|
|
Insomnia
|
| Saturday, December 27, 2008 |
Sleep is an essential element of good health. A good night's sleep can help you feel good, look healthy, work effectively and think clearly.
But sleep is not always so easy to find. If you sometimes have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, you're not alone. A 1991 Gallup survey revealed that over one third of all Americans suffer occasional or chronic insomnia.
People are often surprised to learn that daytime drowsiness is not an inevitable by-product without danger of modern life, but rather a key sign of a sleep problem that could be catastrophic if left untreated .
Recent figures show that nearly a quarter of the population regularly can not go or to stay asleep, and every year doctors write more than 14 million prescriptions for sleeping pills.
The causes of insomnia are many and varied. "It may be due to a medical condition such as chronic pain of arthritis or rheumatism," says Professor Jim Horne, who directs the Sleep Research Laboratory at the University of Loughborough. Or it may be chemical, because drinking tea, coffee or alcohol. Chronic or long-term insomnia is often associated with depression or anxiety, and environmental factors certainly contribute. "
And the sleepless nights, wild look in the eyes in the darkness, are worse than bad dreams,
For too many people - 9percent, according to estimates from the American people - a good night's sleep is an elusive goal. The consequences of fatigue from chronic insomnia, accidents in the car and at work, an increased risk dramatically from major depression and the worsening physical illness.
Immediate relief is available in the form of hypnotic agents, for people who have difficulty falling or staying asleep or who can not get rest, restorative sleep. However, long-term improvement usually involves behavioral therapy. These therapeutic approaches must be integrated if the patient short and long term must be addressed. |
posted by neptunus @ 5:08 PM
 |
|
|
|
|
