Facts about Insomnia

Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder. It affects about 30% of the general population, but is even more prevalent in older people.  Women seem to be more susceptible than men.

The major complaints associated with insomnia sleeping disorder are:

• inability to fall asleep
• difficulties with maintaining sleep
• waking up too early in the morning
• feeling tired and unrefreshed in the morning regardless of the number 
  of hours of sleep

Individuals with insomnia often have to deal with fatigue, daytime sleepiness, decreased concentration, headaches, irritability, memory impairment and difficulty completing assignments, mood changes, and stomach upset.

On top of that, many people don’t qualify sleeping troubles as a health issue and don’t mention them to their physician or tend to minimize them. As a result, they are at risk of traffic or work related accidents, panic disorders, and alcohol or drug abuse.

Types of insomnia

Based on duration, we can differentiate insomnia into 3 categories:

International Classification of Sleep Disorders classify insomnia into 11 categories based on causing factors. For more information on insomnia causes click here.

Facts about insomnia in books from Amazon.com

Conventional and natural insomnia treatments

Interestingly, even though sleeping troubles are so common and insomnia is such 
a prevalent disorder, only about 5% of adults visit a physician specifically for this reason.

There are many options to cure insomnia. Treatment strategies should be personalized with consideration to severity and underlying problems, and aimed at maximization of patient outcomes. In any case, your health care provider can help you to choose treatments right for you.

If the cause of sleeping troubles is just an environmental factor, it is relatively easy 
to overcome it with one of natural methods such as relaxation techniques or 
yoga classes. Sometimes improvement may be achieved by simple changes in your 
lifestyle and sleep routine.

The best general advice for somebody with sleeping problems is to stay active during the day, avoid stress, go to bed and get up at the same time every day.

Check out this free 10-days self help tutorial, which offers great tips and techniques for insomnia sufferers.

A relatively large number of sufferers try to self-medicate with either herbs such as valerian root or dietary supplements like melatonin. Some try over the counter or prescription medications.