Insomnia Sleep Disorder

It is estimated that more than 35 million Americans suffer from chronic insomnia (difficulty sleeping every night or most nights for a period of more than six months).

In addition, a further 20 to 30 million suffering shorter-term insomnia (difficulty sleeping well for a period of four weeks to six months).

In addition, many people suffer from insomnia over shorter periods (less than 4 weeks) and this is often referred to as transient insomnia.

Transient insomnia is often brought on by excitement (a child anticipating his birthday) or by stress (worrying about an important meeting or a forthcoming job interview). It also often results from long distance travel (jet lag) and can be seen in people who exercise late in the day, shortly before going to bed. It is also often associated with illness (colds/flu) and with some over-the-counter medications (for example, some medicines purchased for colds or asthma).

Men and women of all ages experience insomnia, but it is more common in the elderly and in women, especially after the menopause.

Insomnia can be divided into three categories:

• "Initial" insomnia: where you have difficulty in falling asleep, generally taking 30 minutes or longer to fall into a sleep state.



• "Middle" insomnia: where, after falling asleep, you have problems maintaining a sleep state and often remain awake until the early morning hours.



• "Late" or "Terminal" insomnia: where you wake early in the morning after less than 6 hours of sleep.

Insomnia can sometimes be simply the symptom of some underlying medical conditions that may require your doctor's advice and medical care. In those cases it will be a case of treating the cause, rather than the insomnia.

If, however, your sleeplessness results from a pattern of not sleeping, or your body and mind find it difficult to settle into a state of relaxation necessary for sleep, then this book offers you some alternative choices for achieving healthy sleep without the use of prescription drugs.