Informative Speech On Insomnia

Insomnia, not just the sleep disorder, it is a mental disease 9 million americans & counting suffer from insomnia or use sleep aids every day. Insomnia has been around since America itself was founded, usually documented with slaves until the 19th century when it was also linked to poor sleep habits, depression, stress or anxiety, lack of exercise, chronic illness or even certain medications. The only treatment found is to be in medications, although most have dangerous side effects, specifically I will be talking about Lunesta and Ambien. Should medication be the first resort when diagnosed with insomnia, or should there be a safer, more appropriate for all ages alternative. There are modern remedies, but most are overlooked for medications.
Society is affected by Insomnia and it’s medication in many unpleasant ways due to the effects it has on the people trying to cure themselves or get a good night’s sleep. The side effects of the medication themselves are worse than insomnia. This is socially relevant because individuals suffering from insomnia that choose to take the medication are spending over $1000 on one small supply without insurance, there has been death due to increased mental health issues, and so many more negative effects. Collectively society is faced with the decision to either fund the research for proper medication or possible show individuals suffering that there are other alternatives for medication. This paper will explain the social impact of negativities of the medication and show the bright side to funding for better help through a description of it’s effects. Society should take action by actually reading about what so many people suffer from as well as possibly finding a much safer alternative than the medications that have since been taken down from the market.
Insomnia medications is meant to give the user a full night’s sleep instead of the restless tossing and turning most go through, although many have even worse side effects than the treatment itself.
“Ambien may impair your thinking or reactions. Overdose symptoms may include sleepiness, confusion, shallow breathing, feeling light-headed, fainting, or coma.Report any new or worsening symptoms to your doctor, such as: depression, anxiety, aggression, agitation, confusion, unusual thoughts, hallucinations, memory problems, changes in personality, risk-taking behavior, decreased inhibitions, no fear of danger, or thoughts of suicide or hurting yourself.” (Ambien) That is just the tip of the side effect iceberg, there are many more minimal side effects to the medication depending if you take recommended amount or if you overdosed. Most people that took Ambien suffered from memory loss, depression, and aggression that lead to suicidal thoughts, which although undocumented lead to several successful suicides. “Lunesta can cause side effects that may impair your thinking or reactions.You may have withdrawal symptoms if you stop taking this medication after taking it over several days in a row…” (Lunesta) Lunesta has similar side effects to Ambien although it has a severe addiction problem with those who take it. Especially after multiple day usage, which then becomes hard to stop taking the medication and the person is more likely to have increased symptoms. Even if I had given the full list of side effects and warnings there are still large amounts of people who suffer from insomnia that are willing to take the medications. Most will do anything just to get a few hours of sleep at
night.