In recent years a new disease that has raised many concerns is insomnia. Insomnia is a sleep disorder that is categorized into two: primary insomnia, and secondary insomnia. Primary insomnia is defined as a person who just has difficulty with going to sleep, but are not directly associated with other health conditions. Secondary insomnia means a person is having sleep issues because of a primary health condition. Insomnia can range between acute and chronic. People with acute insomnia can be cured by practicing healthy sleep habits. These can include avoidance of the consumption of stimulants such as caffeine for a few hours prior to sleeping, attempting to develop a regular sleep schedule and practicing different forms of relaxation exercise prior to going to sleep.
Chronic insomnia can be much more difficult to treat. In fact, chronic illnesses are a significant risk for insomnia. It is estimated that the majority of people with insomnia approximately 75%–90% have an increased risk for other medical disorders, such conditions include: hypoxemia and dyspnea, gastroesophageal reflux disease, pain conditions, and neurodegenerative diseases (Roth, 2007). Chronic insomnia is highly prevalent and affects approximately 30% of the general population. It is estimated that 40% of all insomnia patients have a coexisting psychiatric condition (Ford, 1989). The most common are depression and other anxiety disorders. Medical condition such as enlarged prostate or other bladder diseases requiring frequent urination can impact sleep patterns. The use of psychotic medications can also affect sleep patterns. Though the medical field has come a long way to find the causes of insomnia, most people do not know the procedures or measurements of th...
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...e current evidence for acupuncture is not sufficiently supported for the treatment of insomnia.
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The actual effects of taking Melatonin orally have been disputed for quite some time. Some facts that I had picked up were that Melatonin levels decrease with age. This decline can account for the difficulty many elderly people have with falling asleep. As the pineal gland breaks down, less and less Melatonin is being released, therefore making it more difficult to regulate the internal clock. There is still a lot of information about Melatonin that remains unknown. There is much controversy as to what the drug actually can, and does, do. Many people claim that it is capable of extending a person's life, "curing" insomnia, working as an anti-oxidant, changing a person's mood, de-stressing people, improving one's sexual life, and curing certain types of depression, but many believe otherwise. (2) I am not thoroughly convinced either way because of the contrasting opinions. I decided to make my own observations and come to my own conclusions by conducting a little experiment of my own. I am going to focus on just the effects of whether or not Melatonin will aid people in getting sleep.
Insomnia, from the Latin "in" (not) and "somnus" (sleep), is a condition characterized by difficulty falling asleep, and/or staying asleep. Insomnia can result in getting up in the morning feeling unrested and experiencing drowsiness during the day. It is not identified as a disease or diagnosis, but a symptom that causes a person to feel irritable, sleepy, and have ...
Chronic sleep loss is becoming more common in modern culture and less restricted to sleep-deprived diseases such as insomnia. Suggested to be the result of a number car, industrial, medical, and other occupational accidents, sleep deprivation is beginning to be recognized as a public concern. As a result, the Centers for Disease Control
Each year at least 40 million Americans suffer from long term, persistent sleep disorders, and an additional 20 million experience occasional sleeping problems. About 60 million Americans a year have insomnia and it tends to increase with age and affects about 40 percent of women and 30 percent of men. It is estimated that 18 million Americas are suffering from sleep apnea, 12 million have RLS, and 250,000 are affected by narcolepsy. Adults typically need between 6 and 10 hours of sleep per 24 hour period, and most people need approximately 8 hours of sleep per day. Infants generally need about 16 hours per day; whereas, teenagers require 9 hours on average. In the first 3 months of...
Hirshkowitz, M., & Smith, P. B. (2004). Sleep disorders for dummies. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley Pub.
Almost everyone seem to suffer from not being able to get enough sleep at some time in their life. If you are always tired then that means that you’re not getting enough sleep. As we all know, inadequate sleep which is referred to as insomnia. Insomnia is basically one of the many sleeping disorders that some people may have and is one of the most common sleep disorder. There are many different effects of insomnia which includes some may become less productive, less ambitious, have a poor performance at school, work, or their everyday life tasks. Insomnia is not an illness but it is a symptom which can typically last no more than maybe a few days or it could be long term for some people. Who gets insomnia? According to Bayer (2001) “Approximately 36 out of every 100 Americans have reported experiencing this symptom [insomnia]. However, only 5 out of every 100 Americans consider the problem severe enough to seek medical help” (p. 22).
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Sleep is important and necessary for quality mental and physical health as well as quality of life and safety (NHLBI, 2012). People with sleep deficiency are at an increased risk of motor vehicle accidents, are prone to reduced work productivity, and have decreased levels of concentration (Hedges, 2012). Continued sleep deficiency can raise one’s risk for chronic health problems (NHLBI, 2012). Therefore, a consistent sleep pattern is necessary to achieve and maintain quality of life. The nurse can assist the patient suffering from sleeping difficulty in achieving a
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