The effects of insomnia on the body

Sleep is an important part of any human life that exists on the earth's surface. But sometimes in this debugged process there are incomprehensible failures that directly affect the general condition of the body. If a person can tolerate a short period, then the consequences of prolonged insomnia are difficult to hide or get away from their influence: poor mood, constant irritation, worsening well-being, up to real health problems, lower working level, and so on.

What is insomnia

The fact of insomnia is not a separate disease. Often, it accompanies other pathologies, representing a vivid example of the poor functioning of the nervous system. A person who suffers from insomnia is forced to wait a long time for the onset of sleep. But even during it, he will be blown up several times a night, paying for frequent awakenings with general weakness, weakness, irritation, and so on.

In scientific circles, insomnia is known as insomnia. Insomnia is a malfunction in the daily functioning of the biological rhythm. He is responsible for changing the periods of wakefulness and watching dreams. It is this process that is meant when referring to the biological clock, which is responsible for preparing the human body for sleep.

At such moments, a person responds more slowly than usual to external stimuli, more difficult is the solution of mental tasks, the body gradually refuses to work, the pressure and temperature decrease, and the level of adrenaline in the blood also drops. He understands that it is time to prepare for bed. But, when insomnia appears, the biological rhythm goes astray, and specific symptoms of the upcoming sleep may occur not at night, but in the morning or afternoon, when you need to wake up.

Researchers have proven the fact that girls suffer from insomnia much more often than men. In some cases, children and the elderly are exposed to it. Despite this, it is the latter category that most often complains to doctors about the presence of symptoms of insomnia and advises on its elimination.

Varieties of this disease

Doctors distinguish three main varieties that depend on the causes and consequences of insomnia: chronic, short-term and transient (appears from time to time in the presence of factors favorable for it, but also passes quickly).

When a person is blown up at night for several days, then we can confidently assert the presence of transient insomnia. It manifests itself as a result of stress, strong feelings or emotions. Over time, it disappears, and the patient has the opportunity to sleep soundly. But any nervous tension can provoke a recurrence of seizures, and nightly rises will repeat again. Doctors advise you not to worry if you have such insomnia and to master a couple of falling asleep techniques that successfully help eliminate this nuisance.

Short-term insomnia is a more serious violation of the biological rhythm. It lasts from 7 to 30 days. In this case, it is better to consult a specialist who will help avoid the development of insomnia to the most dangerous stage and prescribe appropriate medications.

If it lasts more than 30 days, then it has passed into the stage of chronic insomnia. Despite the popularity of home remedies, none of them will be able to participate in the fight against this deviation. Only a specialist will help the patient eliminate the effects of insomnia that worsen the quality of life: general physical fatigue, reluctance to perform daily duties, poor health, constant irritation, and so on.

Chronic insomnia is divided into several subspecies:

• side effect of taking medication;
• idiopathic - biological rhythm disturbances occur throughout a person’s life;
• childhood insomnia, known as behavioral insomnia - the child is not able to fall asleep without the presence of certain factors: reading fairy tales, swaying, night feeding, and so on;
• paradoxical - the patient complains of frequent rises during sleep, but, nevertheless, sleeps more than the prescribed time;
• appears under the influence of psychological diseases;
• psychophysiological - the patient was nervous before an important event;
• the body signals hidden diseases;
• improper sleep hygiene - the habit of sleeping during the day, a tendency to smoke or drink alcohol, excessive physical activity or mental stress.

In addition to them, some doctors mention primary and secondary insomnia. Primary appears as a result of the characteristics of the psyche and physiological structure of a particular person. In contrast, secondary insomnia is a consequence of a certain disease.

Factors provoking the development of deviations

For clarity, we can recall the list of conditions that can provoke a similar deviation:

1. Alcohol abuse.
2. Unsuitable conditions for sleeping: stuffy room, a large and soft pillow, a heavy blanket and so on.
3. Gradual growing up.
4. Negative emotional experiences: stress, anxiety, fear, fear.
5. Strong coffee and tea interfere with sleep patterns, raising a person several times a night.
6. Pathologies of the central nervous system: psychosis, depression or neurosis.
7. Taking medications that excite the nervous system.
8. Bad eating habits associated with eating before bedtime. A working stomach makes it difficult to completely fall into a state of sleep.
9. Short stops in breathing or a tendency to snore at night can also trigger insomnia.
10. Sometimes other diseases cause insomnia: ulcer, dermatosis, angina pectoris, hypotension, and so on.
11. Intermittent urinary incontinence during sleep.
12. Change of time zones or place of residence.
13. Night shifts at work.

The main symptoms of insomnia

• even in a state of extreme fatigue, a person cannot fall asleep;
• a potential patient cannot concentrate on a specific subject;
• many night lifts and a difficult process of going to bed;
• the desire to sleep appears only during the day, and he is accompanied by severe irritation from the impossibility of speedy implementation;
• a dream that does not affect the deeper layers of the subconscious;
• the habit of taking medications with sleeping pills or a drink before bedtime.

A person suffering from the effects of insomnia, absent-minded, irritable, with constant complaints of a broken condition and lack of strength. It is difficult for him to remember small amounts of information, concentrate on something specific or perform actions that require large energy costs.

The effects of insomnia on the body

1. If a person sleeps less than 7 hours, he runs the risk of nullifying the beneficial effects of medication.
2. The possibility of developing cancerous tumors in the prostate and mammary glands is increasing.
3. A person sleeping less than 6 hours is at risk of a disease of the cardiovascular system.
4. Lack of sleep leads to a unhealthy diet based on high-calorie foods. She, in turn, causes obesity.
5. A person cannot concentrate, remember at least something or work in the previous mode.
6. Lack of sleep kills human nerves, disabling the entire psyche. For the consequences of insomnia, it is not difficult to form a favorable soil for psychoses and the varying strength of neurosis. A potential psychiatrist patient almost completely loses the ability to control their own emotions.
7. People who sleep poorly are more likely to suffer a stroke than others.
8. General immunity weakens, making the human body more vulnerable to exposure to viruses and pathogens.
9. The level of stress hormones in the blood increases, which worsen the quality of the skin and reduce the duration of human life.
10. A person becomes vulnerable to the development of diabetes.

Risk group vulnerable to insomnia

Experts distinguish several categories that are more prone to insomnia than others:

• Travelers who do not know how to stay in one time zone for a long time;
• people whose age has exceeded the mark of 60 years;
• working at night;
• women who have entered a period of cessation of menstruation;
• a person who has experienced a severe emotional shock;
• patients with chronic diseases whose appearance is accompanied by vivid pain symptoms;
• a patient with an unstable psyche, which from time to time gives serious failures.

Today, experts still doubt whether it is worth referring to them too susceptible personalities, painfully perceiving any trouble, or leave them among ordinary sensitive people.

Disease Control Methods

In less advanced cases, it is recommended to use special techniques that, if performed well, can help you get rid of a developing pathology on your own:

1. If insomnia caused a state of intense anxiety or anxiety, then you can try to fall asleep by relaxing the whole body. That is, you need to strain one muscle at a time, and then relax it with an interval of a couple of seconds. It is advisable in a similar way to walk throughout the body.
2. Remove all watches from sight at the time of going to bed.
3. A good way out of the situation can be breathing exercises. First you need to close your eyes and completely relax. Then count to yourself to 10, take a deep breath on the number 4, stop breathing by 6 and exhale through your teeth at time 8. This technique can be repeated several times.
4. Another gymnastics is no less effective. Lying in bed, you must close your eyes and wait for the appearance of colored dots. When they begin to flicker, you need to focus on them and not lose sight of as much time as possible.

Scouts use their own methods, which can also be noted. For example, lying in bed, you need to cover your eyes and roll them up. Or, conversely, lie down and start counting to 5, then close your eyes and repeat the count. And continue this activity until drowsiness begins.

The use of medicines

No matter how strange it sounds, there are no medications that will surely completely eliminate the effects of chronic insomnia. All known drugs are designed to treat short-term phenomena and are completely not intended for other types of disease. To cure insomnia in the chronic stage, doctors adhere to several principles:

• apply the minimum dose of drugs;
• alternate many types of drugs;
• adhere to drugs intended for a short period of treatment;
• each medicine is gradually withdrawn from the daily diet;
• try to avoid relapse after discontinuation of all drugs.

Before use, you need to study all the pros and cons of available medicines. There will be no ideal among them, therefore, when choosing, you need to focus on the cause of insomnia and the characteristics of the drug itself. Moreover, even starting the reception, it is recommended not to lose sight of the reaction of the human body to it. Psychiatrists do not recommend independently treating a pathology that has already most directly affected the patient's behavior and psyche.

For the treatment of insomnia, the Zaleplon and Zolpidem medications are prescribed. If a person often gets up at night, any doctor will recommend taking benzodiazepines for a short time. In the case when the patient stands before the moment of awakening, he will be prescribed benzodiazepines for less time.

It is worthwhile to carefully consider benzodiazepines intended for long-term use. The body quickly gets used to this drug, causing a number of side effects: slowing down the reaction to external stimuli, forgetfulness, drowsiness, and so on. Doctors turn to them only when chronic insomnia is accompanied by prolonged depression. In any other case, preference is given to drugs from the imidazopyridine category, which are safer sleeping pills.

For more serious effects, adaptogens are used that directly affect the biological rhythm of the body. The most popular are medicines with melatonin, which help to fall asleep faster and not wake up during the whole sleep.