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

Greetings CantSleep readers,

There are now a plethora of sources for insomnia information, but, unfortunately, many provide less than objective advice. These days, when seeking information most turn to the Internet — and the volumes of information on the Internet ensure almost every question can be answered. However, within this voluminous information there exists myths, confusion and even outright falsehoods. Some websites purporting to convey insomnia information exist solely for the purpose of selling you a specific product — whether you need it or not. For example, a given source for insomnia information might say that sleep apnea is always the cause of chronic insomnia, and then they subsequently try to sell you a CPAP mask. The truth is that only a small portion of those with sleep problems truly have sleep apnea, and that the particular site was misleading you solely for the purpose of parting you with your hard earned money.

This phenomenon is salient within all arenas of knowledge conveyed over the Internet, however, within the realm of insomnia information it is especially prominent. Consequently, readers need to be especially discriminating — and skeptical — when seeking health information online. There exists several reputable sources which are universally recognized as providing objective information. However, these sites usually cover a wide range of health topics and give short shrift to insomnia information. Sources like CantSleep.com focus solely on insomnia information, and one of the reasons I felt comfortable sharing my story here is that you can easily see CantSleep isn’t pushing a diagnosis on anyone or suggesting that one form of treatment is better than another. The bottom line is, when seeking insomnia information digest what you read with a large grain of salt.

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.

Research has shown that a majority of us have at least occasional trouble when attempting to fall asleep fast. Whether you have periodic or chronic insomnia, there are solutions available which prove far more effective than counting sheep. For those experiencing temporary bouts of insomnia, there are a plethora of over-the-counter (OTC) sleep aids which can allow you to fall asleep fast. These pills do not require a prescription, and studies have shown that they can be used safely and effectively for limited duration. However, even the best OTC sleep aids can become addictive, and they should not be used to treat chronic insomnia.

Some have trouble falling asleep because they — or their partners — are afflicted by snoring. There are several easy fixes when it comes to snoring including strips which facilitate the flow of air through the nose and sleeping techniques which lower the odds of snores ensuing. Simple environmental issues can prove to be the culprits behind your failure to get to sleep. Noise, light and temperature can all prevent sleep, and the easiest first step for those desiring to fall asleep fast is to ensure a dark, quiet and cool setting within your sleep space.

There can be more serious causes behind the inability to fall asleep fast. One such example is sleep apnea which entails brief periods of breathing cessation which occur sporadically throughout the night. Not only does sleep apnea ensure a night of tossing and turning, but it also can lead to more serious adverse health effects including cardiovascular issues. Those suffering from sleep apnea can find relief via changing their sleeping position, losing weight or using a variety of devices on the market aimed at combating this condition.

No matter what the reason behind your inability to fall asleep fast, there is an effective treatment. The first requisite step is to identify the particular issue behind your sleep issues. With this knowledge you are better able to select the best solution geared for your particular sleep issue. There is no reason to continue tossing and turning each night — there is a cure out there which will allow you to fall asleep fast.