Insomnia and How It Relates to Psychology - Research Paper Example

? Insomnia and how it relates to psychology Insomnia and how it relates to psychology Insomnia is nothing but disturbances in sleep or trouble sleep.“At least 80% of depressed people experience insomnia—difficulty falling asleep or, most often, staying asleep. Indeed, early morning awakening is a virtual giveaway of depression”(Marano, 2003). Sleep disturbances can occur because of many reasons. People with some kind of physical injuries or pains may face sleep problems. Such sleep problems cannot be labeled under insomnia. There are many people who spend sleepless nights without any visible reasons. Insomnia could be the problem which prevents them from getting asleep. “Approximately one out of three Americans reports having disturbed sleep and chronic insomnia affects 10% - 15% of the population. Insomnia can be acute or chronic and is variable in its presentation and effects”(Cline, 2008). In psychology, insomnia is an important topic since majority of the psychological problems may result in sleep problems. In other words, most of the patients who have psychological problems may not sleep well. In fact the first step in treating any mental diseases is providing assistance to the patients to sleep well using medications. If food is necessary to keep the physical health intact, sleep is necessary to keep the mental health intact. Since insomnia is related to sleep disturbance, the importance of insomnia in psychology could not be neglected. This paper briefly analyses the significance of insomnia in psychology. Significance of insomnia in psychology “Exposure to stress may contribute to the development or worsening of insomnia. Relationship problems, a chronically ill child or an unrewarding career may contribute to sleep problems” (Cause Of Insomnia Psychological, 2011). The problems facing by the current generation in their personal, professional and social lives are immense compared to the people in the past. In other words, current people have more burdens and commitments than the generations in the past. It is difficult for the current people to fulfill their entire commitments well and failure to show justice to any of the commitments may cause stress to them. Increased stress may cause several disturbances in mind and thoughts. A disturbed mind may never sleep well. Since mind is the driving force of body, disturbed minds may cause disturbance in the body and subsequently, sleep failures may occur. Peace is necessary for the mind to advice our body to sleep well. It is impossible for our body to work continuously. Rest is necessary for our body to continue the routine physical works. Same way rest is necessary for our mind to continue its routine psychological works. Sleep is the activity which provides enough rest to the mind. In the absence of proper sleep, people may struggle to maintain their mental health intact. Mental health is the most important thing necessary to lead a healthy life. People with good physical health may struggle to lead a meaningful life if they struggle to achieve proper mental health. In short, sleep is an important entity which helps us in leading a successful life. “One of the functions of sleep is to facilitate the consolidation of memory. REM (Rapid Eye movement) sleep in particular is involved with affective, or emotional, memory” (Marano, 2003). We have lot of things stored in our memory. Some of them could be in our conscious memory whereas the others could be in the unconscious mind. During day time, conscious mind is active and unconscious mind is sleeping whereas in night conscious mind will sleep and unconscious mind will take control of us. In other words, whatever the things stored in the unconscious mind would be active in the night time. It is not necessary that all the things stored in the unconscious mind would be pleasant ones. Unpleasant things stored in the unconscious mind could cause sleep disturbances during night time. Researchers have evidence that in a certain proportion of sufferers insomnia has an antidepressant effect. Evidence has long existed that extended wakefulness improves the functioning of the serotonin neurotransmitter system, one of the brain-chemical systems that goes awry in depression. It may also beef up the release of dopamine, another neurotransmitter linked to depression (Marano, 2003). Many of the psychological problems are caused by some kind of chemical changes in brain. For example, serotonin is a chemical necessary keeping the brain systems normal. Serotonin has the ability to affect the thinking function of the brain. In other words, shortage of serotonin can prevent people from logical thinking. Absence of logical thinking or inability to think rationally may create psychological problems. Serotonin is actually responsible for controlling the amount of dopamine in brain. Increased amount of dopamine in brain may cause depression. Sleeplessness or insomnia is a natural or biological mechanism to control the dopamine production in brain. “Sometimes, the fear of not sleeping and trying too hard to sleep is enough to create a vicious cycle that keeps someone awake”(Psychology works for Insomnia, 2004). There are many old people who often complain about their sleep problems. Many of them may have the false belief that they are not sleeping well in nights. Because of that illusion they may deliberately try to work hard for getting enough sleep. They may fail in their attempts and their sleep related problems may increase. An empty mind is necessary for the preparation of sleep. A person who thinks too much or anxious about a particular thing may not get proper sleep since his mind may not get enough opportunity to think in terms of sleeping. Same thing is happening to those who work hard for getting proper sleep. “A recent study by The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston concludes that chronic sleeplessness in adolescents is linked to many health problems, including those of a psychological nature. The study involved interviews with 3,134, 11 to 17 year old kids”(Bechdel, 2008). Many people have the false belief that insomnia may occur only to old people. As per the results yielded by some of the recent studies, insomnia can occur to any people irrespective of young or adults. Many of the adolescent people who take shelter in alcoholism and substance abuse may have insomnia related problems. Many others may have mood disorders, and anxiety related problems because of insomnia. So, a physician or a psychiatrist who attend the psychological problems of adolescents should enquire about the nature of their sleep in order to analyze whether their problems are related to insomnia or not. It is not necessary that psychological problems are the only cause of insomnia. “Hormonal influences, neurotransmitter and genetic abnormalities or brain differences all need to be thoroughly researched and eliminated before the psychological basis of insomnia can be supported”(Wedding, 2009). Hormone changes can occur in our body due many of the physical problems. For example, thyroid problems can cause tremendous hormonal changes in our body which may even lead towards psychological problems. So, before exploring the roots of insomnia problems in psychological diseases, it is necessary to make sure that the person doesn’t have any physical problem which causes hormonal changes. Conclusions Insomnia is the problems in the normal sleeping pattern of a person. Sleep is important to mind as food is important to body. Since mind is the driving force of body, a sound mind is necessary to keep a sound body. The question; whether insomnia causes psychological problems or psychological problems cause insomnia; is debatable. In some cases, physical problems can also lead towards insomnia. Insomnia can affect all type of people irrespective of their age differences. References Bechdel, J. (2008). Chronic Insomnia linked to psychological problems in adolescents. Psych Central. Retrieved from http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2008/03/30/chronic-insomnia-linked-to-psychological-problems-in-adolescents/ Cause Of Insomnia Psychological (2011), Retrieved from http://www.relax-and-sleep.com/cause-of-insomnia-psychological.html Cline J. (2008). Sleepless in America. Psychology Today. http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/sleepless-in-america/200807/insomnia Marano H.E. (2003). Bedfellows: Insomnia and Depression, Psychology Today. http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200307/bedfellows-insomnia-and-depression Psychology works for Insomnia (2004), Retrieved from http://www.apns.ca/prob_insomnia.html Wedding D (2009). Too Much Emphasis on Psychological Causes of Insomnia? Retrieved from http://psyccritiquesblog.apa.org/2009/01/too-much-emphasis-on-psychological-causes-of-insomnia.html Read More