 09 from http://consults.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/23/does-insomnia-always-have-a-cause/?_r=0 Walker, Andrea K. Insomnia Hits Most People at Some Point. Chicago Tribune, 19 Mar. 2014. Retrieved April 09 from http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/health/bs-hs-expert-insomnia-20140319-story.html Read More