Primary insomnia is difficulty getting to sleep or staying asleep, or having non-refreshing sleep for at least 1 month without any known physical or mental condition.
About 25% of elderly people and about 10% of people in general have insomnia.
Secondary insomnia is insomnia caused by a medical condition. Depression is a very common cause of secondary insomnia. Often, insomnia is the symptom for which people with depression seek medical help.
Symptoms
Difficulty falling asleep
Feeling tired
Waking up several times during sleep
People who have primary insomnia tend to keep thinking about getting enough sleep. The more they try to sleep, the greater the sense of frustration and distress, and the more difficult sleep becomes.
Signs and tests
Your health care provider will do a physical exam and ask you questions about your current medications, drug use, and medical history. Usually, these are the only methods needed to diagnose insomnia.
Polysomnography, an overnight sleep study, can help rule out other types of sleep disorders (such as sleep apnea).
Treatment
The following tips can help improve sleep. This is called sleep hygiene.
Insomnia(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Insomnia is the inability to obtain an adequate amount or quality of sleep. The difficulty can be in falling asleep, remaining asleep, or both.
Insomnia concerns (1 image)(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Insomnia is difficulty falling or staying asleep. In many cases, it can be relieved with a few simple behavioral changes or medication. Reviewer: Allen J. Blaivas, DO, Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Veteran Affairs, VA System, East Orange, NJ. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.Date: 04/25/2008
Sleep disorders (2 images)
Average Rating:
(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Sleep disorders involve any difficulties related to sleeping, including difficulty falling or staying asleep, falling asleep at inappropriate times, excessive total sleep time, or abnormal behaviors associated with sleep.More than 100 different di...Reviewer: Allen J. Blaivas, DO, Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine, Department of Veteran Affairs, VA New Jersey Health Care System, East Orange, NJ . Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.Date: 09/11/2008
Anti-Insomnia Drugs(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Anti-insomnia drugs are medicines that help people fall asleep or stay asleep.Physicians prescribe anti-insomnia drugs for short-term treatment of insomnia—a sleep problem in which people have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep or wake...
Sleeping difficulty (1 image)(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Sleeping difficulty, called insomnia, can involve difficulty falling asleep when you first go to bed at night, waking up too early in the morning, and waking up often during the night.Insomnia; Inability to sleep; Dyssomnia; Sleeplessness; Wakeful...Reviewer: Christos Ballas, M.D., Attending Psychiatrist, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed byDavid Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.Date: 02/06/2008
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