Major & Minor Sleeping Disorders
Most everyone has experienced occasional sleepless nights of tossing and turning. But for others who deal with continual sleep disorders, it's a daily ritual of trying to get enough sleep. For the 70 million Americans struggling with 100 types of sleep disorders (see Resources), sleep is a rare gift. Some sleep disorders can be life-threatening, while even minor sleep problems can affect one's alertness and ability to function normally during the day.
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Identification
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Generally, a sleep disorder is a condition that interferes with normal sleep. Besides conditions that result in the inability to get any sleep at all or stay asleep, there are sleep disorders that make sufferers get too much sleep. What's more, there are disorders in which disruptive sleep patterns are the result of abnormal behaviors while sleeping.
Major Sleep Disorders
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The three major sleep disorders are insomnia, sleep apnea and narcolepsy.
The most common sleep disorder is insomnia, which is lack of sleep, resulting from not being able to fall or stay asleep. Mostly affecting women, insomnia is also a poor quality of sleep. It can occur even if you have good sleeping habits. For some people insomnia is temporary, while others wrestle with it constantly. A few of the causes include stress, inadequate exercise, alcohol or drug use and mental and physical illnesses. Insomnia is usually treated with behavioral therapy and sleeping pills.
Sleep apnea is disturbed sleep in which breathing stops for short intervals after a person falls asleep. To begin breathing, one has to awaken temporarily. About a million Americans struggle with sleep apnea, with obese men having the highest risk of the disorder. Sleep apnea concerns the neck size; the heavier a person is, the more fat narrows the airways on the throat. Treatment involves weight loss and techniques such as blowing air into the throat.
Narcolepsy, which involves excessive sleep, is a sleep disorder that causes daytime sleepiness at unsuitable times and places. Striking with or without warning, narcolepsy may happen several times within a single day. Other symptoms include loss of muscle tone. -
Minor Sleep Disorders
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Mild sleep disorders usually involve shallow sleep, which can affect memory and learning. Those who have minor disorders may have the same length of sleep time as people who have normal nights of sleep.
Restless leg syndrome (RLS) is a common sleep disorder that often affects elderly people. A genetic disorder, RLS involves tingling or prickly leg sensations that prompt patients to move their legs, causing insomnia.
Periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD) is similar to RLS, although it involves both leg and arm movements. PLMD can happen during resting and sleeping.
Sleep paralysis is the inability to move arms and legs or even the entire body while falling asleep or awakening. Although it's usually brief, sleep paralysis can cause anxiety. People typically regain the ability to move when hearing loud noises or other stimuli.
Cataplexy is muscle weakness or paralysis often caused by powerful emotions and fatigue. It can be dangerous, causing in someone who is standing to fall down.
Night terrors, mostly occurring in children ages 4 to 8, are linked with fear, emotional outbursts and motor activity. Once awake, the child doesn't remember the night terrors.
Sleep-onset anxiety is usually found among older elementary school children and pertains to sleep problems because of fears, worry or stress. To treat it, techniques are used to calm overly anxious children, teaching them ways to deal with their fears and worries.
Considerations
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The quality and levels of sleep changes as one ages, with older people sleeping lighter and getting less deep sleep. Although they can be awakened by physical conditions, aging causes sleeping to be more uneven.
An older person's biological clock (the part of the brain controlling sleep) usually shifts with age in that many elderly people awaken before dawn. Hormonal changes can also influence sleep patterns as older people lose the hormone melatonin, known as the hormone of light. Melatonin supplemental tablets are sometimes used in treating sleep problems.
Misconceptions
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Many people believe that if they don't sleep at night, they need to nap or sleep during the morning. However, trying to correct a bad night makes the problem worse. Instead, continue your daily routine, but go to bed at a more reasonable time.
Treatment
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Although many sleep problems are first addressed by making lifestyle changes, it's advisable to seek medical help if sleeping problems don't improve. Usually doctors consider factors such as symptoms, age, gender, and medical and psychological conditions. You may also be recommended to go to a sleep center.
Warning
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Avoid taking sleeping pills at all, if possible, as continuing to use them can turn into an addiction. Many people don't realize that sleeping pills are only for short-term use. They keep taking them because they fear going through a withdrawal process, not realizing the pills cease to be effective when taken for a long time.
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Resources
- Photo Credit Mikhail Nekrasov
