Hello CantSleepers,

Barnaby here, and unfortunately I must report a temporary relapse back into the symptoms of insomnia. For those of you new to my story, I’ve been posting on here for quite some time about my travails with chronic insomnia. Many of the usual causes of insomnia including clinical depression and sleep apnea have been ruled out in my case, and I tried a wide variety of sleep treatments. Recently, hypnotherapy for insomnia was proving to be quite helpful. I went for a stretch of around two weeks without experiencing symptoms of insomnia, but the past few nights I was not so lucky. I reverted back to my dreaded tossing and turning throughout the night, and I have become quite tired at work during the day.

For those of you who are still unaware, the most common symptoms of insomnia include:

- Frequent waking up in the middle of the night

- Taking more than an hour to fall asleep

- Waking up long before necessary in the morning

- Feelings of anxiety and a short temper during the day

- Tiredness even after thinking you slept through the night

Independently, not every symptom of insomnia indicates that insomnia is actually present. Everyone occasionally has trouble falling asleep, and most people are at least occasionally tired during the day. However, when these symptoms of insomnia occur on a frequent basis, then insomnia might prove to be the correct diagnosis. Unfortunately, diagnosing insomnia is far easier than treating it. In my case, I have been through a plethora of suggested cures — none to any avail. Hypnotherapy for insomnia had begun to help, but the jury is still out on whether my insomnia is gone for good. I’ll update everyone again soon,

Barnaby

Hi everyone,

I just wanted to pop back over and clarify what seems to be a point of confusion. Many CantSleep readers appear to be in search of a singular “test” which definitely shows if you have insomnia, and if so, what the root cause of it is. Unfortunately, there is no such test. If there was, my own insomnia would have been assuaged months ago. However, there are tests which can identify — or rule out — some specific causes of insomnia. Most salient of these is a sleep apnea test. Sleep apnea can be definitively identified via a sleep apnea test. These tests are administered by professionals, and oftentimes you must spend the entire evening being monitored (I have gone through this myself). In my case, the sleep apnea test came back negative. However, there is no test to determine what truly is the cause of my particular sleep issues.

Insomnia can arise from a variety of causes. Some of these are physical, while others are mental. Stress can trigger bouts of insomnia, and depression has been identified as a main cause behind many cases of chronic insomnia. As indicated, physical conditions like sleep apnea can be the root cause of sleep problems. Unfortunately, there is no one easy test which can ascertain whether the cause of a particular case of insomnia is due to physical or mental issues. Many seem to confuse what they read about a sleep apnea test interpreting it as being a generic test for insomnia.

So, in terms of my own sleep problems — I have been continuing with my hypnotherapy with my great therapist, Sharon. I am beginning to notice improvements, and several of the past nights have been pretty much insomnia-free. Sleep is coming back into my life and it is a great feeling. Hopefully some of you reading this now can soon find the relief that I think I have come upon. I’ll provide further updates soon,

Barnaby

Barnaby here.  After spending a restless hour in bed watching my wife sleep I decided to come back out on the porch in order to catch the sun rise.  Enjoying picturesque Florida sunrises each morning has been one pleasant benefit of my recent insomnia issues — however, candidly, I’d give up seeing the sun rise ever again in return for just one full night’s sleep.  It has been over two weeks since I’ve gotten more than four hours on any given night, and it is beginning to take its toll.  My boss has noticed — and so have my kids.  I’ve become uncharacteristically irritable, and the lack of sleep is beginning to show in my face.  Some days, I hardly recognize myself.  After talking to friends, a plethora of doctors along with complete strangers, I’ve received what must be hundreds of sleep tips.  They range from the serious (issues like sleep apnea) to the bizarre (one of the sleep tips told to me was to drink garlic spiked hot chocolate before attempting to go to sleep).

My current condition has caused me to become quite educated about the causes of insomnia, but unfortunately to this point none of the plethora of sleep tips I’ve discovered has worked for me.  It started with paying attention to everything I ate or drank after 6pm.  No more expresso with Sambuca after dinner, no more night time Mt. Dews and no chocolate in the evenings.  I scrutinized everything I consumed during the evening hours, and if it contained even the smallest hint of caffeine I abstained.  I’m not a huge drinker, but one of the sleep tips I received was to avoid alcohol in the evenings so I did — except for one especially bad night last week when another tipster told me to try 3 quick shots of Southern Comfort to see if that worked — but that’s a different story.

Another one of the easier sleep tips told to me was to make our bedroom as dark and quiet as possible.  Trust me, Suz wasn’t thrilled at all with hanging a black sheet over the nice shades at night — but far cheaper than black-out curtains, and hopefully my insomnia is gone soon.  I added to this earplugs and a sleep mask.  The sleep mask was extremely uncomfortable and only served to seriously freak out my 2 year old James when he saw me in it, so that was ditched.  So, starting around 10 days ago, each evening I went to bed without a hint of caffeine in my body in a very dark (but unfashionable with the ugly black sheet hanging on the wall) bedroom.  Problem solved, right?  I only wish it was that easy.

The sun is rising now.  It really is beautiful, but at this point it has become almost a dreadful sight for me to see once again.  Time to jump in the shower and fib to Suz once again telling her I was able to get at least a few hours of sleep.

More coming later,

Barnaby

Some lucky individuals never have a problem falling asleep, and they are in dream-land minutes after their head hits the pillow. Many other less fortunate people experience either occasional or persistent problems falling asleep. Insomnia can impact every phase of your life from the workplace to your interpersonal relationships. The human body depends upon a full night’s sleep in order to function correctly, and when it is deprived of sleep a plethora of adverse consequences can emerge. The causes of insomnia can be broken down into three main groups — temporary factors, physical causes and psychological triggers.

Temporary factors which can prove to be causes of insomnia include minor fleeting sleeplessness arising from caffeine consumption or from jet lag. There are many sleep aids which can effectively address these highly occasional bouts of insomnia, and these mundane insomnia causes can often be addressed with minimal behavioral changes. More serious life events including divorce or loss of a loved one can produce what is called “adjustment sleep disorder”. This type of insomnia cause can be in the form of a major life event as referenced above, or from another type of outside trigger such as bad weather or darkness. This explains the higher incidence of clinical depression in areas which experience seasonal round the clock darkness. There are also some medications which have been shown to be causes of insomnia in a portion of those who take them.

There are myriad physical causes of insomnia with some being more prevalent based upon gender and others tied to age. Hormonal changes within women — most saliently upon menopause — have been shown to be a documented cause of insomnia. Pregnancy and PMS have also been tied to insomnia within the female population. Some medical conditions including asthma, hypertension, hyperthyroidism, allergies, Parkinson’s disease and cardiovascular conditions have been shown to be causes of insomnia. Although much is still unknown about the phenomenon of human sleep, researchers have established that a lack of the naturally produced substance melatonin can prove to be an insomnia cause. The body’s ability to produce melatonin decreases with age, and consequently this can end up being among the main causes of insomnia within the elderly population.

Some causes of insomnia arise from underlying psychological triggers. Anxiety is omnipresent within modern life, and it also has been shown to be a prominent insomnia cause. Insomnia stress related disorders arising from anxiety and/or depression can be treated by therapy, pharmaceuticals or changes in lifestyle and behaviors — or a combination of all of these facets. Insomnia relief — independent of the applicable cause — can be achieved by all sufferers even if the first avenue does not work. There are a significant number of potential treatments and insomnia tips — the key is to keep trying until you find the one that works for you.

Everyone has occasional bouts of sleeplessness. However, seeing you are reading this, the odds are high that you have a more chronic form of insomnia — and have a great desire for insomnia tips and advice towards helping you start getting a full night’s sleep. The best insomnia tips are often the most simple. Think about what you eat and drink within the 2 hours prior to going to bed. Do these foods and drinks contain caffeine? If so, you should cut them out. Some people find it difficult sleeping after consuming large amounts of sugar, so an easy pointer among all the insomnia tips is to cut out those sweets for at least 120 minutes prior to bed-time.

Many good insomnia tips relate to your sleep environment. Some people can sleep through a train roaring through their bedroom, while others of us are awakening by the slightest noise, movement or ray of light. Ensure that your sleep space is as dark, quiet and temperate as you can make it. A good tip could also be to try another pillow, or rearrange the direction of your bed. Small adjustments like these have been known to work wonders.

In some cases, applicable insomnia tips entail a more serious response. Sleep apnea is a major cause of insomnia, and if this is the reason for your sleepnessness, then you must address it immediately. Sleep apnea can lead to serious health effects including high blood pressure and cardiovascular issues. Depression has also been tied to insomnia. Today, clinical depression can be effectively treated, and addressing it surely will improve many aspects of your life including sleep.

One of the best insomnia tips is to be very careful when using OTC or prescription sleeping pills. These sleep aids are great for occasional insomnia, but when used regularly they can be addictive and serve to only exacerbate the existing problem. Run down the list of possible causes of insomnia and see which apply to you. Once you know the source of your insomnia, then you’ll be able to focus on the best insomnia tips for your individual circumstance.

While everyone experiences insomnia to some degree, those who have chronic insomnia feel there is no cure for them. Before one can cure the condition it’s essential to find the underlying cause. There are many reasons people have insomnia and in varying degrees. Some people have trouble falling asleep while others have trouble staying asleep. The cause of the sleeplessness varies from person to person but before you can begin to treat the condition you must evaluate and analyze the cause. While there are many different things that may contribute to insomnia, the ten must common causes are as follows:

1. Inconsistent sleep patterns. For good sleep it’s important to go to sleep and wake up at approximately the same time every day. Many people have a tendency to stay up extremely late and wake up extremely late on their days off which disrupts their normal sleep patterns.

1. Eating heavy meals too close to bedtime. Your body needs time to complete the digestive process, and if you eat your dinner too close to bedtime you will have trouble falling asleep. While work schedules may sometimes affect this process, especially those who may work both a full-time and part-time job without a break in between, eating late will definitely have a detrimental effect on your ability to fall asleep.

1. Going to bed hungry. This is something many people attempt to do, especially when they are trying to lose weight, and it is one of the worst things you can do for sleep quality. Many people read the advice of stars who say they don’t eat after 6 p.m. and think it is the perfect solution. Instead of trying to go to bed hungry and not be able to sleep, try having a small high energy snack. Serotonin is believed to be a natural sleep aid and is present in many chocolate products—you don’t have to sacrifice your diet but have a small cup of sugar free chocolate pudding or sugar free hot chocolate.

1. Going to bed exhausted. While it seems to make sense to wait until you are tired to go to bed, you don’t wait to wait until you are completely exhausted or you will have trouble going to sleep.

1. Getting too many sleep aids.

1. Smoking

1. Overuse of caffeine

1. Temperature in room too hot or too cold

1. Inability to relax after going to bed

1. Lack of exercise. While you don’t want to do too much close to bedtime, a little bit of light exercise can actual relax you and help you fall asleep. It can be something as mild as just take a ten or fifteen minute walk outside.

While people may have other reasons they have difficulty sleeping, these are the most common reasons and the ones easiest to address. Some people have chronic insomnia that is related to health conditions or medications they must take; it’s difficult to control those causes. However, if you work on some of the other causes you can at least reduce some of the bouts of insomnia that your health conditions and medications cause.