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February 3, 2012
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Insomnia

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Insomnia Treatment

What Are Some  of the Treatments for Insomnia?

Generally, treatment of insomnia entails both non-pharmacologic (non-medical) and pharmacologic (medical) aspects. It is best to tailor treatment for individual person based on the potential cause. Studies have shown that combining medical and non-medical treatments typically is more successful in treating insomnia than either one alone.

Non-medical treatment and behavioral therapy include:

  • sleep hygiene,
  • relaxation therapy,
  • stimulus control, and/or
  • sleep restriction.

Examples of prescription and OTC sleep aids are:

  • benzodiazepine sedatives,
  • nonbenzodiazepine sedatives,
  • antidepressants,
  • and others.

Read more information about the OTC and prescription treatments for insomnia »

Insomnia Overview

Most adults have experienced insomnia or sleeplessness at one time or another in their lives. An estimated 30%-50% of the general population are affected by insomnia, and 10% have chronic insomnia.

Insomnia is a symptom, not a stand-alone diagnosis or a disease. By definition, insomnia is "difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep, or both" or the perception of poor quality sleep. Insomnia may therefore be due to inadequate quality or quantity of sleep. Insomnia is not defined by a specific number of hours of sleep that one gets, since individuals vary widely in their sleep needs and practices. Although most of us know what insomnia is and how we feel and perform after one or more sleepless nights, few seek medical advice. Many people remain unaware of the behavioral and medical options available to treat insomnia.

Insomnia is generally classified based on the duration of the problem. Not everyone agrees on one definition, but generally:

  • symptoms lasting less than one week are classified as transient insomnia,

  • symptoms between one to three weeks are classified as short-term insomnia, and

  • those longer than three weeks are classified as chronic insomnia.

Statistics on Insomnia

Insomnia affects all age groups. Among adults, insomnia affects women more often than men. The incidence tends to increase with age. It is typically more common in people in lower socioeconomic (income) groups, chronic alcoholics, and mental health patients. Stress most commonly triggers short-term or acute insomnia. If you do not address your insomnia, however, it may develop into chronic insomnia.

Some surveys have shown that 30% to 35% of Americans reported difficulty falling asleep during the previous year and about 10% reported problems with long standing insomnia. There also seems to be an association between depression, anxiety, and insomnia. Although the nature of this association is unknown, people with depression or anxiety were significantly more likely to develop insomnia.

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Insomnia

Topic Overview

What is insomnia?

Insomnia is a common sleep problem that can affect your quality of life. People with insomnia have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep. They may wake up during the night or wake up too early the next morning.

Your sleep problems may come and go, or they may be ongoing.

  • A short-term sleep problem is often linked to short-term stress. This short-term insomnia can last for days to weeks. It often gets better in less than a month.
  • A chronic sleep problem is ongoing. This is called chronic insomnia. It is often a symptom of another health problem, such as depression or chronic pain. Chronic insomnia is less common than short-term sleep problems.

What causes insomnia?

There are many things that can cause sleep problems. Insomnia may be caused by:

  • Stress. Stress can be caused by fear about a single event, such as giving a speech. Or you may have on...

Read the Insomnia article »


Read What Your Physician is Reading on Medscape

Insomnia »

Insomnia is defined as repeated difficulty with the initiation, duration, maintenance, or quality of sleep that occurs despite adequate time and opportunity for sleep that results in some form of daytime impairment.

Read More on Medscape Reference »

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