Sleep-Related Disorder Insomnia - Term Paper Example

? Insomnia Insomnia Insomnia, a sleep related disorder characterized by the inability to fall asleep, or staying awake for long time, is often an indication of a sign and symptom accompanying several medical, sleep and psychiatric disorders. The main characteristic of insomnia, being the lack of sleep by an individual or unwillingly staying awake over long periods, evidently shows a disturbed individual or one suffering from, other related disorders. Functional impairment while awake typically precedes the insomnia in an individual. Although insomnia is a common disorder among the elderly people, there is no specific age where an individual can develop this disorder. Treating the condition immediately at the time of its diagnosis prevents the individual from developing further medically related disorders, such as memory loss, depression irritability and in extreme cases, increased chances of heart disease. This essay, while critically discussing insomnia as a medical disorder, will discuss the symptoms associated with the disorder, defining its causes, the diagnosis process, treatment and preventive measures. Symptoms associated with insomnia Although these could be unique from one individual to other, collectively, they are the main symptoms of insomnia in an individual. A patient could complain of having multiple of these problems, while another could have just a single symptom. However, whenever one complains of experiencing any of these, further diagnosis should take place to ascertain that the patient actually suffers from insomnia. Care should however be taken while diagnosing an individual as there are other causes of sleeplessness, not necessarily insomnia (Morgan, 2003). Anxiety is one of the main contributing factors to the lack of sleep in an individual, which a patient could confuse as being insomnia. Essentially, anxiety could last for a long time in an individual, creating the impression of the person suffering from a medical condition such as insomnia. The most common symptom associated with insomnia is difficulties of an individual in falling asleep. Such a person unwillingly stays asleep over long periods. Waking up often during the night and having difficulties in falling asleep is yet another symptom associated with insomnia. Other patients complain of waking up too early in the morning, while others complain of tired mornings. Additionally, a person could suffer from sleepiness during the day, but cannot sleep at night (Morgan, 2003). Others could have problems with concentration or memory, where they forget rather too easily and cannot have maximum concentration. A person, exhibiting any or all of these symptoms has a high likelihood of suffering from insomnia. Types of insomnia Experts point out that although total sleep deprivation for days exceeding one night is unlikely, partial sleep deprivation for more than one night is a common occurrence. Individuals with chronic pain syndrome or sleep apnea more often than not show fragmented sleep patterns, characterized by frequent awakenings, followed by severe day sleepiness. Prolonged sleep deprivation, whether partial or otherwise, could have serious quality performance, quality of life as well as posing a safety problem to the public. Insomnia falls under two main categories, i.e. primary insomnia or secondary insomnia. Primary insomnia is a sleep disorder, not directly attributed to a medical, psychiatric or an environmental cause. The main characteristics of primary insomnia include disturbances of sleep and poor maintenance of sleep in an individual, non-refreshing sleep, often characterized by tired mornings and prolonged sleep onset latency. With primary insomnia, there is no direct relationship between sleeping problems and any medical condition or problem. However, secondary insomnia means that a person experiences sleep problems, resultant from other causes, such as poor health conditions, medication, pain or the use of intoxicating substances such as alcohol and other drugs. Diseases associated with secondary insomnia include arthritis, cancer or heartburn. Acute and chronic insomnia In addition to the causes of insomnia, variances on how the time of its occurrence determines acute versus chronic insomnia. Acute insomnia, defined as the inability of a person to experience consistent sleep over periods less than a month takes place over short-term periods while acute insomnia takes place over long periods. Acute insomnia in most cases lasts from one night to a few weeks of lack of sleep (Taylor, et al. 2003). Chronic insomnia, described as occurring for over a month with the patient experiencing periods of acute sleep loss, while other times they suffer from no sleep problems at all. Chronic insomnia occurs when a person suffering from the condition lacks sleep for at least every three days, every week in a month (Taylor, et al. 2003). Causes of insomnia Multiple factors may act independently or in unison to cause an insomnia condition in an individual (Bastien, et al. 2004). Many of the primary causes lead to secondary and behavioural conditioning, which significantly reinforces insomnia. Subsequently, psychological and cognitive arousal is the final stages of any insomnia condition. For instance, a patient could develop insomnia caused by a psychological stressor. In an attempt to deal with the problem, the patient may start spending considerable amounts of time in bed, which could further contribute to poor sleep efficiency and excessive frustration, exceeding the original stressors. With acute insomnia, the main causes include significantly stressing conditions such as changing jobs and career, death of a loved person or a close relative, divorce or changes in residential places (Bastien, et al 2004). Serious illness such as cancer, diabetes, or other uncomfortable diseases such as heartburn also contribute to this condition. Emotional or physical discomfort is yet another major cause of acute insomnia. Additionally, environmental factors affecting a person’s sleep concentration such as noise, light or extreme temperatures could too cause this type of insomnia (Bastien, et al 2004). Some medications such as those used in treating colds, allergies, depression, high blood pressure or asthma also significantly interfere with sleep. Interference with the normal sleeping schedule of an individual, especially when an individual changes from day shift to a night shift job could also contribute to acute insomnia in an individual. On the other hand, the main Causes of chronic insomnia include highly depressing situations and increased level of anxiety, chronic stress affecting an individual, and which he/she has no control over, as well as conditions of discomfort at night (Bastien, et al 2004). Impact of insomnia and psychological wellbeing Research on insomnia reveals that despite the absence of significant daytime sleepiness, and the only evidence available on cognitive impairments having a direct linkage to insomnia patients, chronic sleeplessness, resultant from frequent sleep disturbances, have a significant impact on the overall quality of life (Rosekind & Gregory, 2010). Medical researchers attribute fatigue and mood disturbances such as irritability and dysphoria with conditions of insomnia. Further studies on the condition suggest that insomnia conditions that may remain untreated over a long period could lead to major depressions in an individual. Therefore, lack of sleep in insomnia could lead to considerable level of distress, influencing the professional, and social functioning, subsequently reducing the quality of life of the individual (Rosekind & Gregory, 2010). Impact of insomnia on physical health Acute or chronic insomnia patients often complain of a myriad of physical health problems. Most of them indeed complain of gastrointestinal problems, respiratory problems, headaches, non-specified aches, and body pains. While there is a strong association between sleeplessness and physical health complains, there is no substantial medical evidence or research linking them together. No research links severe loss of sleep in humans to permanent or severe physical dysfunction. Although some of the studies have suggested that severe loss of sleep could contribute to reduced immune function, the reality is that psychological distress associated with sleep loss contributes to the lowering of immune function. Moreover, low hours of sleep, at least for four hours, spread across a person’s life, correlates with high motility rates. Thus, the secondary effects of insomnia contribute to the said physical health. However, insomnia itself does not lead to any form of physical health disorders whatsoever (Rosekind & Gregory, 2010). Diagnosing insomnia Various reasons necessitate consistent diagnosis and classification of any medical condition, including insomnia. Accurate diagnosis helps medical practitioners in identifying closely related disorders, and thus categorizing them differently from the rest. Such information, apart from helping the medical practitioners communicate their findings with other medical practitioners, especially on further consultancy, also help in the patient’s likely course and outcome. Diagnosis also determines the conceptualization of the disorder, which consequently helps in conducting research on the diagnosis and treatment of major disorders (Taylor, et al. 2003). Further, diagnosis and classification of disorders determine reimbursement as well as identifying interactions with other care companies, and as such, a proper diagnosis of a patient may affect the treatment plan submitted to manage care organizations. Finally, accurate diagnosis and classification help in conducting as well as interpretation the results of clinical research, which may take the form of randomized clinical trials and broader-based outcome research. Experts advise people to seek immediate medical attention whenever they suspect of having having this condition. Alternatively, they could seek the assistance of a caregiver for further diagnosis of the condition. An evaluation process involves physical examination of the patient, a scrutiny of the person’s medical history, as well as patterns of sleep, established through the person’s sleep history. The patient may be required to keep a sleep diary for at least two weeks in order to assist the medical practitioners in diagnosing the condition. An interview of the patient’s bed partner such as a spouse could also help in the diagnosis process, as they reveal the quality of sleep and the peace that the two have at night. In extreme cases, medical practitioners could refer the patient to a sleep centre for further tests. Treatment for insomnia Acute insomnia does not require any treatment whatsoever; however, practicing good sleep habits is the main way of curing mild insomnia (Morin, 2011). In case a patient, suffering from insomnia has difficulties in the daily functioning of the individual, the medical practitioner can prescribe sleeping pills to the patient for a limited period. On the other hand, on rapid onset, short acting drugs could help avoid effects such as drowsiness. However, medical experts warn of using over the counter sleeping as a treatment alternative for insomnia. While the use of pills by the sick individuals helps them acquire some sleep in the short run, in the end, there are adverse effects of the use of the pills, argue Morin et al. (2011). Excessive use of sleeping pills leads to dependence, and in other cases may cause addiction. Therefore, non-medical methods of treatment could best yield results to an individual suffering from the condition. Chronic insomnia treatment involves first treating the underlying conditions or health problems causing insomnia (Mitchell, et al. 2012). However, after the treatment of these factors and the insomnia persists, there is the medical practitioner could propose behavioral therapy to the patient. The main intentions of behavioral approaches to the treatment of insomnia target at behavioural change that worsen the insomnia, thus teaching the individual on the best behavioural practices promoting sleep (Mitchell, et al 2012). The most helpful techniques include relaxation exercises, sleep restriction therapy as well as reconditioning. Conclusion Insomnia, a condition caused by lack of sleep, does not lead to any form of physical heal; the secondary effects of insomnia contribute to the physical mental conditions in human beings. However, there is a direct relationship between insomnia and psychological wellbeing of a patient. As discussed in this essay, there are no further complications of health in primary insomnia, which are present in secondary insomnia. To prevent any form of risks associated with insomnia, seeking medical attention is important. References Bastien, C. H., Vallieres, A. & Morin, C. M. (2004). Precipitating Factors of Insomnia. Behavioral Sleep Medicine, 2(1), 50-62. Mitchell, M. D., Gehrman, P., Perlis, M., & Umscheid, C. A. (2012). Comparative effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia: a systematic review. BMC Family Practice, 13(1), 40-50. doi:10.1186/1471-2296-13-40 Morgan, K. (2003). Daytime activity and risk factors for late-life insomnia. Journal Of Sleep Research, 12(3), 231. doi:10.1046/j.1365-2869.2003.00355.x Morin, C. M., LeBlanc, M., Belanger, L., Ivers, H., Merette, C., & Savard, J. (2011). Prevalence of Insomnia and Its Treatment in Canada. Canadian Journal Of Psychiatry, 56(9), 540-548. Rosekind, M. R., & Gregory, K. B. (2010). Insomnia Risks and Costs: Health, Safety, and Quality of Life. American Journal Of Managed Care, 16(8), 617-626. Taylor, D. J., Durrence, H., Carskadon, M. A., Morin, C. M., Stepanski, E. J., & Lichstein, K. L. (2003). Insomnia as a Health Risk Factor. Behavioral Sleep Medicine, 1(4), 227-247. Read More