Some more definitions – this time Sl to T
Over the last months or so I have been posting definitions to help you bust the jargon when you are researching insomnia related issues.
Here are some more which I hope are of some help to you – most of them relating to Sleep related definitions.
Sleep Apnea – A condition where the sufferer momentarily stops breathing during sleep. I will blog about this problem separately soon as it is a major cause of insomnia.
Sleep Bruxism – This is where the sufferer constantly grinds his/her teeth during the night waking themselves (and others in the process). Not only can it lead to insomnia but also leads to problems with teeth and dental issues.
Sleep Homeostat – This is an internal body control mechanism which is controlled by brain chemicals such as melatonin. It basically makes sure that in an ideal world that you get enough sleep.
Sleep onset insomnia – This is a type of insomnia where you find it difficult to fall asleep in the first place.
Sleep Maintenance insomnia – This is different to the sleep onset insomnia as the sufferer doesn’t have a problem actually falling asleep – they have a problem staying asleep.
Sleep related breathing disorders – These cover a range of sleep breathing related issues which includes sleep apnea, but also includes difficulty in breathing and too shallow breathing.
Sleep related movement disorders – This is a group of disorders where the suffer makes involuntary movements during the night. These sudden movements can either keep the sufferer from falling asleep or wake them abruptly during the night. One of the most common forms of this is Restless leg Syndrome.
Sleep wake Cycle – Pattern of sleep and wakefulness that is determined by circadian rythms and sleep homeostat.
Stimulus Control Therapy- A treatment that aims to help insomnia by encouraging the brain to link to certain cues. This may be simply getting into bed, the dark etc where the sufferer immediately associates these with sleep.
Transient Insomnia- This is a temporary form of insomnia which tends to only last a few nights.
Tryptophan – This is an amino acid used to make serotonin. This is then turned into the sleep hormone Melatonin
Well that’s it for now – hope it’s been of some interest. Remember there are a few other blogs on this site which help take you through the alphabet if you are looking out for any other definitions.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
Saturday, 6 November 2010
Tart cherry juice, a natural insomnia cure
Tart cherry juice, a natural insomnia cure
A new research has suggested that drinking tart cherry juice daily can help reduce the severity of insomnia and time spent awake after going to sleep.
To reach the conclusion, a team of University of Pennsylvania, University of Rochester and VA Center of Canandaigua researchers conducted a pilot study on the sleep habits of 15 older adults.
The adults drank 8 ounces of tart cherry juice beverage (CheriBundi www.cheribundi.com) in the morning and evening for 2 weeks, and a comparable matched juice drink, with no tart cherry juice, for another 2 week period.
There were significant reductions in reported insomnia severity and the adults saved about 17 minutes of wake time after going to sleep, on average, when drinking cherry juice daily, compared to when they were drinking the juice drink.
The researchers suspect tart cherries'' natural benefits could be due in part to their relatively high content of melatonin – a natural antioxidant in cherries with established ability to help moderate the body's sleep-wake cycle.
Produced naturally by the body in small amounts, melatonin plays a role in inducing sleepiness at night and wakefulness during the day.
Russel J. Reiter, a biomedical scientist at the University of Texas Health Science Center and one of the world's leading authorities on melatonin, says while melatonin supplement pills have been heavily promoted as a sleep aid, foods such as cherries – available year-round as dried, frozen and juice – may be a better alternative for boosting the body's own supply of melatonin.
"When consumed regularly, tart cherries may help regulate the body's natural sleep cycle and increase sleep efficiency, including decreasing the time it takes to fall asleep. And, because cherries are so rich in other antioxidants, such as anthocyanins, you get other important health benefits," Reiter said.
The study has been published in the Journal of Medicinal Food.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
A new research has suggested that drinking tart cherry juice daily can help reduce the severity of insomnia and time spent awake after going to sleep.
To reach the conclusion, a team of University of Pennsylvania, University of Rochester and VA Center of Canandaigua researchers conducted a pilot study on the sleep habits of 15 older adults.
The adults drank 8 ounces of tart cherry juice beverage (CheriBundi www.cheribundi.com) in the morning and evening for 2 weeks, and a comparable matched juice drink, with no tart cherry juice, for another 2 week period.
There were significant reductions in reported insomnia severity and the adults saved about 17 minutes of wake time after going to sleep, on average, when drinking cherry juice daily, compared to when they were drinking the juice drink.
The researchers suspect tart cherries'' natural benefits could be due in part to their relatively high content of melatonin – a natural antioxidant in cherries with established ability to help moderate the body's sleep-wake cycle.
Produced naturally by the body in small amounts, melatonin plays a role in inducing sleepiness at night and wakefulness during the day.
Russel J. Reiter, a biomedical scientist at the University of Texas Health Science Center and one of the world's leading authorities on melatonin, says while melatonin supplement pills have been heavily promoted as a sleep aid, foods such as cherries – available year-round as dried, frozen and juice – may be a better alternative for boosting the body's own supply of melatonin.
"When consumed regularly, tart cherries may help regulate the body's natural sleep cycle and increase sleep efficiency, including decreasing the time it takes to fall asleep. And, because cherries are so rich in other antioxidants, such as anthocyanins, you get other important health benefits," Reiter said.
The study has been published in the Journal of Medicinal Food.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
Balancing your blood sugar to help cure insomnia
Balancing your blood sugar
Sleep can often be affected by hunger. This means that eating in a way that will keep your blood sugar steady during the daytime will help your sleep by ensuring it isn’t then affected by hunger!
Here are some top tips on things that uou can do to help balance your blood sugar to help sleep and get over bouts of insomnia.
1. Don’t starve or stuff yourself!
Whatever you do – don’t stuff your face and over eat at bedtime. It can lead to discomfort that can prevent you from sleeping soundly.
One of the other problems with eating lots late at night is that it causes a massive surge in body temperature – which in turn leads to stopping people from being able to drop off to sleep.
There are also issues with not eating enough before bedtime – so don’t eat too little before bedtime so you feel hungry. Not eating enough can lead to hunger pangs which can keep you from falling asleep and or cause you to wake up in the middle of the night. Also your body needs nutrients to repair itself.
2. Eat low GI foods
GI means Glypercaemic index. Gypercaemic Index is a measure of the rate by which a food raises sugar in the blood.
Carbohydrates are a particular food with a high Glypercaemic Index. Foods in this group include things like bread, chips ,pasta, rice, couscous, pastries, biscuits, cakes, buns, crisps, sweets and fizzy drinks. All these foods have one thing in common – they are all converted by the body into glucose quickly. This causes the blood sugar level in the blood to rise rapidly.
But remember that there are some carbohydrates with a low Glypercaemic Index – these tend to be more of the wholemeal/brown versions of food – so things like wholemeal bread, bran flakes, porridge, sweet potatoes, wholewheat pasta, brown rice, baked potatoes, and anything containing large amounts of fibre.
The benefit of these low GI foods is that they take a really long time to digest. This has the added advantage of making the glucose in them to be released more slowly. This then has the positive effect of keeping your blood sugar steady – which then leads you to feeling full for longer.
This is great if you are struggling to sleep by keeping waking up in the night because you are hungry. (The same principal also works for when you have breakfast with low GI items which can keep you full up at work till lunchtime!)
3. Fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy products
For a low GI diet, as well as eating these slow release carbohydrates – you also need to include lots of fruit, vegetables, beans and pulses. It would also help if you eat low fat dairy products such as yoghurt, skimmed milk and cheese. This helps you to have a more balanced diet.
So you see – you don’t have to eat masses before bedtime so that you don’t wake up during the night hungry. Doing this can cause a negative effect – you are much better eating a low GI diet – so that you stay hungry longer whilst remaining healthy.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
Sleep can often be affected by hunger. This means that eating in a way that will keep your blood sugar steady during the daytime will help your sleep by ensuring it isn’t then affected by hunger!
Here are some top tips on things that uou can do to help balance your blood sugar to help sleep and get over bouts of insomnia.
1. Don’t starve or stuff yourself!
Whatever you do – don’t stuff your face and over eat at bedtime. It can lead to discomfort that can prevent you from sleeping soundly.
One of the other problems with eating lots late at night is that it causes a massive surge in body temperature – which in turn leads to stopping people from being able to drop off to sleep.
There are also issues with not eating enough before bedtime – so don’t eat too little before bedtime so you feel hungry. Not eating enough can lead to hunger pangs which can keep you from falling asleep and or cause you to wake up in the middle of the night. Also your body needs nutrients to repair itself.
2. Eat low GI foods
GI means Glypercaemic index. Gypercaemic Index is a measure of the rate by which a food raises sugar in the blood.
Carbohydrates are a particular food with a high Glypercaemic Index. Foods in this group include things like bread, chips ,pasta, rice, couscous, pastries, biscuits, cakes, buns, crisps, sweets and fizzy drinks. All these foods have one thing in common – they are all converted by the body into glucose quickly. This causes the blood sugar level in the blood to rise rapidly.
But remember that there are some carbohydrates with a low Glypercaemic Index – these tend to be more of the wholemeal/brown versions of food – so things like wholemeal bread, bran flakes, porridge, sweet potatoes, wholewheat pasta, brown rice, baked potatoes, and anything containing large amounts of fibre.
The benefit of these low GI foods is that they take a really long time to digest. This has the added advantage of making the glucose in them to be released more slowly. This then has the positive effect of keeping your blood sugar steady – which then leads you to feeling full for longer.
This is great if you are struggling to sleep by keeping waking up in the night because you are hungry. (The same principal also works for when you have breakfast with low GI items which can keep you full up at work till lunchtime!)
3. Fruits, vegetables and low fat dairy products
For a low GI diet, as well as eating these slow release carbohydrates – you also need to include lots of fruit, vegetables, beans and pulses. It would also help if you eat low fat dairy products such as yoghurt, skimmed milk and cheese. This helps you to have a more balanced diet.
So you see – you don’t have to eat masses before bedtime so that you don’t wake up during the night hungry. Doing this can cause a negative effect – you are much better eating a low GI diet – so that you stay hungry longer whilst remaining healthy.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
Women and Insomnia
Women and Insomnia
Here is an interesting article I found from Sleepdex an online resource of Sleep Information. Hope you find it interesting…
More women have insomnia several times a week than men. Senior women are more likely to report sleep problems over the past decade than senior men.
Many women experience insomnia when they have fluctuations in the serum levels of hormones. These times include during their monthly cycle, pregnancy, and menopause.
No cause-and-effect relationship has been established between hormones and sleep
latency at a biochemical level, though. It has been shown that hormone supplement therapy for women during menopausal change does decrease reports of insomnia.
Bloating, which many women experience as part of their menstrual cycle, contributes to insomnia. Perimenstral insomnia is often a secondary insomnia because the women cannot sleep due to other symptoms such as cramping or headaches.
Premenstral syndrome seems to cause both insomnia and hypersomnia. Different women experience different symptoms. Sleep restriction has been found to reduce menses-related depression, as has bright light therapy for insomnia. Premenstrual dysphoric disorder also is associated with sleep disruption, although doctors more commonly address the anxiety symptoms than insomnia. Anti-depressant drugs are often prescribed for PDD (and PMS) and the often help with sleep problems. If appropriate, doctors may prescribe benzodiazepine receptor agonists.
Sleepiness leads to weight gain by discouraging physical activity. Depression leads to overeating. Social expectations of women may contribute to the greater prevalence of sleep disorders. They are more likely to be the primary caregiver than men and more likely to shoulder a larger share of the housework. Researchers have also found that on average women get 5% less deep sleep on average than men.
In general, sleep disorders are more commen in women than in men, and they play out differently, emerging throughout the reproductive life cycle. Women get apnea and restless legs syndrome at a lower rate than men. Premenstral syndrome seems to cause both insomnia and hypersomnia.
There is a ton of anecdotal evidence that birth control pills cause insomnia in some women, although no formal studies that we know of. It is not surprising, though, that some women should notice an effect of supplemental hormones on their sleep patterns.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
Here is an interesting article I found from Sleepdex an online resource of Sleep Information. Hope you find it interesting…
More women have insomnia several times a week than men. Senior women are more likely to report sleep problems over the past decade than senior men.
Many women experience insomnia when they have fluctuations in the serum levels of hormones. These times include during their monthly cycle, pregnancy, and menopause.
No cause-and-effect relationship has been established between hormones and sleep
latency at a biochemical level, though. It has been shown that hormone supplement therapy for women during menopausal change does decrease reports of insomnia.
Bloating, which many women experience as part of their menstrual cycle, contributes to insomnia. Perimenstral insomnia is often a secondary insomnia because the women cannot sleep due to other symptoms such as cramping or headaches.
Premenstral syndrome seems to cause both insomnia and hypersomnia. Different women experience different symptoms. Sleep restriction has been found to reduce menses-related depression, as has bright light therapy for insomnia. Premenstrual dysphoric disorder also is associated with sleep disruption, although doctors more commonly address the anxiety symptoms than insomnia. Anti-depressant drugs are often prescribed for PDD (and PMS) and the often help with sleep problems. If appropriate, doctors may prescribe benzodiazepine receptor agonists.
Sleepiness leads to weight gain by discouraging physical activity. Depression leads to overeating. Social expectations of women may contribute to the greater prevalence of sleep disorders. They are more likely to be the primary caregiver than men and more likely to shoulder a larger share of the housework. Researchers have also found that on average women get 5% less deep sleep on average than men.
In general, sleep disorders are more commen in women than in men, and they play out differently, emerging throughout the reproductive life cycle. Women get apnea and restless legs syndrome at a lower rate than men. Premenstral syndrome seems to cause both insomnia and hypersomnia.
There is a ton of anecdotal evidence that birth control pills cause insomnia in some women, although no formal studies that we know of. It is not surprising, though, that some women should notice an effect of supplemental hormones on their sleep patterns.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
Physical Exercise and Getting a Restful Sleep
Physical Exercise and Getting a Restful Sleep
The amount of physical exercise that you exert during the day is one of the key ingredients to helping you get a good restful sleep at night. The more active your body is during the day, the more likely you are to relax at night and fall asleep faster.
With regular exercise you'll notice that your quality of sleep is improved and the transition between the cycles and phases of sleep will become smoother and more regular. By keeping up your physical activity during the day, you may find it easier to deal with the stress and worries of your life.
Research and studies indicate that there is a direct correlation between how much we exercise and how we feel afterwards.
You should try and increase your physical activity during the day. The goal here is to give your body enough stimulation during the day so that you aren't full of energy at night.
Your body requires a certain amount of physical activity in order to keep functioning in a healthy manner. It is also important to note that you should not be exercising three or four hours before you go to bed.
The ideal exercise time is in the late afternoon or early evening. You want to make sure you expend your physical energy long before it is time for your body to rest and ready itself for sleep.
You should attempt to exercise at least three or four times a week for a period of 30 minutes or so. You can include walking or something simple. If you prefer, you can include strenuous activities such as running as well.
The goal here is to increase your heart rate and strengthen the capacity of your lungs. By adding a regular exercise activity to your daily schedule will help you to improve your overall health and help you emotionally as well.
Along with running and walking there are several other physical activities that you can add to your daily life to increase your level of physical activity. If you are battling not sleeping, you'll find aerobic exercise to be the best.
Your goal with exercise is to increase the amount of oxygen that reaches your blood stream. Overall, there are many types of aerobic exercise for you to choose from.
The activities include running, biking, using a treadmill, dancing, and jumping rope.
There are some non aerobic exercises that you may find beneficial to help you solve your amnesia problem.
Yoga - Yoga is an exercise that has a stimulatory effect on your nervous system, especially the brain. Yoga utilizes breathing techniques and yoga postures to increase the blood circulation to the brain, promoting regular and restful sleeping patterns. The regular practice of yoga will help you to relax as well as relieve tension and stress.
Tai Chi - Tai Chi is an ancient art of breathing and movement that was developed by the Chinese monks. The movements involved are slow and precise, which is ideal if you have joint pains or you are unable to participate in high aerobic exercises. Research has shown that Tai Chi can help with insomnia by promoting relaxation.
If you discover that you don't have any time to exercise on a regular basis, you should try to sneak moments of activity into your schedule. Whenever possible, you should take the stairs instead of the elevator, as little things like that will do wonders for your body.
You should also park your car around the corner and walk that extra block or two to get to your destination. As you may know, there are many small things you can add to increase the activity in your life. Your overall goal here is to have a healthy and well balanced life - with plenty of sleep.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
The amount of physical exercise that you exert during the day is one of the key ingredients to helping you get a good restful sleep at night. The more active your body is during the day, the more likely you are to relax at night and fall asleep faster.
With regular exercise you'll notice that your quality of sleep is improved and the transition between the cycles and phases of sleep will become smoother and more regular. By keeping up your physical activity during the day, you may find it easier to deal with the stress and worries of your life.
Research and studies indicate that there is a direct correlation between how much we exercise and how we feel afterwards.
You should try and increase your physical activity during the day. The goal here is to give your body enough stimulation during the day so that you aren't full of energy at night.
Your body requires a certain amount of physical activity in order to keep functioning in a healthy manner. It is also important to note that you should not be exercising three or four hours before you go to bed.
The ideal exercise time is in the late afternoon or early evening. You want to make sure you expend your physical energy long before it is time for your body to rest and ready itself for sleep.
You should attempt to exercise at least three or four times a week for a period of 30 minutes or so. You can include walking or something simple. If you prefer, you can include strenuous activities such as running as well.
The goal here is to increase your heart rate and strengthen the capacity of your lungs. By adding a regular exercise activity to your daily schedule will help you to improve your overall health and help you emotionally as well.
Along with running and walking there are several other physical activities that you can add to your daily life to increase your level of physical activity. If you are battling not sleeping, you'll find aerobic exercise to be the best.
Your goal with exercise is to increase the amount of oxygen that reaches your blood stream. Overall, there are many types of aerobic exercise for you to choose from.
The activities include running, biking, using a treadmill, dancing, and jumping rope.
There are some non aerobic exercises that you may find beneficial to help you solve your amnesia problem.
Yoga - Yoga is an exercise that has a stimulatory effect on your nervous system, especially the brain. Yoga utilizes breathing techniques and yoga postures to increase the blood circulation to the brain, promoting regular and restful sleeping patterns. The regular practice of yoga will help you to relax as well as relieve tension and stress.
Tai Chi - Tai Chi is an ancient art of breathing and movement that was developed by the Chinese monks. The movements involved are slow and precise, which is ideal if you have joint pains or you are unable to participate in high aerobic exercises. Research has shown that Tai Chi can help with insomnia by promoting relaxation.
If you discover that you don't have any time to exercise on a regular basis, you should try to sneak moments of activity into your schedule. Whenever possible, you should take the stairs instead of the elevator, as little things like that will do wonders for your body.
You should also park your car around the corner and walk that extra block or two to get to your destination. As you may know, there are many small things you can add to increase the activity in your life. Your overall goal here is to have a healthy and well balanced life - with plenty of sleep.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
Hypnosis For Insomnia
Hypnosis For Insomnia
Thanks to Richard MacKenzie, a leading Hypnotherapist, for supplying this article about using Hypnosis as a cure for insomnia.
Do you crave and really need a decent nights sleep? Do you find yourself laying awake night after night in your hopeless attempts to get a sound amount of slumber? Do you find yourself nodding off in the day because you are not getting your 8 hours a night? If you are then you are probably suffering at the hands of insomnia. Insomnia is becoming increasingly common in our modern day lives as we work and play harder than any other generation before us. So if insomnia is your problem, then what can you do to rectify it? Is there a solution to your dilemma?
As a hypnotherapist I have helped countless numbers of people with insomnia over my career. In fact insomnia is one of those issues that we see a lot of in the clinic as it is very common probably even more common than you could ever imagine. It affects people from many different socio-economic backgrounds as well as people of all ages and educational background. In fact given the right scenarios, I don't think anyone would be immune. However once we have got into the routine of insomnia it is possible to escape and regain a solid sleeping pattern once again.
So how would life be different if you could get back into a sensible sleeping pattern in the near future? How much more fitter and healthier would you feel knowing that you are getting a well and sound nights sleep? What would it feel like to deal with all of those stresses and tensions that keep you laying awake at night and stopping you from sleeping? Well hypnosis can help as is deals with the part of your mind that holds your insomniac beliefs, habits and behaviours. In fact if reprograms this part of your brain to get you the results that you both desire and need.
While in the state of hypnosis you will feel relaxed and comfortable as you begin to make the changes needed to put your insomnia behind you forever. The other natural benefits that occur in hypnosis will also help you to de-stress and feel more in control and confident of yourself and your lifestyle choices.
If you are serious about getting rid of your insomnia then I would suggest trying hypnosis through a hypnosis download or recording or even getting in contact with your local hypnotherapist who will be more than happy to help you out.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
Thanks to Richard MacKenzie, a leading Hypnotherapist, for supplying this article about using Hypnosis as a cure for insomnia.
Do you crave and really need a decent nights sleep? Do you find yourself laying awake night after night in your hopeless attempts to get a sound amount of slumber? Do you find yourself nodding off in the day because you are not getting your 8 hours a night? If you are then you are probably suffering at the hands of insomnia. Insomnia is becoming increasingly common in our modern day lives as we work and play harder than any other generation before us. So if insomnia is your problem, then what can you do to rectify it? Is there a solution to your dilemma?
As a hypnotherapist I have helped countless numbers of people with insomnia over my career. In fact insomnia is one of those issues that we see a lot of in the clinic as it is very common probably even more common than you could ever imagine. It affects people from many different socio-economic backgrounds as well as people of all ages and educational background. In fact given the right scenarios, I don't think anyone would be immune. However once we have got into the routine of insomnia it is possible to escape and regain a solid sleeping pattern once again.
So how would life be different if you could get back into a sensible sleeping pattern in the near future? How much more fitter and healthier would you feel knowing that you are getting a well and sound nights sleep? What would it feel like to deal with all of those stresses and tensions that keep you laying awake at night and stopping you from sleeping? Well hypnosis can help as is deals with the part of your mind that holds your insomniac beliefs, habits and behaviours. In fact if reprograms this part of your brain to get you the results that you both desire and need.
While in the state of hypnosis you will feel relaxed and comfortable as you begin to make the changes needed to put your insomnia behind you forever. The other natural benefits that occur in hypnosis will also help you to de-stress and feel more in control and confident of yourself and your lifestyle choices.
If you are serious about getting rid of your insomnia then I would suggest trying hypnosis through a hypnosis download or recording or even getting in contact with your local hypnotherapist who will be more than happy to help you out.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
What is hypersomnia?
What is hypersomnia?
Here is a bit of information about hypersomnia – which if you are not sure what exactly it is – basically is where a person is getting too much or little sleep, or being unable to control their sleep patterns or sleepiness.
They include menstrual related hypersomnia and medical related hypersomnia. Hypersomnia is a serious sleep problem leading in some cases to either insomnia or the opposite uncontrollable falling asleep.
Narcolepsy
The best known of the hypersomnia group of conditions is Narcolepsy. It is estimated that one person in every 2000 has narcolepsy, although this could be more as it is believed that many people don’t report their narcolepsy.
The main cause is thought to be to be the bodies faulty control of its sleep awake cycle and of REM sleep in particular.
The main symptoms of Narcolepsy are insomnia, excessive daytime sleepiness and uncontrollable sleep attacks. A friend of mine with narcolepsy has been known to fall asleep in mid conversation at a dinner party without warning. I know you are thinking – well what does that say about the company! – but there have been many more incidents of this.
Other symptoms of narcolepsy include:
1. Temporary paralysis when falling asleep or waking up
2. Hallucinations involving vivid images or sounds on falling asleep or
awakening
3. Moments or longer periods of trance like behaviour, where everyday activities are carried out on autopilot so that afterwards the sufferer can’t remember doing them
4. Waking up frequently during the night feeling alert and agitated
5. There may also be flushes and a rapid heartbeat
The condition can start earlier but usually narcolepsy begins between the ages of 20 and 40. It si thought to be linked to a lack of Orexin, a brain chemical that promotes alertness.
There are certain treatments which can help – these include stimulant drugs like Modafnil. There are also lifestyle changes and support and coping strategies through narcolepsy networks.
If you google Narcolpesy - you can find the Narcolepsy Association-they have a lot more information on support and help.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
Here is a bit of information about hypersomnia – which if you are not sure what exactly it is – basically is where a person is getting too much or little sleep, or being unable to control their sleep patterns or sleepiness.
They include menstrual related hypersomnia and medical related hypersomnia. Hypersomnia is a serious sleep problem leading in some cases to either insomnia or the opposite uncontrollable falling asleep.
Narcolepsy
The best known of the hypersomnia group of conditions is Narcolepsy. It is estimated that one person in every 2000 has narcolepsy, although this could be more as it is believed that many people don’t report their narcolepsy.
The main cause is thought to be to be the bodies faulty control of its sleep awake cycle and of REM sleep in particular.
The main symptoms of Narcolepsy are insomnia, excessive daytime sleepiness and uncontrollable sleep attacks. A friend of mine with narcolepsy has been known to fall asleep in mid conversation at a dinner party without warning. I know you are thinking – well what does that say about the company! – but there have been many more incidents of this.
Other symptoms of narcolepsy include:
1. Temporary paralysis when falling asleep or waking up
2. Hallucinations involving vivid images or sounds on falling asleep or
awakening
3. Moments or longer periods of trance like behaviour, where everyday activities are carried out on autopilot so that afterwards the sufferer can’t remember doing them
4. Waking up frequently during the night feeling alert and agitated
5. There may also be flushes and a rapid heartbeat
The condition can start earlier but usually narcolepsy begins between the ages of 20 and 40. It si thought to be linked to a lack of Orexin, a brain chemical that promotes alertness.
There are certain treatments which can help – these include stimulant drugs like Modafnil. There are also lifestyle changes and support and coping strategies through narcolepsy networks.
If you google Narcolpesy - you can find the Narcolepsy Association-they have a lot more information on support and help.
Dan Kennedy has written a free ebook on how to Cure Your Insomnia. To download it visit www.cure-your-insomnia.com
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