Chapter Three

Living With Insomnia

Whichever form of insomnia a person is suffering from, it takes it’s toll on them as they go
about their daily life.

In this chapter, we will be looking at the difficulties insomniacs go through in their respective
daily lives.

How Does Insomnia Affect Your Daily Life

Getting enough sleep is not something that should be taken for granted. If you are one who is
fond of the habit of watching movies or some TV show till the late-night hours and sleeping
for what’s left of the night, you may enjoy this habit without any adverse effects. However,
for insomniacs, they do not have the luxury of choice, as they didn’t choose not to be able to
sleep in the first place.

As a result of this (insomnia), their daily lives are affected negatively. Some of the ways in
which insomnia affects the daily lives of its sufferers are:

 It affects their self-esteem. There are several things that can raise or lower a human’s
self-esteem. In reality, the average human’s self-esteem is so fragile that any little
thing can deflate it. Knowing full well that you have a disorder or are suffering from a
condition that keeps you from functioning the way you want to is bound to lower your
self-esteem. This affects the way in which you interact with people you meet daily as
you have the general belief that they are better than you. Research says counselling
could help alleviate this problem.
 Lack of energy. It is said that sleep is responsible for recharging the body’s batteries
that might have been drained during the course of the day. However, for someone
suffering from insomnia, who is unable to sleep, it is hard to imagine how they can
recharge their body’s drained batteries. Due to this, such a person goes about their
daily life being tired and sluggish, which can be harmful in so many ways. Tiredness
could cause hallucinations, lack of motivation and discouragement. In the long run,
insomnia leads to a plethora of problems stemming solely from the sufferer being
tired all the time.

Daily Life Challenges That Accompany Insomnia

Some of the daily life challenges that come with insomnia are:

 Bad Mood

Have you ever been called cranky? If you have, I am sure you remember that it was because
you were in a bad mood and were taking it out on everyone. Imagine if you, a person who has
the ability to sleep normally, due to one reason or the other found it hard to sleep the night
prior. Imagine how cranky and stressed you would be the next morning. Now, imagine how
someone who hasn’t been able to sleep soundly at night for a long period of time must feel.
You get the point? Good!

 Lack of Concentration

Adequate sleep helps keep the body and mind alert. Without it, these organs wouldn’t be as
alert as they ought to be and won’t function effectively anymore. We have all been here at
one time or the other. I will be the first to admit that I tend to mix up the letters on my laptop
and end up typing rubbish when I try to get some writing done while sleepy. Of course, I can
easily close my laptop, get some sleep, wake up later with an alert mind and continue, but
like I mentioned earlier, insomniacs don’t have that luxury.

Insomniacs, due to their inability to get adequate sleep would face the challenge of being alert
and concentrating on their respective daily tasks or jobs.

 Vertigo

Vertigo is a state of feeling mentally giddy or dizzy. One thing you can use to recognise an
insomniac is the size of the bags underneath their eyes. This can be found on anyone who
really needs to sleep, but unlike normal people who sleep to make those bags disappear;
insomniacs can’t sleep and hence go around with those heavy bags.

This just goes to tell you that while they might lack the ability to sleep or stay asleep
insomniacs feel dizzy, and that is a challenge they have to deal with during the course of their
daily lives.

 Forgetfulness

Forgetfulness is merely an extension of lack of concentration. People tend to forget things

they say or do when they aren’t concentrating. We all, at one time or the other, have spoken
to someone while sleepy only to wake up the next day and have no idea as to what was
discussed.

Insomniacs are in this limbo. Feeling sleepy but not being able to sleep, which means that
they have to face the challenges that come with not being able to sleep for days. For most that
is the most challenging or frustrating aspect of it all.

Medical Solutions For Insomnia

While on the average, insomnia can be cured by other procedures such as meditation, therapy
and counselling, there are some cases of insomnia that are best tackled with medications. If
we can be honest, trying to cure insomnia with the above-mentioned techniques can take a
really long time, during which the insomniac would keep suffering from the accompanying
complications.

As a result of this, doctors would prescribe some medications to help you sleep pending the
time the other solutions you are trying start taking effect. Some of these medications include:
  Antidepressants: Normally, antidepressants are given to patients who are going
through depression (one of the causes of insomnia) to help counteract the effects of
the depression on them. These drugs have also been found to possess the ability to
treat anxiety and induce sleep, thus treating insomnia.
 Eszcopiclone: This is mainly found in the drug ‘Lunesta’, a drug that helps you fall
asleep for about 7 to 8 hours (according to research). Patients who know they can’t
find the time to get a full night’s sleep should desist from taking this drug as it may
cause dizziness. The recommended starting dose is 1mg.
 Doxepine: This substance, found in ‘Silenor’ is prescribed for use by people who find
it difficult staying asleep. The drug blocks the histamine receptors, thus helping to
maintain sleep. Just like Lunesta, patients shouldn’t take this drug if they are unable to
sleep straight for 7 to 8 hours.
 Zolpidem: This substance can be found in Ambien and can help an insomniac enjoy a
goodnight’s sleep for 7 to 8 hours. However, as Zolpidem has been found to still
remain in the user’s body a day after taking it, users have been advised against doing
things that need them to be alert, such as driving, the next day after administration.

P.S. Sleeping pills should be prescribed only on a need-to basis after it has been verified that
the potential user understands the rules, routines, and prescription and doesn’t have any
allergies to the substances in them.

Do’s and Dont’s To Help Fight Insomnia

Studies have shown that most of the underlying causes of insomnia stem from us as
individuals. This could be due to our lifestyle choices and habits that we don’t think are
harmful in the long run. A whole bunch of insomnia cases can be avoided or treated if we
follow this list of do’s and don’ts of the fight against insomnia.

Do’s

 Maintain a Regular Sleep Schedule: Practice makes perfect they say. When you go
to bed at a particular time and wake around a particular time, it becomes a part of you
such that even if you had a bad day and lots to brood about, your body system
naturally begins to shut down at the time it has been used to.
 Limit the Bed to Sleep and Sex only: When you use the bed for other activities such
as texting, seeing movies, or browsing you lose the connection between bed and sleep.
This way when you go to your bed you know you only have one thing in mind – to
sleep.
 Bed Partners? While it is okay to have sleeping partners, there are some that may
distort your sleep and make you have an uncomfortable night. You should check your
sleeping chemistry with potential bed partners and only those with whom you can
enjoy a good night’s rest should be permitted to share your bed with you.
 Exercise!!! This can’t be emphasized enough. Naturally, whatever physical problems
you are going through can be solved via exercise. Find the routine that works for you
and stick to it.
Don’ts

 Do Not Drink Alcohol: Alcohol consumption increases adrenaline and reduces

melatonin production. When taken before bed time, it might prevent one from
sleeping early or even throughout the night.
 Avoid Eating Too Much: In order to enjoy a good night’s sleep, prevent eating too
much before going to bed. Most especially foods that contain stimulants such as
caffeine and sugar.
 Avoid Naps: Naps are important during the day and can help jumpstart anyone’s
body during the day. However, if you know afternoon naps would affect your chances
of sleeping at night, most especially when you don’t have a routine, they should be
avoided.
 Get up! Remember the ‘Do’ about limiting bed use to only sleep and sex? Exactly!
Rather than staying in bed and rolling around when you are finding it difficult to get
some sleep, get up! And walk around for some minutes before returning to try again.
If you fail again? Keep trying!