The common types of Sleep Disorders (Day 2)

Types of Sleep Disorders

Yesterday we talked about normal sleep lengths. Now let’s discuss sleep disorders.

We can broadly classify the types of sleep disorders into two groups, the first group are called dyssomnias. These are those sleep disorders that affect the quality, amount or timing of sleep, the most popular among this group is what we know as #insomnia. Do you have difficulty getting to sleep? Do you have difficulty maintaining the state of sleep after you’ve started? This is insomnia. Many people have varying forms of insomnia which may include waking up before it is dawn, tossing and turning and waking up at different times in the night. Are you having insomnia? Joi

do you know that despite sleeping the recommended hours if you still don’t feel rejuvenated it is still termed insomnia.

Insomnia causes

There are many things that may cause insomnia both obvious and not so obvious.

The common causes include

1.  Medical illnesses like pain, heart and brain disease,

2. use of certain medications like steroids and antidepressant.

3. Alcohol ,drugs and stimulant use e.g. caffeine

4. Some psychiatric disorders and anxiety.

Can you pin point the cause of your insomnia from the above?

Another group we will talk about are called parasomnias. These are those disturbances which occur while a person sleeps, you find people that engage in one activity or the other while sleeping for example

1. Sleep walking, here the person may start walking around or even go out. it is very difficult to wake such a person,

2. Night terrors where the person wakes up screaming, sweating, shaking etc.

3. Some people may bed wet, grind their teeth or even start talking while asleep.

Have you experienced any of the above?

Join me here as we discuss treatment of sleep disorders. This is Dr Gabby wishing you a great day. Stay healthy.