Sleeplessness
Sleep is essential to reconstruct lost body-protein and to decompose and deport wastes from the body. When we sleep our body-fat is transformed into available energy.
Causes
- Previous arguments with family members
- Watching exciting programs on television late at night
- Consuming caffeine (found in tea, coffee or cola drinks), large amounts of alcohol or a large meal close to bedtime
- In most cases, however, the core problem is emotional
- With the combination of alcohol and controlled substances and depression, insomnia can have some very dire consequences.
- Psychological problems that can cause insomnia: depression, anxiety, chronic stress, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder.
- Medications that can cause insomnia: antidepressants; cold and flu medications that contain alcohol; pain relievers that contain caffeine (Midol, Excedrin); diuretics, corticosteroids, thyroid hormone, high blood pressure medications.
- Medical problems that can cause insomnia: asthma, allergies, Parkinson’s disease, hyperthyroidism, acid reflux, kidney disease, cancer, or chronic pain.
- It can be due to fear of darkness.
Consequences
Psychosis: It is one of the most troublesome side effects of sleeplessness. There can be a complete break from reality. One may experience personality changes or hallucinations. When associated with sleep deprivation, psychosis is usually only temporary, but it can lead to some very serious problems. An individual may experience severe depression and anxiety as well. These can impair an individual’s ability to perform everyday tasks and worsen an individual’s quality of life.
Obesity: Several studies preformed over the past decade have shown that individuals who sleep less are more likely to overeat and, therefore, more likely to become obese. Stress and depression which are two side effects of sleeplessness have shown to contribute to an individual’s weight gain. Obesity is a very dangerous condition.
Type 2 Diabetes: Numerous studies have shown that a person suffering from sleep deprivation is much more susceptible to developing Type 2 Diabetes than a person who gets an adequate amount of sleep each night. Type 2 Diabetes is a very serious condition that can lead to conditions like hypertension, high cholesterol, blindness, kidney failure, obesity, and many more.
Suppressed Immune System: Lack of sleep affects almost all aspects of our physiological and psychological health. Sleeplessness has a negative effect on our body’s ability to heal itself. It may lead to a decrease in immune system’s ability to function properly. A weakened immune system (as one might imagine) can lead to several very serious complications. For example individuals who received less than seven hours of sleep a night were almost three times more likely to develop the common cold than those who receive eight or more hours of sleep. A weakened immune system can lead to chronic disease and severe infections. Several studies have shown that there is a link between the production of disease-fighting cells (white blood cells) and adequate sleep.
Memory Loss: Another serious side effect insomnia can have is memory loss. Sleep is the time during which our brains process all the information that we have gathered during the day. During the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) stage of sleep that our brain processes this information and stores it as memory. Individuals who do not get enough sleep at night will not be capable of storing as many memories. Memory loss can affect several different aspects of an individual’s life, including their personal relationships as well as their ability to think and learn.
Loss of Self Control: One of the more serious side effects of sleeplessness is the effects that it can have on natural hormone levels in the body. Lack of sleep can suppress certain growth hormones. These growth hormones help promote to a balanced reaction to stressors of the immune system, sex drive, and mood. Also, many studies have noticed a correlation between sleeplessness and elevated levels of the stress hormone cortisol.
Decreased Concentration: We can probably agree that trying to concentrate after getting a poor night’s sleep can be extremely difficult. Poor concentration due to lack of sleep can (and has) led to several automobile accidents. One may become inefficient next day.
Pain: While it isn’t all that difficult to believe that chronic pain may cause someone to have trouble sleeping, many researchers believe that lack of sleep may actually cause pain. It is widely known that individuals who suffer from sleeplessness have an increased likelihood of also suffering from severe migraines. A well-known study within the field performed in 1869, indicated that adequate sleep protects individuals from migraine attacks.
Dizziness and Nausea: sleeplessness can cause dizziness and nausea. An individual experiencing both nausea and dizziness will have more trouble focusing on the task they have at hand. Moreover, dizziness can severely impair an individual’s ability to operate a vehicle safely, making them a danger to both themselves and others.
Tips to induce sleep
Clear your mind. Eliminate all fears that come in mind. One way to do this is to write down all ideas through the day in a diary.
Avoid heavy meals later in the evening. Try a banana, warm milk or take warm milk and honey. Eat a little snack containing carbohydrate before bed, if available, add a glass of warm milk.
Doing regular relaxation activities.
Listening to music, practicing breathing and meditation will help to slow down the process that occurs in the body so that your body becomes more relaxed.
Try to do reverse counting i.e. from 99 to 100 but very slowly.
Treat your feet by running cold water over your feet before going to bed. The water cools down your body temperature which helps to induce deep sleep. Then massage your feet with oil or lotion using firm pressure.
Sleep and wake up in a regular time period every day. Sleep time of chaos will further disrupt sleep.
Look past tip of the nose to a spot on the floor.
Lie on your right side and use your finger to close off your right nostril. Breathe only through the left nostril for 3-5 minutes. The left nostril is associated with the right side of the brain which is associated with relaxation. It's the best position for relaxing, and allows all your internal organs to rest properly. If you must sleep on your side, do it on your right side, not your left. Sleeping on the left side causes your lungs, stomach and liver to press against your heart, causing stress on an organ that most of us find quite useful.
Never sleep on your stomach. It causes pressure on all your internal organs -- including your lungs, which results in shallow breathing. It can also cause a stiff neck and upper back problems.
Lie on your back and place your hand on your navel. Begin to make small circles in a clockwise direction as you gently glide your hand over your stomach. Let your circles gradually become bigger and bigger. When your circles reach the outside of your stomach, gradually reduce their size until you are back at your navel again. Then reverse the direction (to counter-clockwise) and do the same thing again. Repeat this whole series with your other hand. Do this several times.
Imagine that it is time to wake up. Imagine that you're not allowed to go to sleep. Imagine that your morning alarm has gone off and it's time to get up and go to work. You know how delicious that feeling is in the morning when it's time to get up but you're so tired and your eyes are very heavy and you shouldn't do it but you just want to fall right back to sleep for a few minutes more. Try to imagine as realistically as possible. Like taking a cold shower. Or any unpleasant thing that you don’t want to do in the morning. the more you'll just want to stay in bed and sleep. Try it. You'll be surprised how tired and sleepy your mind can make your body.
Visualize animals in the wrong colors. For example, blue cat, green cow, red elephant, and so on. After coming up with a color/animal combination try to visualize it and then I move on to the next one. Coming up with the combination and then trying to picture the animal would keep your mind occupied and distracted. Stressful thoughts would be gone.
Imagine something boring. The beauty of it is you can turn a negative into a positive. Just visualize that you are someplace that you have always found extremely boring. It could be listening to a particular teacher who was so boring that he or she almost always put you to sleep. Perhaps it's some friend or acquaintance whose incessant talk and theories put you to sleep. Maybe it's your work. And recapture that bored, tired, heavy, sleepy feeling that you always experienced. Let that feeling spread through your mind and all through your body till you're filled with complete tiredness and sleepiness. It works.
Calcium is directly related to our cycles of sleep. One study has found that calcium levels were higher during some of the deepest levels of sleep. Calcium is one of the few minerals that acts as a natural sedative
Try to have some dim lights on in your room so that there isn't complete darkness when you sleep.
