Insomnia Not Sleeping Is Harmful and Requires Treatment

By Jennifer Lee, DO, MPH

Chronic insomnia, or not sleeping through the night on a regular basis, has been associated with hypertension, heart problems, respiratory and digestive disorders, alcoholism, depression and other mental illnesses. While everyone has a sleepless night now and then, if you're having frequent bouts you need to find the cause.

Common sleep aids may cause a cascade of undesirable side effects, so reaching for one might not be the most beneficial initial approach. Fortunately, there is a wide range of non-pharmacological solutions available, depending on your individual situation.

First, See Your Doctor

Insomnia can have a physical cause, such as sleep apnea or a thyroid disorder. Your doctor can diagnose and treat such a cause if there is one, or rule it out so you can pursue other solutions.

If you frequently feel anxious or fear sleep (a condition called somniphobia), consider consulting a mental health provider. Such conditions also cause or exacerbate insomnia and can be treated.

Learn to Relax

You can't sleep if you're tense. To aid your relaxation, avoid stimulants such as caffeine near bedtime. Don't use alcohol or recreational drugs. Avoid mental stimulation such as TV, video games or adrenaline-fueled action movies just before trying to sleep.

Get exercise, but not near bedtime. Try guided imagery meditations, breathing exercises, prayer or meditation to soothe your mind and body. Patients report great benefits from these activities

Create a good sleep environment, a dark room with as little noise as possible, and a comfortable temperature. Train your brain and body by going to bed near the same time each night.

Herbal Approaches

A number of herbs can help you relax. Passionflower, valerian root, lemon balm and humulus lupulus (the hops used in beer) can help. Sometimes these are more effective when combined.

Some herbal remedies address specific conditions. Coffea cruda, derived from a minute amount of coffee, can ease a racing mind. Iron supplements can settle restless legs. L-tryptophan becomes seratonin and melatonin in the body, speeding sleep onset for some people. (Melatonin supplementation is effective only for people with low natural levels, something your doctor can determine through a test of your saliva.)

If herbal therapies and relaxation techniques don't help after a week or two of consistent use, there are other options. Cognitive behavior therapy has been shown to be more effective on sleep onset insomnia in young and middle-aged adults than do pharmacological approaches.

Don't take sleep disorders lightly. When they become persistent, you need to solve them. Fortunately, there is a wide range of options available that don't require you to reach for sleeping pills.