Insomnia is an inability to fall asleep or stay asleep. Almost everyone has suffered mild forms of insomnia at one time or other. However it is estimated that millions of Americans may suffer from chronic insomnia. What are the causes of insomnia? And, more importantly, can insomnia be cured?
Most causes are related to your mental condition, certain lifestyle choices or poor sleep hygiene. Let's take a closer look at some of these factors that could be preventing you from getting a good night sleep.
The most common causes of insomnia are related to our mental condition. The single biggest cause of insomnia is stress. Our daily lives are filled with stressful situations, and many people are not familiar with stress reduction techniques. As a result, we try to go to sleep at night while still dealing with the stresses of the day. This is an exercise in futility, almost certainly doomed to fail. And that sets up the next problem -- learned insomnia. After a long period of sleep problems, we begin to expect failure. We assume that since we haven't slept well for some time now, we won't sleep well tonight either. It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Insomnia can also be caused by certain lifestyle choices. Specifically, taking in stimulants throughout the day (like caffeine or nicotine), makes sleep more difficult at night. Drinking alcohol can also cause restlessness. The chemical breakdown of alcohol by our bodies is often responsible for waking us up in the middle of the night. Also, if your job requires erratic working hours, like rotating shifts, or if you travel enough to suffer from jet lag, a good night's sleep will be harder to come by.
Additional causes of insomnia are often found in your bedroom. Irritating or expected noises can make sleep difficult. Too much light in your bedroom could have an effect on the quality of your sleep. The temperature of your bedroom is also important. Too hot or too cold will keep you uncomfortable and awake.
As you can see, many of the causes of insomnia can be remedied. It's true that some of the mental factors may require a little extra effort. But lifestyle choices can be improved immediately and many environmental causes of insomnia can be fixed in a single weekend. If you're having trouble sleeping at night, look for some of these causes in your life. Soon you'll realize that it's very possible to improve your sleep.
