Insomnia is a medical condition caused by multiple common sleep disorders that makes it hard to fall asleep and stay asleep. An insomniac person may wake up too early and not be able to get back to sleep. In some cases, a person may still feel tired after waking up. Insomnia can drain one’s energy level and mood. It also negatively affects one’s physical and mental health, work performance, and quality of life as a whole. The amount of sleep varies from person to person, but generally, adults require seven to eight hours of sleep a night.
Researchers studied a link between sleep loss and mood. They have found that people who do not get enough sleep are more likely to have negative moods and emotions like anger, acting without thinking (impulsivity), frustration, irritability, sadness, and stress. The University of South Florida conducted a study in 2021 that shows that just one sleepless night can affect a person’s emotions. Sleepless nights also influence feelings of anger, nervousness, loneliness, irritability, and frustration. It takes more than 6 hours of sleep for moods to return to normal after a sleepless night.
Emotional imbalance and mood changes from a lack of sleep affect all people from all age groups, but they might show up in different ways. In addition, insomnia may lead to the development of chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and depression. It can also destabilize the school and work performance of kids and adults and limit their ability to do daily activities.
Causes:
Insomnia may either be the main problem or be due to other health issues. Constant insomnia is usually a result of stress, some life event, or habits that disturb sleep. Common causes of constant insomnia include:
- Travel or work schedule: The circadian rhythm (physical, mental, and behavioral changes in a 24-hour cycle) of a person acts as an internal clock of the body. It guides the sleep-wake cycle, metabolism, body temperature, etc. Disturbing the body’s circadian rhythms can lead to insomnia. The causes include jet lag, working at night shift, or frequently changing shifts.
- Poor sleeping habits: These include an irregular bedtime schedule, irregular naps, doing exciting activities before bed, an uncomfortable sleep environment, working, eating or watching TV in bed. Besides, watching screens like mobile phones, computers, TVs, video games, etc. just before going to the bed, can interfere with the sleep cycle.
- Eating too late at night: Having dinner just before bedtime late at night may cause physical discomfort while lying down in bed. It may lead one to experience heartburn, a backflow of acid and food from the stomach to the throat after eating. This may keep one awake all night.
- Mental and physical health disorder: Anxiously thinking about a job, school, health, finances or family can keep the mind active at night, which makes it difficult to sleep. Also, PTSD disrupts sleep. Waking up abnormally early may also be a sign of depression. Also, chronic pain, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, asthma, Gastro-Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), overactive thyroid, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease, etc. lead to insomnia.
- Medications: Many prescribed drugs interfere with sleep. These are certain medications for some physical issues. Many such medicines contain caffeine and other stimulants that can disturb sleep.
- Caffeine, nicotine and alcohol: Coffee, tea, and other caffeinated drinks are stimulants, which are taken in the late afternoon or evening, and these can prevent falling asleep at night. Nicotine is another stimulant that may interfere with sleep. Alcohol is a thing that can help one fall asleep in a short time, but it prevents deeper stages of sleep and often causes awakening at the midnight.
Today, almost everyone has an occasional sleep-deprived night. But the risk of insomnia is greater for women or for those above the age of 60 or who have a mental or physical health issue already. The causes behind them are all normal and health-related. Insomnia may also occur if the person is under a lot of stress or if he/she does not have a regular schedule.
Prevention
Some of the ways to prevent insomnia include:
- Keeping the bedtime and wake time consistent, including on weekends.
- Staying active in both mind and body.
- Checking the medications properly to see if they might lead to insomnia
- Avoiding or limiting naps
- Avoiding or limiting caffeine and alcohol, and stopping the use of nicotine
- Avoiding heavy meals before bedtime and having dinner by evening
- Keeping the bedroom comfortable for sleep and not using it for other works
- Creating a relaxing bedtime habit, such as taking a warm bath, reading a book or listening to soft music
- Practicing meditation just before going to sleep
Insomnia can be short-term or long-term. It can occur alone or as a result of another health issue. Whatever the cause, suffering from insomnia is one of the most depressing and lonely feelings.
The pace of modern life sometimes does not give us enough time to rest. However, proper sleep is quite important for good health, as much as diet and exercise. Good sleep improves brain performance, mood, and overall health. Not getting enough quality sleep regularly may lead to many diseases and disorders. Sleep should not include just lying in bed; it should make one feel refreshed and energized.
