The America’s Sleeping Disorder Nightmare

Sleep deprivation is the lack of inadequate sleep. Sleep deprivation is a common condition that afflicts 47 million American adults.

An individual can be deprived of sleep by their body and mind, insomnia, or actively deprived by another person.

Causes of Sleep Deprivation

The common causes of sleep deprivation include:

• Not allowing sufficient time for sleep
• Sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea, narcolepsy, and myoclonus,
• Repeated awakenings from noise
• Excessive worry or depression
• Medical conditions that cause pain, breathing problems, and mental illnesses such as depression
• Working in night shits and travel across time zones

The symptoms of sleep deprivation can interfere with memory, energy levels, mental abilities, and emotional mood.

A study conducted by the University of Chicago Medical Center in 1999 shows that the situation drastically affects the body’s ability to metabolize glucose, leading to symptoms that mimic early-stage diabetes.

Sometimes, sleep deprivation is used as a torture device but studies show that it has been an efficient treatment for depression and other mental illnesses.

Consequences of Sleep Deprivation

Sleep deprivation is very unhealthy and may also lead to irritability, slurred speech, blurred vision, confusion, memory lapses, hallucinations, nausea, insanity, and eventually death. Getting less than six hours of sleep per night can affect coordination, judgment, and reaction time.

The most common symptoms of sleep deprivation are exhaustion, fatigue and lack of physical energy. Lack of sleep affects our state of emotions, causing pessimism, sadness, stress and anger.

As per the suggestions of The National Sleep Foundation (NSF), sleep deprivation increases the social problems such as road rage, in part, by a national epidemic of sleepiness. Sleep deprivation increases the risk of motor vehicle and work accidents and results in decreased productivity.

Emotional stress or excitement can interfere with sleeping patterns, as can some medical conditions and medication. Food additives and caffeine can also make falling asleep difficult.

The effect on physical energy is also startling: when glucose metabolism falls, healthy people show signs of age and diabetes at an early age.

These physical reactions disappear when the test subject is allowed to rest properly. Driving and other activities can become dangerous without sufficient rest.

The brain to function at its highest potential needs sleep. The brain’s ability to control speech, access memory, and solve problems are affected without adequate rest.

There are over seventy identified sleeping disorders that can disrupt your normal nighttime patterns, and more sleep disorders may yet be discovered

Fortunately, most of these disorders can be treated successfully. Symptoms of a possible sleeping disorder may include:

• Insomnia
• Excessive snoring
• The feeling of choking
• Bad dreams
• Abusing sleep aids

Sleep Requirements

The amount of sleep varies from person to person. While the majority of adults should spend between eight to nine hours asleep, very few people are able to function well on 3-4 hours of sleep per night. The time a person spends asleep also changes with age:

• 0 to 2 years: 13 to 17 hours
• 2 year olds: 9 to 13 hours
• 10 year olds: 10 to 11 hours
• 16 to 65 year olds: 6 to 9 hours
• Over 65 years: 6 to 8 hours

Tips for A Good Night’s Sleep

• Here are some sleep tip habits for a good night’s rest.
• Stay away from caffeine, nicotine, and alcohol, especially later in the day.
• Have a light snack shortly before bedtime.
• Go to bed and get up at the same times each day, even on weekends.
• Get regular exercise early in the day.
• Keep your bedroom cool, dark, and quiet.
• A fan or soft music can help disguise distracting bedtime noise.
• Use your bed for only sleep and sex.
• Do muscle-relaxing exercises or take a warm bath before bedtime.
• Unless your doctor prescribes sleeping pills, don’t take them.
• Avoid daytime naps unless they last less than 1 hour and are taken before 3 PM.
• Try counting sheep or counting backward, which can lull some people to sleep.
• If you lie in bed awake for more than 30 minutes, get up, go to a different room and read or watch television, and return to bed when you feel sleepy.
• For a medical diagnosis and treatment, check with your general practitioner. Be on your way to a better night’s sleep and a better, more alert state of mind!