Chapter One

Introduction to Insomnia
First things first, let’s define what the term ‘insomnia’ is. According to experts, insomnia can be
said to be the inability of an individual to fall asleep when they have the chance to do so. It has
been established that insomnia is in fact a sleep disorder and, in addition to not being able to
sleep, an individual who has difficulty staying asleep can also be said to be suffering from
insomnia.
A key phrase that is important to understand in the definition is “when they have the chance to
do so”. This simply means that if you attend parties regularly or have something that you do
every night, and due to your nocturnal activities you are finding it hard to sleep, you are not
suffering from insomnia. What you need is a night to yourself and sleeping wonders will start to
happen.
Insomnia comes with many symptoms and complications that will be discussed down the road of
this write-up. Before we get there however, let’s take a look at the things that cause insomnia.
What Causes Insomnia?
Before you can successfully tackle whatever is wrong, you need to trace the roots of the problem
and clip them there. Sure, there are pills you can take to make you sleep instantly, but are those
pills eradicating the underlying cause? In all likelihood, the answer is no. This is why it is
important to know the main reason(s) why you are finding it difficult to sleep. These causes may
include:
 Unhealthy Sleeping Habits
For a normal person, the customary sleeping habit is to go to bed at night and wake up in the
morning. However, this sleeping pattern can be distorted by going to bed at irregular times for a
long period. For instance, a person who sleeps for a long time during the day may find it hard to
sleep at night.
Now, if he or she keeps up this habit for an extended period of time, it is possible that the body
will get accustomed to this pattern and the person might find it hard to sleep at nights for a while.
Also, a person who sleeps for two hours every day, perhaps because they have things they need
to do, might find it hard to sleep for more than 2 hours on days when they have nothing to do at
night.
 Specific Substances
There are specific substances that have the ability to deprive a person of their sleep when taken.
These substances can mostly be found in some foods, beverages, and drinks. The most notorious
of these is caffeine, which can be found in coffee that isn’t decaffeinated, and in energy drinks.
  Psychiatric Problems
Psychiatric issues can significantly contribute to insomnia. These have to do with issues arising
from the individual’s brain and what might be troubling him or her, and might include fear,
depression and anxiety amongst many others.

 Medical Conditions
Insomnia can also be caused by some medical conditions. Sometimes the medical condition itself
is the primary cause of the insomnia, while in others the medical condition has side effects that
can prevent the person from enjoying his or her sleep. Some of these medical conditions include
arthritis, asthma, lower back pain and chronic pain.

Symptoms and Treatment of Insomnia

Insomnia comes in various symptoms and forms which might not all cause inability to sleep.
Some of these symptoms include:
 Difficulty Falling Asleep: In this scenario, the person will find it increasingly difficult to
fall asleep even for a brief minute. Such a person will try various sleeping positions and
techniques to get them to successfully fall asleep but to no avail.
 Difficulty Staying Asleep: People who suffer from this symptom will find it really hard
to stay asleep after they might have successfully fallen asleep. They sleep normally but
wake up later in the night and find it extremely difficult to go back to sleep afterwards.
This can be caused by dreams and thoughts.
 Waking Up Too Early: A person experiencing this form of symptom sleep all through
the night but have the problem of always waking up early in the morning. Normal right?
Wait till you hear that they wake up way too early. No matter how hard they try, no
matter how late they sleep, they are always the proverbial early bird. This can be caused
by the body system’s adaptation to a particular routine.
 Waking Up Tired: People who fall under this category and experience this symptom
have no problem sleeping and waking up at the right time. Where they suffer is being
able to wake up feeling energized. On a norm, a person is supposed to feel rejuvenated
after sleeping enjoyably, but not these sets of people. They could sleep for 12 hours and
still wake up feeling tired!
Insomnia can be treated by improving sleep habits, identifying the underlying causes and treating
them almost immediately. Sleeping pills are also effective but need to be checked for
compatibility and side effects before being used.

Complications of Suffering From Insomnia

In addition to being unable to sleep at night, there are other complications that arise from
suffering from insomnia. These complications affect the daily life of the sufferer and may
significantly hamper their productivity if not taken care of or managed effectively.
One of these complications is tiredness. This entails feeling tired all through your day. Sleep is
the body’s natural enhancer and without an adequate amount of it, a human being can be said to
be part zombie (as their actions would be similar to those of zombies). Talk less of someone who
isn’t getting any sleep at all. Tiredness constitutes laziness which in turn leads to unproductivity,
and if it keeps on happening for a long duration of time, might have a negative impact on such a
person’s life.
Another complication is hallucination. For certain people, when they are very sleepy, they begin
to see things that are not there and will only be fully functional after they might have slept. For
someone who is like this and is also suffering from insomnia, it can become disastrous as such a
person would spend the better part of the day hallucinating and possibly conversing with
themselves or some imaginary person(s).
Memory loss and short attention span are also parts of the complications that accompany
insomnia. Going days, and even weeks without sleep, would definitely have its effects on a
person. Such a person would be unable to pay attention for as long as they would want to. They
would also experience memory loss as they might be unable to remember anything said to them.
This is due to lack of sleep as the brain isn’t as alert as it ought to be (if it is at all).
An individual suffering from insomnia would also make lots of errors and mistakes. This can be
due to hallucinations, memory loss, or/and lack of attention. It all boils down to the brain and
mind not being as alert as it ought to be.
To get rid of these complications, one must first know the causes of their insomnia and
effectively treat it. Once the person is able to return to normal and healthy sleeping habits, the
complications should stop.
Stress and Insomnia: Are They Related?
Judging by what insomnia is all about and some of the underlying causes of it, it is safe to say
that it is possible for stress to be the cause of some cases of insomnia. Stress constitutes insomnia
by making it difficult for the sufferer to sleep and stay asleep. Stress causes anxiety,
hyperactivity, and nervousness, which are all things that can deprive an individual from sleep as
they would always have something on their mind to think about.
It is important to know, however, that while stress can possibly cause insomnia, not everyone
who is experiencing stress is suffering from insomnia, and likewise, not everyone’s insomnia is
as a result of stress.
Deciphering whether or not your insomnia is as a result of stress is pretty simple. All you need to
do is trace back when your stress and insomnia started. If they match (that is if they both started
around the same time), then it is safe to say that they are related. Otherwise, your insomnia has
another cause that needs to be investigated and tackled.
If you find that your insomnia is as a result of stress, all you need to do is find a way to rid
yourself of that stress and you will find yourself returning to your normal sleeping habits. Stress
can be relieved by going to therapy, and by finding the main facilitator of the stress and getting
rid of it.
If not taken care of soon enough, stress will possibly aggravate to more serious conditions and in
addition to being an insomniac, you might start suffering from a plethora of other complications.
Hence why it is important for stress to be tackled immediately the moment it is noticed.