Insomnia in Children and Women
May 10, 2011 by admin
Filed under Diseases And Conditions
Cindy Heller asked:
While insomnia prevails among a notable proportion of adults, children too suffer from sleep disorders. Insomnia in children is characterized by signs of wakefulness or restlessness daily at night, irritability or heaviness on waking from sleep, mood swings, lack of concentration, and unusual difficulty with remembering.
Causes of Insomnia in Children
In children, the causes of insomnia are generally more easy to work out that in grown ups. If your child suffers from any of the symptoms listed above, look for any one or more of these causes that usually cause sleep disorders in children: stress, diet, anxiety, fear, physical problems (constipation, pain etc.), and disturbed routine (watching TV late in the night, over use of computer, video games etc.)
Insomnia in Women
A good number of women suffer from sleep disorders in early pregnancy. Insomnia In Early Pregnancy Is Mostly Caused By Discomfort And Anxiety. Most people attribute the sleep disorders in early pregnancy to the hormonal imbalances – while in some cases this would be true, there are plenty instances where the insomnia in early pregnancy is caused by the excitement and anxiety of being pregnant. . To counteract the problem, you will have to consult a doctor since self medication would be contraindicated once you are confirmed to be pregnant.
Sleep disorders during Pregnancy
Studies have found that about 78 % of pregnant women suffer from insomnia for varying durations. However, physicians believe that sleep disorders during pregnancy is normal and not dangerous to the infant’s health. A number of reasons account for sleeping difficulties encountered during pregnancy. In many cases, the growing size of the abdomen is the main cause of sleeplessness. Pressure eon the bladder caused by increased size of the abdomen makes it necessary to urinate several times during the night. The pregnant woman feels trouble with finding a comfortable position for sleeping. Feeling the baby’s movement can also cause waking up at night. Heartburn and back pain are two main physical problems that cause insomnia during pregnancy. There might be aching in the hips, causing discomfort. Hormonal changes and psychological conditions like anxiety and/or depression are other main causes of sleeplessness.
Coping With sleep disorders during Pregnancy
The first thing to do is to prevent you from getting overly anxious, just looking at the time and worrying about sleep. Taking a warm bath, before going to bed, brings comfort and relaxes you to sleep. Relaxation exercises like yoga and meditation etc. are helpful in relieving anxiety and bringing sleep. You can also ask your partner for a massage. Take plenty of exercise during the day or in the evening but not too close to bedtime. Exercise will make you tired and hence drive you to sleep. Also try to avoid taking naps in the day. If you get up several times to urinate during the course of the night, take fewer fluids after 4 pm. Also avoid taking caffeine drinks in the evening. Their stimulating effect is a sleep antagonist. Keep the temperature of the bedroom at a comfortable level. Keep the window open for fresh air to reach you. Use additional blankets to keep you warm if the room feels cold.
Menopause and Insomnia in Women
Women going through their menopause frequently suffer from insomnia. Menopause and sleep disorders co-occur due to the reduction and imbalance of hormones associated with menopause. The resulting stress, anxiety, and depression deprive the menopausal woman of sleep. Accompanying these sleep disturbances are hot flashes and sweats that are the characteristic symptoms of menopause.
Treatment for Menopausal Insomnia
Insomnia is treated in a variety of ways like prescribed medications, herbal formulas, relaxation techniques, exercises, psychological treatment (if anxiety or depression are the main cause), lifestyle changes, home remedies and nutrition etc. For menopause and sleep disorders co-occurring, hormone replacement therapy is also used. However, it is not effective in all women and different women going through menopause respond differently to this therapy. When the body’s hormonal imbalance settles down by itself, the insomnia associated with it also disappears.
Various Prescribed Medicines for Insomnia
Trazodone is an antidepressant available in the drug market under the brand name Desyrel or Desyrel Dividose. Besides treating depression, loss of motivation for daily activities, and other symptoms, Trazodone is frequently prescribed for treating symptoms of insomnia.
Over the years, lexapro and sleep disorders have been connected together because of the fact that most people who have taken this drug ends up suffering from insomnia. According to experts, lexapro is one of the most effective drugs for treating depression especially in children and adolescents. Unfortunately, lexapro and insomnia seem to have become so closely associated that when you think of lexapro and insomnia, you immediately associate it with cause and effect where lexapro becomes the cause of insomnia.
Melatonin is a hormone that the body produces naturally. It is also a powerful antioxidant. Melatonin is reported to help to have a sedative effect on the body, helping to induce sleep in many. It is non-toxic and no side effects have been officially reported while using this therapy. Using melatonin for sleep disorders is a fairly well-known practice in society.
Prozac is certain type of medicine that is commonly used to treat depression in people. As an anti-depressant, prozac is rather effective and is said to be very good in helping people with anxiety disorders and eating disorders. However, the bad news about prozac is that it can have some serious side effects including insomnia.
While insomnia prevails among a notable proportion of adults, children too suffer from sleep disorders. Insomnia in children is characterized by signs of wakefulness or restlessness daily at night, irritability or heaviness on waking from sleep, mood swings, lack of concentration, and unusual difficulty with remembering.
Causes of Insomnia in Children
In children, the causes of insomnia are generally more easy to work out that in grown ups. If your child suffers from any of the symptoms listed above, look for any one or more of these causes that usually cause sleep disorders in children: stress, diet, anxiety, fear, physical problems (constipation, pain etc.), and disturbed routine (watching TV late in the night, over use of computer, video games etc.)
Insomnia in Women
A good number of women suffer from sleep disorders in early pregnancy. Insomnia In Early Pregnancy Is Mostly Caused By Discomfort And Anxiety. Most people attribute the sleep disorders in early pregnancy to the hormonal imbalances – while in some cases this would be true, there are plenty instances where the insomnia in early pregnancy is caused by the excitement and anxiety of being pregnant. . To counteract the problem, you will have to consult a doctor since self medication would be contraindicated once you are confirmed to be pregnant.
Sleep disorders during Pregnancy
Studies have found that about 78 % of pregnant women suffer from insomnia for varying durations. However, physicians believe that sleep disorders during pregnancy is normal and not dangerous to the infant’s health. A number of reasons account for sleeping difficulties encountered during pregnancy. In many cases, the growing size of the abdomen is the main cause of sleeplessness. Pressure eon the bladder caused by increased size of the abdomen makes it necessary to urinate several times during the night. The pregnant woman feels trouble with finding a comfortable position for sleeping. Feeling the baby’s movement can also cause waking up at night. Heartburn and back pain are two main physical problems that cause insomnia during pregnancy. There might be aching in the hips, causing discomfort. Hormonal changes and psychological conditions like anxiety and/or depression are other main causes of sleeplessness.
Coping With sleep disorders during Pregnancy
The first thing to do is to prevent you from getting overly anxious, just looking at the time and worrying about sleep. Taking a warm bath, before going to bed, brings comfort and relaxes you to sleep. Relaxation exercises like yoga and meditation etc. are helpful in relieving anxiety and bringing sleep. You can also ask your partner for a massage. Take plenty of exercise during the day or in the evening but not too close to bedtime. Exercise will make you tired and hence drive you to sleep. Also try to avoid taking naps in the day. If you get up several times to urinate during the course of the night, take fewer fluids after 4 pm. Also avoid taking caffeine drinks in the evening. Their stimulating effect is a sleep antagonist. Keep the temperature of the bedroom at a comfortable level. Keep the window open for fresh air to reach you. Use additional blankets to keep you warm if the room feels cold.
Menopause and Insomnia in Women
Women going through their menopause frequently suffer from insomnia. Menopause and sleep disorders co-occur due to the reduction and imbalance of hormones associated with menopause. The resulting stress, anxiety, and depression deprive the menopausal woman of sleep. Accompanying these sleep disturbances are hot flashes and sweats that are the characteristic symptoms of menopause.
Treatment for Menopausal Insomnia
Insomnia is treated in a variety of ways like prescribed medications, herbal formulas, relaxation techniques, exercises, psychological treatment (if anxiety or depression are the main cause), lifestyle changes, home remedies and nutrition etc. For menopause and sleep disorders co-occurring, hormone replacement therapy is also used. However, it is not effective in all women and different women going through menopause respond differently to this therapy. When the body’s hormonal imbalance settles down by itself, the insomnia associated with it also disappears.
Various Prescribed Medicines for Insomnia
Trazodone is an antidepressant available in the drug market under the brand name Desyrel or Desyrel Dividose. Besides treating depression, loss of motivation for daily activities, and other symptoms, Trazodone is frequently prescribed for treating symptoms of insomnia.
Over the years, lexapro and sleep disorders have been connected together because of the fact that most people who have taken this drug ends up suffering from insomnia. According to experts, lexapro is one of the most effective drugs for treating depression especially in children and adolescents. Unfortunately, lexapro and insomnia seem to have become so closely associated that when you think of lexapro and insomnia, you immediately associate it with cause and effect where lexapro becomes the cause of insomnia.
Melatonin is a hormone that the body produces naturally. It is also a powerful antioxidant. Melatonin is reported to help to have a sedative effect on the body, helping to induce sleep in many. It is non-toxic and no side effects have been officially reported while using this therapy. Using melatonin for sleep disorders is a fairly well-known practice in society.
Prozac is certain type of medicine that is commonly used to treat depression in people. As an anti-depressant, prozac is rather effective and is said to be very good in helping people with anxiety disorders and eating disorders. However, the bad news about prozac is that it can have some serious side effects including insomnia.
Natural Treatment of Insomnia in Women: The Road to Dreamland
May 10, 2011 by admin
Filed under Diseases And Conditions
Dee Braun asked:
Insomnia is more common in women as opposed to men. Experts say that every woman will experience a certain degree of insomnia at least once in her life due to certain hormonal imbalances. This usually happens during perimenopausal stages while younger women suffer from insomnia caused by premenstrual syndrome. Insomnia, however, must not be mistaken for getting insufficient sleep as women differ when it comes to the amount of sleep they need. There is this big difference between needing less sleep and not being able to sleep whenever you need it.
To cure insomnia in women, you have to alleviate the causes of sleeping disorders. It is easy to blame it on hormones, but more often than not, it is not the sole culprit. Chronic stress, for example, is a huge contributor to insomnia in women. Stress causes adrenal exhaustion of the DHEA hormone which is an essential sleep regulator. Too much consumption of alcohol, caffeine and carbohydrates especially right before bedtime causes unnecessary alertness that keeps you from sleeping. Unresolved conflicts and anxieties also lead to lack of sleep which makes women prone to insomnia.
There is a large misconception about over-the-counter sleeping pills as being the cure for insomnia. Truth is, sleeping pills are a mere short-term reliever and a dependency on them can induce further sleeping problems. What is needed, then, is to remedy the causes of insomnia in women through natural methods that maintain hormonal balance and ensure a healthy lifestyle.
One thing that works wonders with insomniacs is keeping a sleep journal at your bedside table to track down what exactly is causing your insomnia. On a notebook, simply write down the time you went to bed, the time you awakened in the middle of the night, and the time you got up in the morning.
You may also want to take note of your premenstrual and postmenstrual experience to see if it has an effect on your sleeping habits. Try to maintain the journal in about three months and reread it to find out if there is some kind of pattern. If the journal seems to show you that you are having transitory insomnia during your menstrual cycle, then your hormones might be causing it.
There are measures you can follow in order to alleviate the symptoms of hormonal insomnia. The easiest way is to drink at least one glass of water before going to sleep. Avoidance of caffeine 6 hours before bed time or anything high in sugar content 2 hours before, also prevents insomnia as these chemicals cause mental and physical alertness.
Eating food that is high in magnesium is the way to go for insomniacs. Magnesium-rich foods are soybeans, almonds, lima beans and the likes. Food rich in estrogen has to be added in your diet as well especially if you are in a premenopausal stage. Phytoestrogens are apples, carrots, green beans, and potatoes.
Regular exercise also prevents the symptoms of insomnia in women whose tasks are not quite physically demanding. At least 30 minutes a day, thrice a week will do to avoid insomnia. Indulging yourself in physical activities especially those that allow you to socialize at the same time also discourage stress and fatigue that usually leads to insomnia.
Maintaining a positive outlook in life is essential in keeping a sound mind and body. Always remember that creating lasting relationships and keeping a fair conscience is the best way to ensure a good night’s sleep.
Insomnia is more common in women as opposed to men. Experts say that every woman will experience a certain degree of insomnia at least once in her life due to certain hormonal imbalances. This usually happens during perimenopausal stages while younger women suffer from insomnia caused by premenstrual syndrome. Insomnia, however, must not be mistaken for getting insufficient sleep as women differ when it comes to the amount of sleep they need. There is this big difference between needing less sleep and not being able to sleep whenever you need it.
To cure insomnia in women, you have to alleviate the causes of sleeping disorders. It is easy to blame it on hormones, but more often than not, it is not the sole culprit. Chronic stress, for example, is a huge contributor to insomnia in women. Stress causes adrenal exhaustion of the DHEA hormone which is an essential sleep regulator. Too much consumption of alcohol, caffeine and carbohydrates especially right before bedtime causes unnecessary alertness that keeps you from sleeping. Unresolved conflicts and anxieties also lead to lack of sleep which makes women prone to insomnia.
There is a large misconception about over-the-counter sleeping pills as being the cure for insomnia. Truth is, sleeping pills are a mere short-term reliever and a dependency on them can induce further sleeping problems. What is needed, then, is to remedy the causes of insomnia in women through natural methods that maintain hormonal balance and ensure a healthy lifestyle.
One thing that works wonders with insomniacs is keeping a sleep journal at your bedside table to track down what exactly is causing your insomnia. On a notebook, simply write down the time you went to bed, the time you awakened in the middle of the night, and the time you got up in the morning.
You may also want to take note of your premenstrual and postmenstrual experience to see if it has an effect on your sleeping habits. Try to maintain the journal in about three months and reread it to find out if there is some kind of pattern. If the journal seems to show you that you are having transitory insomnia during your menstrual cycle, then your hormones might be causing it.
There are measures you can follow in order to alleviate the symptoms of hormonal insomnia. The easiest way is to drink at least one glass of water before going to sleep. Avoidance of caffeine 6 hours before bed time or anything high in sugar content 2 hours before, also prevents insomnia as these chemicals cause mental and physical alertness.
Eating food that is high in magnesium is the way to go for insomniacs. Magnesium-rich foods are soybeans, almonds, lima beans and the likes. Food rich in estrogen has to be added in your diet as well especially if you are in a premenopausal stage. Phytoestrogens are apples, carrots, green beans, and potatoes.
Regular exercise also prevents the symptoms of insomnia in women whose tasks are not quite physically demanding. At least 30 minutes a day, thrice a week will do to avoid insomnia. Indulging yourself in physical activities especially those that allow you to socialize at the same time also discourage stress and fatigue that usually leads to insomnia.
Maintaining a positive outlook in life is essential in keeping a sound mind and body. Always remember that creating lasting relationships and keeping a fair conscience is the best way to ensure a good night’s sleep.
