Causes, Symptoms and Home remedies of Insomnia

2021-12-13 18:27:37

Insomnia is a problem related to sleep. The person suffering from this has trouble sleeping, as a result, he does not get enough sleep and always feels tired. The effects of insomnia can be dire. This usually leads to increased sleepiness, lethargy and a general feeling of being mentally and physically ill all the time. Changes in mood, irritability and anxiety are common symptoms. Problems caused by insomnia range from lack of good sleep to problems associated with decreased sleep duration.

Insomnia can affect a person of any age. It is more common in adult women than in adult men. Sleep disorders impair learning and work performance. It also causes obesity, anxiety, depression, irritability, concentration problems, memory problems, weakened immune system function and reduced reaction time.

Types of Insomnia

Insomnia is generally divided into three types-

Temporary Insomnia-

This is when symptoms last for three nights.

Acute Insomnia-

It is also called short-term insomnia. Its symptoms can last from one night to several weeks.

Chronic Insomnia-

This problem usually lasts for months and sometimes years. According to the National Institutes of Health, most cases of chronic insomnia are side effects resulting from another primary problem.

Symptoms of Insomnia

• Staying up till late at night.
• Feeling tired due to lack of sleep.
• Staying up for long in bed before going to sleep.
• Try different ways to fall asleep.
• Waking up early after sleeping late.
• Inferior concentration and decreased ability to concentrate.
• Memory loss.
• To become uncoordinated.
• Irritability and discontinuation of social interactions.
• Motor vehicle accidents, caused by being tired and not getting enough sleep.

Causes of Insomnia

Insomnia is usually the result of stress, life events or habits that interferes with sleep. Insomnia can be resolved by treating its main causes but sometimes it takes many years.

Causes of Chronic Insomnia

Stress-

Problems related to work, school, health, financial or family can keep your brain active at night due to which it becomes difficult to sleep. Insomnia can be triggered by stressful life events or mental distress, such as death or illness of a close person, divorce or loss of job.

Travel or work schedule-

A person's circadian rhythm acts as an internal clock that guides his sleep-wake cycle, metabolism and body temperature. Insomnia can be caused by the disturbance of the body's circadian rhythm. Reasons for this include air travel in different time zones, working early or in late shifts, or changing shifts frequently.

Bad sleeping habits-

Bad sleeping habits include irregular sleeping times, daytime sleepiness, stimulating activities before bedtime, lack of proper sleeping environment and eating or watching TV while sitting in your bed. Computers, TV, video games, smartphones before bed can interfere with the sleep cycle.

Eating too much food in the evening-

It is okay to have a light meal before bedtime but eating too much can make you feel physically uncomfortable while sleeping. Many people experience chest pain from this. Acid and food backflow from the stomach towards the oesophagus due to which there may be a problem of insomnia.

Mental health disorders-

Anxiety disorders, such as post-traumatic stress disorder can disrupt sleep. Waking up too early can be a sign of depression. Insomnia often occurs along with other mental health disorders.

Medicines-

Many prescription medications interfere with sleep, such as asthma medication, high BP medication, or antidepressant medication. Many over-the-counter medicines including pain killers, allergy and cold medicines, and weight loss products contain caffeine and other stimulants which interfere with sleep.

Medical conditions-

Examples of conditions associated with insomnia include chronic pain, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, asthma, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), overactive thyroid, Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease.

Sleep disorders-

Sleep apnea disrupts breathing from time to time during the night due to which the person cannot sleep. Restless legs syndrome creates a strange sensation in the legs and the person is forced to move his legs repeatedly without wanting to. In this condition, he cannot sleep.

Caffeine, nicotine and alcohol-

Coffee, tea, cola and other caffeinated drinks contain stimulants. Drinking them after noon time or in the evening disrupts sleep. Nicotine is another stimulant in tobacco products that interferes with sleep. Alcohol can help with sleep but it prevents deep sleep and the person often wakes up in the middle of the night.

Home remedies for Insomnia

Mint tea for insomnia disease-

Consuming mint tea is beneficial in reducing stress, one of the symptoms of insomnia. It also helps in getting good sleep. In addition to mint tea, peppermint oil can also be used in aromatherapy. Therefore, the use of mint tea or peppermint oil at any time throughout the day or before sleeping is effective for insomnia.

Lavender oil for insomnia-

The use of lavender oil as a home remedy for insomnia is also beneficial. A study on female students in Korea showed that aromatherapy with lavender oil reduced insomnia. Apart from this, aromatherapy is also helpful in getting good sleep in post-delivery women. Therefore, lavender oil is used to improve the quality of sleep in patients suffering from insomnia.

Kiwi-

The benefits of kiwi fruit include good sleep. Kiwi fruit is rich in antioxidant properties. For this reason, this fruit is useful in improving the quality of sleep. Along with this, serotonin (serotonin - a type of chemical) is present in it which is useful for good sleep. Kiwi fruit is also counted among sleep-promoting fruits. Therefore, consuming kiwi fruit an hour before sleeping can bring some relief to the problem of insomnia.

Banana for insomnia disease-

Talking about home remedies for insomnia, consuming bananas is an easy and nutritious solution. It is a beneficial fruit that is full of many medicinal properties. According to research, banana is rich in melatonin (a type of hormone) which works to improve sleep due to which there is some relief in the problem of insomnia.

Chamomile for insomnia-

Chamomile tea is consumed as a home remedy for insomnia. This herbal tea has proved beneficial in insomnia. Apart from this, it also helps in getting rid of anxiety and bad dreams. This particular tea is consumed to treat sleep disorders. Apart from this, another research also shows the sleep-promoting properties of chamomile on the basis of which it is considered beneficial in insomnia.

Honey and milk-

The benefits of honey and milk are there for health, but if these two are mixed, then their quality increases further. The use of honey and milk is helpful for good sleep. A study published on the website of NCBI (National Center for Biotechnology Information) confirms this. In this research, patients with heart disease were given honey and milk after which the quality of their sleep improved to a great extent. According to this study, it has been proved that the consumption of honey and milk is useful in insomnia.

Green tea-

Green tea is also consumed for a good sleep. This is an effective home remedy to get rid of the problem of sleeplessness. Green tea is rich in the special amino acid L-theanine which works to promote sleep. However, keep in mind that only low-caffeinated green tea should be consumed.

When to go to the doctor?

Consult a doctor immediately if any of the symptoms listed below appear-

• Low concentration.
• Weak memory.
• On feeling uncoordinated.
• Excessive irritability.