Involuntary Insomnia …

Did you have so much fun at the party and now you are facing with insomnia? Well … that is the second BlogFest topic of the month by Susan –Today’s Working Woman -- http://todaysworkingwoman25.blogspot.com/2012/10/blogfest-2012-insomnia.html

If you have been reading my blogs, you should know by now that I don’t have any problem falling asleep, in fact I could even sleep while standing or simply putting my head down on my desk –Sleeping in Public http://journeyofmylifendestiny.blogspot.com/2012/09/sleeping-in-public.html

That doesn’t mean that I have never tasted the Insomnia before though. In fact –there was a time when I was awaken in the middle of the night and feeling sad. So sad that I tear-ed up … Why –you ask.

Something definitely had bothered me so much without me realizing it at that time and it actually seeped through deep inside my heart that I was jerked out of my sleep and feeling blue about it. A lot of times, it was due to the fact that I have heard something that heart-wrenching –mostly something that affect my love ones or my friends.

Having said that here is a little bit about Insomnia that I found reading Web MD. It was said that Insomnia was divided into two types:

• Primary Insomnia –mainly unable to fall asleep or waking up before time or in the middle of the night and its reason has nothing to do with health or any problems
• Secondary insomnia  --causes by medical, medicine effects or alcohol or caffeine drinks intake

Primary insomnia is also divided into two types: acute and chronic insomnia.

Acute is defined as difficulty in sleeping that lasts about 24 hour to a few weeks --short time whereas Chronic is defined to last three nights a week to a month or longer.

Well … what exactly have caused Insomnia? –Here is what WebMD has to say …

Causes of acute insomnia can include:

• Significant life stress (job loss or change, death of a loved one, divorce, moving)
• Illness
• Emotional or physical discomfort
• Environmental factors like noise, light, or extreme temperatures (hot or cold) that interfere with sleep
• Some medications (for example those used to treat colds, allergies, depression, high blood pressure, and asthma) may interfere with sleep
• Interferences in normal sleep schedule (jet lag or switching from a day to night shift, for example)
  

Causes of chronic insomnia include:

• Depression and/or anxiety
• Chronic stress
• Pain or discomfort at night

Symptoms of Insomnia

Symptoms of insomnia can include:

• Sleepiness during the day
• General tiredness
• Irritability
• Problems with concentration or memory

Now that we know …. Here is what we can do to prevent Insomnia:

• Having a routine of sleeping and waking up at the same time would help and avoid napping if possible
• As you know caffeine, nicotine and alcohol intake late in the day can interfere with sleep quality
• Regular exercise is good but not before bedtime since it may stimulate us and causing difficulty in falling asleep. In fact expert is recommending if we choose to exercise, do it at least three hours before bed time.
• Having a heavy meal before time may interfere with falling asleep but having a light snack is good
• Best not having television in the room. Bedroom is supposed to be dark, quiet, perfect temperature (not too warm or too cold)
• Some routines may help like taking a bath, listening to music or reading a book
• Jotting down something that bothering us may help rather than having them sitting on our brains.

Hope you all find the above informative and …

Until next stop,

Journey of Life