Posted on 26th December, 2023 at 5:33:37 AM
Like most sleep disorders, insomnia is recognized by a specific set of diagnostic criteria. If you’re experiencing any of the following symptoms, you may be suffering from insomnia:
Difficulty falling asleep at night. It takes you 30 minutes or longer to fall asleep and sometimes you go without sleep for the duration of the night.
Waking up during the night. It’s normal to wake up periodically through the night. If you have insomnia, you might wake up frequently and find it difficult to go back to sleep.
Waking up too early. You might not have any problems going to sleep or staying asleep but find yourself waking up too early. This results in less than the recommended 7-9 hours of sleep.
A combination of the above. It’s not unusual for an individual with the disorder to have both onset and maintenance insomnia.
Secondary Symptoms of Insomnia
Like most sleep disorders, insomnia impacts the quality of your life by affecting your health and well-being. The following problems are associated with insomnia:
Daytime fatigue. A reduction in total sleep and poor sleep results in feeling chronically tired.
Reduced physical energy. Poor sleep reduces your metabolic function and energy output. This can affect your ability to perform physical tasks that wouldn’t normally be difficult.
Mood swings and Irritability. Studies have shown that even partial sleep deprivation has a significant effect on mood. This is because a lack of sleep can reduce your ability to deal with the normal daily stress of life.
Learning and Memory Difficulties. Researchers believe that sleep affects learning and memory in two ways:
-Lack of sleep impairs your ability to focus and learn efficiently.
-Sleep is necessary to consolidate (store) memory so that it can be recalled in the future. Poor quality of sleep inhibits these processes, leading to learning and memory defects.
