Newsflash – everyone needs to sleep. And one of the primary functions of sleep is to reset and help restore the emotional capacity of our brain circuits so that we can tackle the day’s emotional challenges in appropriate ways. Unfortunately, some folks undoubtedly go through annoying sleep problems.
Various sleep disorders are a highly common medical issue that affects millions of people each year. And while some people suffer from mild sleeping problems like occasional nightmare, others have extremely severe sleep disorders that can negatively affect their health if it left untreated. This incredible figure means that a huge number of people aren’t getting the treatment they need, which will likely put them in danger of permanently damaging their health. If a person doesn’t get enough sleep, they will eventually make irrational choices due to a lack of concentration. If this insufficient amount of sleep constantly nags a person, he or she might be having some sort of a sleeping disorder such as insomnia. 
Basically, insomnia is a condition in which a person has trouble falling into the sleep cycle or staying asleep. Some people with insomnia may be able to get asleep fast but they just as easily wake up. Other people may have the opposite problem, or they have trouble with both falling asleep and staying asleep. Regardless, the end result is poor-quality sleep that leaves a person feeling physically or mentally drained when they wake up.
Insomnia may include any combination of difficulty with falling asleep, staying asleep or sporadic awakening during the night and early-morning awakening. These episodes may be transient, short term or chronic. Insomnia may also result from psychological or physical causes with the most common psychological problems include anxiety, stress, and depression.
Many people will have insomnia during the acute phases of a mental illness. Other medical conditions that trigger insomnia are chronic pain syndromes, congestive heart failure, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) or Alzheimer’s Disease.
Common stimulants associated with poor sleep include caffeine and nicotine. If you suffer from insomnia, you should consider not only restricting caffeine use in the hours immediately before bedtime but also limiting the total daily intake. A significant number of people often use alcohol to help induce sleep, as a nightcap. But this is a poor choice because alcohol is associated with sleep disruption and creates a sense of non-refreshed sleep in the morning. A disruptive bed partner with loud snoring or periodic leg movements also may impair one’s ability to get a good night’s sleep.
While insomnia can be mild to severe depending on how often it occurs and for how long, chronic insomnia means having symptoms at least three nights per week for more than a month. Insomnia that lasts for less time is known as short-term or acute insomnia. Secondary insomnia often resolves or improves without treatment if an individual can eliminate its cause. This is especially true if the problem can be corrected soon after it starts.
Fortunately, there are treatments for insomnia that can help put a person back on the path to a good night’s sleep. These include various hypnotics (FDA approved medications for insomnia), cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I), and other treatments such as low dose antidepressant medications.
Bottom line is that better sleep habits and lifestyle changes often help relieve or eliminate insomnia. You may need to see a doctor or sleep specialist to get the best relief for insomnia remain persistent or if the cause of the sleep problem is unclear.
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