Visual by: Aslam Siddique
Article by Puhar Pallab Bharali, The North-Eastern Chronicle
Insomnia, a sleep disorder that is very much common worldwide. To put it simply, insomnia is a sleep disorder where the one going through it finds it difficult to sleep or staying asleep. It is mostly prevalent among the age of people starting from 19 up to old age. However, insomnia is also common in children of age group 14-18. To show a statistic, India alone carries more than 10 million cases per year.
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Types of insomnia
Insomnia is mostly categorised into two types-
Primary Insomnia: Here, sleep problems aren’t linked to any other health condition or problem. Rather, the factors contributing to this could be stress, external noise, light, temperature etc. Even change in daily routines can also cause primary insomnia.
Secondary Insomnia: It is where the health issues come into play. This type of insomnia is mostly caused by mental health issues, medications, pain, substance abuse, hyperthyroidism, sleep apnea or restless leg syndrome.
Insomnia also comes with age
As a person ages, insomnia too becomes common in their life. They are mostly due to changes in sleep pattern, changes in activities as aged people tend to be less physically or socially active.
Changes in health that are brought upon by age also causes insomnia. As a person ages, chronic pain from conditions such as arthritis or back problems as well as depression or anxiety can interfere with sleep. Bladder problems can also disrupt the sleep cycle ultimately leading to insomnia.
Insomnia among adolescents
Several factors contribute towards the emergence of this disorder among adolescents. This mostly arises from physiological, sociological and environmental changes. Some of the factors that affect the sleep cycle in adolescents are: hormonal time shifts and early school start times, hectic after-school schedule,leosure activities and light exposure etc.
Insomnia in young adults
This age group mostly suffers from this disorder along with the old timers. As seen mostly, insomnia here is caused by stress, depression etc. Anxiety also plays a pivotal role in it.
Anxious for the future, for one’s career, personal life etc eventually builds up a ton of stress which is directly related to the severe sleep disorders that is very common in the young adults.
How to prevent it?
In order to prevent the disorder from taking a permanent hold in our physiological and mental state, some steps can be taken. They are :-
Avoiding large meals, caffeine and alcohol before bed
Trying to be physically active during the day.
Cutting back on caffeine including coffee, sodas and chocolate, throughout the day and especially at night.
Going to bed and waking up at the same time every day.
Putting away smartphones, TVs, laptops or other screens at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
QUIT SMOKING
Turn the room into a comfortable place through soothing music.
Meditation etc
All in all, insomnia is a disorder that can be treated thriugh proper steps and procedures. And one must not hesitate to reach out for help in order to change. Cognitive behavioral therapy also helps in overcoming the disorder. And the most prominent is one’s own willingness to change the situation. As it is seen that many people with insomnia rest better after changing their diet, lifestyle and nighttime routines.
