Archive for January, 2007

How Hormones Become Imbalanced?

Each person is having Suprachaismatic Nucleus or body clock center in the hypothalamus of our brain that controls how we sleep and feel.

This center creates daily signals or rhythms that govern when our hormones and neurotransmitters are released.

These daily rhythms are called circadian rhythms and they can become easily imbalanced from things like trauma, surgery, stress, age, lack of light etc.

When your body clock isn’t working right, you have a Circadian Rhythm Disorder.

How Circadian Rhythm Disorders Play a Major Role in sleep and Depression?

Due to the circadian rhythm disorder, our sleep cycle does not function properly and we feel sleepiness in the daytime and will be awake in the night time. Circadian rhythms also produce the hormones that affect our concentration, memory, and how we socialize and feel.

Circadian rhythm disorders are an underlying factor in depression as we don’t get the sleep at regular sleep hours. These common experiences suggest that interruptions in biological clocks may be both cause and consequence of disturbed moods.

How will I know that I have Sleep and Aging Disorders?

A complete medical interview and physical examination are important for sleep and aging disorders.

Your health care provider will ask you questions about your lifestyle, habits and symptoms.

You are asked about your current and past medical problems and medications.

You are asked to maintain a sleep diary for several days or weeks. Your bed partner may be asked about your actions during sleep.

After finding out the information required, your health care provider may know what causes your sleep problem. You may also be referred to a sleep expert.

Sleep evaluation for sleep and aging disorders:

The person has to stay overnight at the sleep disorders center’s laboratory. A full-night polysomnogram records several different body functions while you sleep.

• Electrocardiography (ECG) - Heart rate and rhythm
• Electrooculography (EOG) - Eye movements
• Pulse oximetry - Blood oxygen saturation level
• Electroencephalography (EEG) - Brain waves
• Electromyography (EMG) - Chin muscle tension and leg movements

What should I do if I am suffering from sleep and aging disorders?

Change your sleep environment and behaviors toward improving your sleep. The following are some of the suggestions to get a good night’s sleep for sleep and aging disorders:

Almost everyone has battled with at least a short-term case of insomnia. Some people may be more prone to either transient or long-term, chronic insomnia.

Insomnia is divided into three types: Transient: lasting only a few days; Short-term: lasting up to three weeks; Chronic: lasting three weeks or longer.

Below is a list of factors that can cause insomnia:

Psychological Problems:

• Tension/Anxiety
• Depression/Grief [Depression Therapy]
• Any psychiatric disorder
• Post traumatic stress disorder
• Excitement/Anticipation
• Worry/Stress

Stress, Anxiety, and Depression

The undisputed number one cause of insomnia is excessive stress, anxiety, and depression. Almost everyone has experienced transient insomnia the night before a job interview, big presentation, wedding, or other significant personal event.

Transient insomnia usually passes after the stress-inducing event has been overcome. Chronic insomnia is more serious because it can affect an individual for an extended period of time.

Persistent stress at work or home can lead to chronic insomnia. Anxiety and depressive disorders are another major source for chronic insomnia.

Physical Conditions:

• Bone, pancreas, and brain cancers
• Toothache
• Headache/Backache
• Arthritis
• Hypertension
• Food poisoning
• Physical injury
• Premenstrual syndrome/Menstruation/Pregnancy/Menopause

Jet lag is the condition which results from traveling multiple time zones.

Flying through multiple zones disturbs your body’s circadian rhythm and results in jet lag.

It is not a serious sleep disorder but it affects your sleep every time you cross the time zone.

Symptoms of jet lag include tiredness, insomnia, fatigue, loss of concentration, discomfort in legs and feet, dry skin, cold, cough, sore throat, nasal irritation, flu and headaches.

Due to the different time zones, your body’s circadian rhythm get disturbed and you may feel difficulty in falling asleep or you may suffer with excessive daytime sleepiness.

It will take time to adjust to your old time schedules after coming back. You can avoid and reduce the symptoms of jet lag by following jet lag remedies.

Jet lag remedies to reduce the symptoms of jet lag:

• Take plenty of rest before travel. This is one of the jet lag remedies which prevent jet lag. If you are traveling with inadequate sleep, it may worsen jet lag.
• If you are suffering with any health problems, consult your doctor and take necessary treatment before departure.

Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) is a device which is used to treat a patient suffering with sleep apnea breath more easily during sleep.

It is an efficient non surgical procedure used to treat sleep apnea and snoring.

It does not cure sleep apnea or snoring but helps to sleep much better if you use CPAP machine in a correct way.

CPAP machine consists of a mask, fan and a tube. It consists of a box with tubes through which air flows.

The machine or mask can be worn on the face and tubes are connected to the mask.

Straps fit it to the face over mouth and nose which are present around the mask.

It pushes your tongue forward with air pressure and opens your throat. This allows the airway passage to enlarge and pass air through your throat. The mask does not breathe but creates pressure when you inhale to keep your airway passage open.

You can use CPAP machine whenever you are sleeping. Consult the doctor if you are suffering with snoring or sleep apnea. The doctor asks you to take sleep study. In the sleep study, the doctor may use CPAP machine with different levels to see which level works for you. If your doctor prescribes CPAP machine, you can use every night.

Depression is a disorder described by sadness or having unhappiness.

Everyone in their life feels depressed from time to time.

But for some people, the depression continues and cannot lead a normal life.

If you have depression, you may experience symptoms such as short of energy, feeling desperate or useless, you may feel nervous, sad, or irritable, your concentration may be decreased, you may lose interest in things which you have enjoyed before, changes in appetite which changes your weight, your decision taking may become difficult, and you may have increase or decrease in the need of sleep.

If you are facing more than four or five problems, then you must consult a specialist and explain about your problems. If you have difficulty in falling asleep or insomnia, then it is the symptom of depression.

Poor sleep is not the only cause for depression but it plays a major role in depression. Difficulty falling asleep for long period of time is an important sign that you may be depressed.

The causes of depression include chemical disproportions in the brain, family history with mental disorders, stress, medications, physical disorders, no support from family, relatives or friends, drug abuse, or alcohol.

As you grow older, you face many health problems including sleep problems.

Older people often face difficulty to sleep and they think that it is the common problem and everyone faces sleep problems as they grow older.

But it is not true that as you grow older, you should face sleep problems. Symptoms of sleep problems in elderly are difficulty in getting sleep, early morning awakening, maintaining sleep, taking more daytime naps and excessive daytime sleepiness.

It is common that as a person ages, many changes takes place. The change is in the quality of sleep not in the quantity of sleep. Older people cannot get into the stage four sleep, which is a deep sleep. Not all people suffer with lack of deep sleep but maximum elders don’t get into deep sleep.

Factors which interfere with your sleep are psychiatric disorders, sleep disorders, medical illnesses, medications, and poor sleep habits.

Psychiatric disorders: Psychiatric disorders such as depression, stress and anxiety cause sleep problems in the elderly. Depression can occur if you lose your loved one or if you are facing any family problems.

Stress can occur, if you are working in the old age and cannot meet the work requirements quickly.

Snoring occurs when soft palate vibrates when you breathe and gives rise to a sound which may be a soft sound or unpleasant sound.

During sleep, the muscles and soft tissues in the back of the throat and mouth relax making the airway smaller for breathing.

Normally, when you inhale during sleep, air enters the nose and mouth and passes across the soft palate on its way to lungs.

The tongue and upper throat meet the soft palate and uvula at the back of the mouth and is collapsible.

If the tissues in your throat relax more or collapse, the airway becomes blocked or narrowed.

You never know that you snore when you sleep. It is your bed partner who informs about your snoring. Your bed partner is the first person to affect with your snoring. Your partner is disturbed with the sounds you make when you sleep.

If you wake up in the night and gasp for breathe, it may be sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder associate with snoring. It causes long interruptions of breathing for more than ten seconds and it happens hundred times per night.