Overview
Insomnia is when you aren’t sleeping as you should. That can mean you aren’t sleeping enough, you aren’t sleeping well or you’re having trouble falling or staying asleep. For some people, insomnia is a minor inconvenience. For others, insomnia can be a major disruption. The reasons why insomnia happens can vary just as widely.
Your body needs sleep for many reasons (and science is still unlocking an understanding of why sleep is so important to your body). Experts do know that when you don’t sleep enough, it can cause sleep deprivation, which is usually unpleasant (at the very least) and keeps you from functioning at your best.
How sleep needs and habits vary and what that means for you
Sleep habits and needs can be very different from person to person. Because of these variations, experts consider a wide range of sleep characteristics “normal.” Some examples of this include:
- Early birds/early risers: Some people naturally prefer to go to bed and wake up early.
- Night owls/late risers: Some people prefer to go to bed and wake up late.
- Short-sleepers: Some people naturally need less sleep than others. Research indicates that there may even be a genetic reason for that.
- Learned sleep differences: Some people develop sleep habits for specific reasons, such as their profession. Military personnel with combat experience often learn to be light sleepers because of the demands and dangers of their profession. On the opposite end of that spectrum, some people learn to be very heavy sleepers so they can still sleep despite surrounding noises.
- Natural changes in sleep needs: Your need for sleep changes throughout your life. Infants need significantly more sleep, between 14 and 17 hours per day, while adults (ages 18 and up) need about seven to nine hours per day.
Types of insomnia
There are two main ways that experts use to put insomnia into categories:
- Time: Experts classify insomnia as acute (short-term) or chronic (long-term). The chronic form is known as insomnia disorder.
- Cause: Primary insomnia means it happens on its own. Secondary insomnia means it’s a symptom of another condition or circumstance.
How common is insomnia?
Both the acute and chronic forms of insomnia are very common. Roughly, 1 in 3 adults worldwide have insomnia symptoms, and about 10% of adults meet the criteria for insomnia disorder.
Symptoms
When to see a doctor
Complications
- High blood pressure.
- Diabetes.
- Heart failure.
- Some types of heart valve disease.
Prevention
- Control high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes.
- Don't smoke or use tobacco.
- Eat a diet that's low in salt and saturated fat.
- Exercise at least 30 minutes a day on most days of the week unless your health care team says not to.
- Get good sleep. Adults should aim for 7 to 9 hours daily.
- Maintain a healthy weight.
- Reduce and manage stress.
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