Sleeping Disorders
A little less than half of the United States population has a sleeping disorder. There are numerous types of sleeping disorders. The two most common are sleep apnea and insomnia. Up to half of the population suffers from insomnia and approximately 18 million people suffer from sleep apnea. One of the least common is narcolepsy. About 200,000 people suffer from that disorder. (SleepNet, 2004) Insomnia is the most common sleeping disorder in the United States. The dictionary defines insomnia as a condition in which a person regularly experiences an inability to fall asleep, to stay asleep, or to feel adequately rested by sleep.(Websters, 1994) There are three different forms of insomnia. Transient insomnia only lasts for a few days. A couple causes for transient insomnia are jetlag or stress. Short-term insomnia is the second form. It can sometimes last from two to four weeks. It can also be a result from stress or medication side effects. The third form, and the most complex, is Chronic Insomnia. It can last for a month or longer. Most of the causes for chronic insomnia are from a physical disorder. Such as arthritis, kidney disease, asthma, etc. (Hockenbury & Hockenbury, 2003) Symptoms for all three forms are the same. They include sleeplessness, anxiety, impaired concentration or memory, headaches, shortness of breath, daytime fatigue, and/or irritability. (O 'Hanlon, 2001) There are treatments for all three forms of insomnia. Short-term or transient insomnia can be treated by the use of short acting sleeping pills. This may improve sleep and daytime alertness. Chronic insomnia can be treated by sleeping pills as well but it is not recommended since it is a long term illness. There are behavioral techniques you can use instead of medications. One is a sleep restriction program, which maintains the amount of sleep you get each night. At first the person is to only get a few hours of sleep during the night. Gradually, the time would increase
Bibliography: Albert M.D. Ph.D., Katherine A. (2003) Get A Good Nights Sleep Colbert M.D., Don (2001) The Bible Cures for Sleeping Disorders, Charisma House Hockenbury and Hockenbury (2003) Psychology (3rd Edition) Worth Publishers SleepNet (2004) http:www.sleepnet.com Webster 's New Dictionary (1994) Promotional Sales Book