Causes of insomnia: common and uncommon
Trevor Reznik (Christian Bale), a factory worker whose life becomes a living nightmare after a year of not being able to sleep. Will Dormer (Al Pacino), a sleep-deprived detective who puts his own life at risk while investigating a murder.
These iconic characters are prime examples of how insomnia has been portrayed in an exaggerated way in cinema for the audience´s entertainment (in films like The Machinist and Insomnia, respectively). However, if you are suffering from sleepless nights, insomnia is anything but entertaining.
This article includes:
- Types and consequences of insomnia
- Sleep disorders
- How do your habits and lifestyle influence insomnia?
- Chemical reactions in the brain and primary insomnia
- Living with insomnia
1. Types and consequences of insomnia
It is estimated that 95% of the adult population has suffered from some episode of transitory insomnia in their life, making it the most common type of sleep disorder.
This disease affects your ability to fall asleep, stay asleep (you wake up frequently during the night) or sleep for a sufficient number of hours to wake up feeling rested.
What are the types of insomnia?
- Transitory or acute insomnia: It is the most common type. It affects your sleep for a short period of time, lasting less than three months.
- Chronic insomnia: lasts for over three months, and can go on for many years.
Some cases of insomnia start with an episode of acute insomnia, but then become chronic.
As well as the inconvenience this can cause in your daily life, insomnia presents a significant health risk, since it gives way to the onset of various diseases, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke and heart disease.
Causes of transitory insomnia (which lasts for up to 3 months)
If you have experienced difficulty sleeping for less than three months, you may be suffering from transitory insomnia. The most common cause is stress, which can be brought on by personal problems (death of a loved one, relationship issues, financial problems) or work troubles (excessive pressure at work, unemployment, etc.).
Transitory insomnia may also be related to circumstances such as changes to your sleep environment (temperature, light, noise), travelling through different time zones, the use of stimulants (caffeine), certain medication, illegal drugs (cocaine and methamphetamine) or alcohol.
However, this type of insomnia usually resolves itself more easily when you remove the stress factor.
Causes of chronic insomnia (which lasts for more than 3 months)
If you have frequently had trouble sleeping for over 3 months, you are suffering from chronic insomnia. Its causes are usually different to those of transitory insomnia.
Chronic insomnia requires a different assessment and possible treatment. Its most common causes are:
Medical and psychiatric conditions, including:
– Gastrointestinal problems such as acid reflux
Three out of four people experience interrupted sleep as a symptom of gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) such as heartburn or acid reflux.
If you are someone who suffers from gastroesophageal reflux, when you go to bed, the stomach acid intensifies and this can exacerbate coughing and choking, two of the symptoms of GERD that can cause insomnia, sleep apnea or excessive daytime sleepiness.
– Endocrine problems such as hypothyroidism
If you suffer from hypothyroidism you are more likely to experience symptoms such as tremors, night sweats, accelerated heartbeat and anxiety, greatly affecting your sleep quality, which can turn into chronic insomnia.
– Breathing problems such as asthma, sleep apnea, nasal or sinus allergies
Airways contract more at night, which increases your chance of an asthma attack and can cause sleep apnea in people with a tendency to be affected by this disorder. Both difficulty breathing and anxiety can bring about these problems, eventually giving way to insomnia.
Treatment for these illnesses can also be linked to insomnia, since steroids and other medication can have a stimulating effect similar to that of caffeine.
– Musculoskeletal disorders such as rheumatoid arthritis and fibromyalgia
If you suffer from one of these diseases, you are likely to experience pain at night, which can interrupt your sleep.
People with fibromyalgia experience other illnesses, such as restless leg syndrome and sleep apnea, which can aggravate insomnia. Stress caused by lack of sleep can also make this situation worse.
– Neurological disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis
Muscular stiffness caused by Parkinson’s can cause discomfort in patients, since it reduces movement while sleeping. For this reason, the majority of people with Parkinson’s suffer from some type of insomnia.
This problem also greatly affects people with multiple sclerosis: 52% of people with multiple sclerosis experience some difficulty falling asleep and 38% have insomnia.
Not only is insomnia one of the consequences and symptoms of these diseases, but the medication prescribed to treat them can also cause interrupted sleep, which only worsens the cycle.
– Depression
Insomnia can be a symptom of depression. As well as finding it difficult to fall asleep, it is very common for people suffering from depression to wake up in the middle of the night, for no apparent reason.
Additionally, other effects of this psychological condition such lack of energy, loss of motivation and feelings of intense sadness, can make insomnia worse.
– Anxiety
Anxiety can make it difficult to fall asleep or stay asleep. However, if you are having multiple sleepless nights, your anxiety can get worse and cause both problems, anxiety and insomnia, to feed off each other, forming a vicious cycle.
– Chronic pain
If you suffer from chronic pain, this is probably the reason behind your insomnia. Chronic pain lasts for more than 3 months and can be associated with a disease or have no obvious cause.
Fatigue, loss of appetite and difficulty sleeping caused by chronic pain, elevate stress levels, creating a seemingly endless insomnia cycle.
2. Sleep disorders
Insomnia can be the cause of another sleep disorder such as sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome or periodic limb movement disorder (PLMD).
What is sleep apnea?
When breathing is repeatedly interrupted and oxygen levels are reduced, due to the total or partial obstruction of the airways during sleep. It can cause patients to wake up frequently, giving way to insomnia.
What is restless leg syndrome
A neurological disorder in which the person feels an overwhelming urge to move their legs. Patients generally feel more intense symptoms at night, directly affecting sleep quality.
What is periodic limb movement disorder?
Repetitive jerking or twitching of the lower and upper limbs during sleep, which usually interrupts sleep multiple times during the night.
3. How do your habits and lifestyle influence insomnia?
Some of your own daily habits could be causing your insomnia:
Eating late at night
If you eat too late or eat very heavy foods at night, you may have difficulty falling asleep afterwards, since your body has to work to digest all this food when it should be resting. Spicy foods can also increase stomach acid and interfere with your sleep.
Consuming stimulants, such as caffeine and nicotine
Both caffeine and nicotine are stimulants. Therefore, the excessive consumption of either one can lead to insomnia. Caffeine can remain in your system for eight hours, so, ideally, it should be consumed in the morning and in moderation.
Likewise, if you smoke before going to bed, you may have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep. As you know, smoking is damaging to your health in general, but if you are susceptible to insomnia, you should know that you will be even more affected by this habit.
Excessive alcohol consumption
Alcohol often works as a sedative. After ingesting it, you may fall asleep. This can give the impression that the substance helps you sleep, when actually it has the complete opposite effect.
It is very likely that after a few hours of sleep, you will wake up still tired. This happens because alcohol prevents you from entering the REM (rapid eye movement) phase of sleep, which promotes deeper and more restorative sleep. Only when your body stops synthesizing the alcohol will you be able to enter this phase. For this reason, it is not recommended to consume excessive amounts of alcohol too close to bedtime.
Consumption of some types of medication or illegal drugs
If you constantly take some type of medication to control your nasal allergies, high blood pressure, heart disease, thyroid disease, asthma or depression, you should be aware of its side effects, which can include insomnia.
Consumption of illegal drugs like heroin and methamphetamine can also greatly affect your sleep.
Work routine
The blue light from your computer can prevent your brain from relaxing, so when you work late into the night, your brain stays awake and you will probably have trouble falling asleep.
Equally, if you work in shifts, your body clock can get confused, especially if you have to sleep during the day or if your schedule changes a lot.
Poor sleeping habits
If you take naps in the afternoon, even if they are short, you may have difficulty sleeping at night.
Trying to recover lost sleep by sleeping in late is not beneficial to your sleep quality either. Once again, you will confuse your body clock and, as a result, it will be more difficult for you to fall asleep the following night.
4. Chemical reactions in the brain and primary insomnia
Some people can be biologically susceptible to insomnia. In these cases, there is no specific cause of the problem (primary insomnia). It may be because a lot chemical reactions are occurring in the brain that could be interfering with your sleep.
In order to diagnose primary insomnia, a detailed investigation is required to rule out other causes.
5.Living with insomnia
Whether it is a symptom of some disease, or the result of bad habits, insomnia can significantly damage your quality of life and your happiness.
Do not ignore it. Talk to your doctor or a sleep disorder specialist so that, together, you can investigate the root cause of your insomnia
You can also take the first step by making small changes to your daily routine. Click here to find out how.
You may also like:
- Combat insomnia naturally without medication
- Sleepless nights? Here are some of the best treatments
- Top 10: the best home remedies for combating insomnia
- When you want to sleep but you can’t… What is happening?
Sources:
https://www.sleepfoundation.org/insomnia/what-causes-insomnia
https://www.verywellhealth.com/causes-of-insomnia-long-term-insomnia-3014670
https://www.verywellhealth.com/causes-of-insomnia-short-term-insomnia-3014671
https://www.bbc.com/mundo/ciencia_tecnologia/2009/08/090818_0056_alcohol_insomnio_gm