Insomnia
-
Description of study
This study identifies and defines the problem of Insomnia. It highlights the results of Insomnia, provides various treatments methods of Insomnia. With respect to treatment methods, five alternative medicines for Insomnia are provided. The study further, gives a therapy that can be used to reduce prevalence of Insomnia.
-
Problem
The problem analysed in this study is Insomnia. Most people with insomnia complain experiencing insufficient sleep or poor sleeping patterns. Thus, Insomnia entails experiencing consistent complexities in falling asleep, staying awake regularly at night, or waking up too early in the morning (Morin & Benca, 2012, p. 1129).
-
Results of Insomnia
- Health problems
A long term effect of insomnia exposes one to chronic diseases like diabetes, cardiovascular diseases (heart attacks, heart failure, and high blood pressure) and cancer. It emerges that about 90% of persons having sleeping disorders, have another additional health complexity (Singareddy, 2012, p. 347).
- Accidents
Sleeping disorders can result in immense disasters and accidents. For instance, on the roads, drowsiness can have similar effects to drunkenness. It emerges that fatigue accounts over 100,000 motor vehicle accidents and approximately 1,550 related deaths on an annual basis (Singareddy, 2012, p. 348). Similar accidents and injuries associated with sleeping disorders are also reported in work places. A study undertaken depicted that, the workers who complained manifesting sleeping complexities, had the highest numbers of repeated work accidents. The same group had the highest number of sick days leave, as a result of accidents (Singareddy, 2012, p. 348).
- Aging of the Skin
Continuous lack of sleep can result in early aging. Most individuals experience pale skin and swollen eyes after undergoing consecutive nights without sleep. Continuous non sleeping patterns, also leads to dull skin, fine lines and shadowy circles beneath the eyes (Singareddy, 2012, p. 348).
- Immune system complications
Lack of sleep can as well cause harm to the immune system. This is because during sleeping time, the body renews and re-energizes itself. In so doing, it stabilises, detoxifies and restarts the immune system. In addition, during sleep time, Cortisol (a normal anti inflammatory) levels reduce when one is asleep, enabling normal growth and restoration of the body. Moreover, melatonin (a body hormone) is released when one is asleep and it counters irregular growth of cells (Singareddy, 2012, p. 349).
- Cognitive problems
Sleeping plays a pivotal role in an individual thinking and learning capacities. Thus, when an individual goes without sleep, the cognitive system is highly affected. This is because it affects ones attention abilities, alertness, concentration, way of thinking and problem resolution abilities. Thus, lack of enough sleep influences ones judgment, affects ones response abilities, affects hand and eye harmonization, and also affects ones memory (Singareddy, 2012, p. 349).
- Depression
Consistent lack of sleep can result in development of depression symptoms. In a study undertaken in the year 2005 in U.S. depicted that those individuals who were diagnosed with depressions, had sleeping patterns of less than six hours per night. Among the sleeping disorders, insomnia has the highest linkage to depression (Singareddy, 2012, p. 350). Similarly, in study undertaken in U.S in the year 2007, approximately 10,000 individuals with insomnia had five times probability of developing depression (Singareddy, 2012, p. 350).
-
Treatment of insomnia
Insomnia can be treated using psychiatrist medications or alternative medications.
- Psychiatrist medications
With regard to psychiatrist medications, treatment of short-term insomnia can be done using medicines like remalteon, zaleplon, zolpidem. Further, Suvorexant medicines obstruct the chemicals in the brains that make one remain awake, enhancing sleep. Benzodiazepines like quazapam can either assist one to stay awake or fall asleep. There are also anti depressants that have palliative effects on one’s body (Bonnet & Arand, 2014).
- Vitamin D
Vitamin D supplements boost ones mood, counters diabetes, and reduces muscle and bone pain. This is because lack of vitamin D in the blood leads to depression. Thus, taking vitamin D supplements reduces the likelihood of acquiring depression (Chokroverty, 2017).
- Lavender
This is an anti-worry medicine. It has a medicinal value that betters skin care and is also aromatherapy. Inhaling it ones relaxes the body. In a study undertaken in the year 2016 in U.S established that, those college students, who inhaled lavender, reported experiencing relaxed nighttime’s sleeps and feeling lots of energies during the day (Chokroverty, 2017). The study also underscored that middle aged women and cardiovascular patients, reported that use of lavender bettered their sleeping modes (Chokroverty, 2017).
- Valerian root
A study undertaken in the year 2015 and recorded in modern and alternative medicine journal, underscored that valerian roots are very beneficial for patients with insomnia problems (Chokroverty, 2017).
- Chamomile tea
This is a medicine that placates muscle aches and pains very well. Ones chamomile tea is taken, it moves direct to the bones, it arouses osteo cells, and it greases the joints and eliminates possible inflammations from exterior sides (Chokroverty, 2017). In a study undertaken in the year 2016, and recorded in a journal of nursing, insinuated that mothers who drank chamomile tea for two consecutive weeks, had very few signs and symptoms of sleep disorders (Chokroverty, 2017).
- Passion flower
This is a herb that counters depression, worry, stress and insomnia. It has been discovered that it reduces daytime drowsiness (Chokroverty, 2017).
-
Therapy
Cognitive behavioural therapy is a planned program that can assist one to identify and replicate thoughts and actions that can aggravate sleeping patterns complexities. It entails habits and actions that encourage healthy sleeping. Unlike sleeping medicines, cognitive behavioural therapy counters the fundamental grounds of sleep complications. Thus, to treat insomnia, the sleep therapist may provide one with a sleeping diary for a span of either one or two weeks (Espie et al., 2013, p. 409).
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) educates one how to discern and change ones attitudes that may be affecting ones sleeping patterns. In so doing, the therapist help ones to manage and remove the negative perceptions and anxieties that can make one stay awake. Some of the actions that can be advocated by the CBT method entail, stimulus management, sleep constraint, and sleep sanitation, bettering sleeping environment, training one how to relax, staying passively awake and biofeedback (Espie et al., 2013, p. 410).
Stimulus management entails training one how to control ones time of sleeping and time waking up. An individual may be encouraged to avoid naps, and use the bed for sleeping and sex purposes only. Sleep constraint can entail avoiding action like lying in bed, when one is awake. The goal of sleep constraint is to reduce the amount of time ones spends in bed, to make one tired, hence desire the next sleep(night) (Espie et al., 2013, p. 411).
Sleep sanitation entails avoiding habits like smoking, drinking a lot of caffeine and not engaging in physical exercises. Bettering sleeping environment entails keeping ones bedroom dark, silent and away from televisions, and clocks. Training how to relax encompasses taking some time to mediate silently (mediation exercises), and undertaking muscle relaxation exercises like massage (Espie et al., 2013, p. 412).
Staying passively awake includes avoiding making or forcing one’s body and mind to sleep. Thus, a person eliminates the anxiety of sleeping and as result one relaxes, hence sleeping automatically. Biofeedback is a procedure that focuses on biological actions like heart beat rate. This may include using devices that record regular heart beat patterns and this data can assist one to know the patterns that can alter ones sleeping mode (Espie et al., 2013, p. 414).
Work Cited
Bonnet, Michael H., and Donna L. Arand. “Treatment of insomnia.” UpToDate, Benfica, R (Ed). UpToDate, Waltham, MA (2014).
Chokroverty, S. (Ed.). (2017). Sleep disorders medicine: basic science, technical considerations and clinical aspects. Springer.
Espie, Colin A., Peter Hames, and Brian McKinstry. “Use of the internet and mobile media for delivery of cognitive behavioral insomnia therapy.” Sleep Medicine Clinics 8.3 (2013): 407-419.
Morin, Charles M., and Ruth Benca. “Chronic insomnia.” The Lancet 379.9821 (2012): 1129-1141.
Singareddy, Ravi, et al. “Risk factors for incident chronic insomnia: a general population prospective study.” Sleep medicine 13.4 (2012): 346-353.
