Insomnia Treatment and Health Care

Archive for 2012

The diagnosis of fatal familial insomnia is established according to clinical history and family history of the patient.

Neuroimaging (CT and MRI) are normal, but brain activity EEG shows increasing slow. With polysomnography (a test to study sleep, measuring cycles or stages into which) can be seen that the duration of sleep decreases progressively reduced to just a few minutes.

In the pathology is found selective atrophy in some brain areas, and extensive loss of neurons. In fact, when analyzing the brains of deceased patients, specialists have discovered that lack of neurons in the thalamus, an area of ??the central nervous system involved in sleep regulation (although they can be damaged other areas of the brain), and the affected share a mutation that is responsible for that prions are deposited in the central nervous system and become toxic.

Fatal familial insomnia treatment

Currently there is no effective treatment for fatal familial insomnia , and you can not do anything to prevent its occurrence when performing a genetic diagnosis determines that a person will suffer in the future.

Given that this is a hereditary disease, and that the descendants of those affected have a 50% chance of suffering, the only preventive measure you can take is to establish genetic counseling which affects family members are carriers, and that can undergo preimplantation genetic diagnosis if they want children to prevent transmission.

Insomnia affects almost everyone at one time or another. Most suffer from temporary insomnia or transient insomnia at some point. This type of sleep disorder will last from a few nights to a few weeks and is usually attributable to some event or particular strain.

However, chronic insomnia affects a smaller percentage of people, but can be a lifelong problem for some. While insomnia is not usually a serious problem, some of the side effects of insomnia can become quite dangerous. For example, one of the side effects of insomnia can be a greater risk of suffering a traffic accident while driving to work.

People suffering from sleep deprivation usually does not react so quickly in difficult situations, which can lead to more accidents at work and at home. Other side effects of insomnia can include the difficulty of keeping a job, increased marital stress, increased alcohol consumption, and a general feeling of malaise. You can also weaken your immune system, making you more prone to a disease.

Insomnia to avoid side effects
The good news is that, generally, do not feel the side effects of insomnia right away, so one or two nights of little sleep are really nothing to worry about. If you’re starting to see a replay of your sleep problem, do not panic too much either, because once you treat the underlying problem behind the insomnia, side effects disappear when your dream to return to its normal pattern. Read the rest of this entry »

In our initial consultation, I expressed my concern that your medicine hypnotic, Clonazepam, could be part of the problem, especially because the dose of two milligrams was very high for a man his age. He was reluctant to change the drug, which from their point of view, had worked well for years. However with all other explanations eliminated, should stop taking it to feel less groggy in the morning.

Reduced prescription medicine gradually and had no symptoms of withdrawal or rebound insomnia. It feels more energetic and less sleepy during the day and only use some help to sleep when you have trouble sleeping .

These are scenes that occur every day in my clinic for sleep: the drugs that we doctors give our patients so they can sleep, end up making them feel tired and bewildered the next day.

Clonazepam (clozer) is usually the culprit. Belongs to the family of drugs called benzodiazepines that have been used as sleep aids for decades, have a variety of other uses such as treatment for anxiety, strokes and muscle spasms.

In general, these medications can be very useful sleep aids, but should be used with caution, because they can cause dependence, tolerance, withdrawal symptoms and rebound insomnia if used for a long time each night.

Tolerance means that the dose must be increased repeatedly to get the same result, is not the same as addiction but are often confused.

They can also cause withdrawal symptoms, which means to emerge a new set of symptoms that were not present before using the drug, commonly include agitation, nausea, sweating and palpitations.

The benzodiazepines can cause rebound insomnia. This is presented insomnia worse than it was before using the medicine. It usually lasts only a night or two.

The particular problem with the Clonazepam is that it has a long half life. Therefore, it takes much time out of the system and its hypnotic and sedative effects can last until the next day. May have withdrawal symptoms if withdrawn abruptly, but is unlikely to cause a rebound insomnia compared with short-term benzos.

In addition to drowsiness during the day, all benzodiazepines can cause amnesia, sleepwalking and sleep eating. Studies show that there are increased risks of falls in older folks, but others reveal that insomnia increases falls unattended.

There is definitely a concern that these drugs can have many detrimental effects in the elderly, including memory and cognitive problems . Like most drugs, doses should be lower when patients are elderly or have kidney or liver ailments.

For the treatment of insomnia, it is better to use benzodiazepine with a median average life as Lorazepam or Temazepam. They help to a person to stay asleep most of the night without too much hangover the next day.

As with all sleep aids prescription, I recommend intermittent use to avoid tolerance and withdrawal.

Drugs such as zolpidem (Ambien) are called non-benzodiazepine, but that’s misleading because act in the same benzodiazepine GABA receptors in the brain. Just do not involve as many subunits as traditional benzos which has good and bad effects. A negative effect is that drugs Ambien without anti-anxiety properties and most people have insomnia due to anxiety or insomnia anxiety provoking.

So if someone has chronic insomnia or difficulty staying asleep, I recommend CBT-I (cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia), this is the safest treatment and in fact most effective in the long run.

Considered by the World Health Organization as a sleep problem, insomnia is a common discomfort for those Mexicans who did not attend, can cause more problems peripherals.

Approximately 30% of Mexicans have suffered from insomnia at some point in their lives and 10% of them suffer from chronic, who can lose four or more hours of sleep each night, according to 2007 data from the Clinic Sleep Disorders UNAM, published by El Universal.

And paradoxically, one of 20 causes of sleep disorders is due to the dependence with chronic use of inductors.

Some experts attribute the rise to factors such as stress, high activation of the body or depression, but new academic talk about current philological effects it could have on the body.

Recently a group of researchers at the Netherlands Institute of Neuroscience found that people who suffer from insomnia, are prone to shrinkage in certain areas of the brain, says Discovery News.

Another type of damage that can cause sleep not properly include stress, fatigue, spatial disorientation, depression and drowsiness during the day.

The study published in the journal Biological Psychiatry, confirms theories about the neurological damage that may result in not getting enough sleep.

“We hope the discovery could help find solutions to such problems,” says Ronald Kramer, head of research.

Doctors recommend consulting a timely manner, attend constantly awake at night, takes hours or sleep, rest very quickly.

We’ve talked many times of anxiety, stress and insomnia of course, the pace of life that we made ??it increasingly more common suffering such diseases as unpleasant.

Today we will make a brief note about the different types of insomnia. According to experts insomnia can be categorized into 4 types:

Difficulty falling asleep : Surely you ever happened the night before an exam or an important event, the nerves make us difficult to sleep.
Waking up several times a night : A type of insomnia, waking up several times or at any little noise and difficulty returning to sleep again.

Waking up before the desired time : This is another characteristic of insomnia, people who have it can wake up at 5 am and not return to sleep more.

Disruption of sleep pattern : Individual sleep but wake up wake up tired, weak, as if he had not rested enough.

If any of these symptoms of insomnia is recurrent, you should analyze what we may be causing it and try to take remedies for insomnia . If it still persists it is advisable to visit a specialist.

Today we want to make clear a little more on what this disorder, unfortunately so common among the population. To do so, briefly explain the three types of insomnia have been seen in the clinic and the possible factors that could affect every one of them.

To follow an order, we will begin by the first of them according to their appearance: the so-called conciliation insomnia . In it, the person shows real difficulty getting to fall asleep, getting to spend hours running around in bed without being able to sleep.

This type of insomnia is perhaps the most frequent, because our brain is not always easy to get off and go from wakefulness to sleep. The concerns, over-activity before going to sleep or have experienced a strong emotional charge that we can do to stop that machine problems that seems to never stop. By adding a fact, this type of insomnia is more characteristic of disorders such as schizophrenia or psychosis , which does not mean that you have to suffer the slightest trace of the disease.

Following the course of the evening, we find the so-called maintenance insomnia . In this, the person does manage to fall asleep fairly quickly, but suffers numerous awakenings throughout the night. They are called people of “light sleep” and is very characteristic of mood disorders .

Finally, the last is perhaps the least known, but also a form of insomnia. Is the terminal insomnia (or early awakening). Here the person has a dream within normal range throughout the night, but wake up very early in the morning (sometimes at 5 or 6 am) with the subsequent inability to return to sleep. This guy is very typical of older people, because as we age our sleep quality is becoming worse and this is the side that is affected before.

Because of all mentioned, and if you suffer from insomnia, we invite you to take a look at the category ” dream “of our blog, where you can find some tips that might be useful. Waiting to be served to help, we lower the blind by now.

We all like to sleep well. You must also remember that lack of sleep can also cause many health problems and attitude problem. If you are facing this problem here is the best help for you. This problem is called as insomnia where you will not be able to sleep well.

Therefore, finding a cure for this health issue is a tough job. You can find many natural treatments for this problem. You also have an option to cure this problem without medication. If you follow some simple steps, you do not have to live your life with insomnia. The natural cure for insomnia not only help you sleep, however it has been shown in some cases you can sleep longer. Most people do not enjoy as well as medication often can not afford it. Therefore, this article will help you find one cheap because we as effective ways to get rid of this problem.

Insomnia is a problem where a person is not able to sleep. This may be long term or short term. No matter what type of problem you’re facing, you can easily get rid of it by following these tips. A natural cure for insomnia can also bring you inner peace and can also take care of the problem, because you’re not putting anything that is unsafe in the body. There are numerous natural treatments for insomnia where you can choose. You just have to use trial and error to find the best work for your circumstances. Taking herbal supplements is one of the best ways to get rid of this problem. It is totally natural, side effects are very less and will not harm your body. It is also advisable to take the honey with warm water to prevent this problem.

You will also find some teas that help induce sleep and if you can add honey to it, chances will do more. Apart from these natural treatments you can also find many ways to get rid of this problem. You should also make sure that you are taking proper sleep after you undergo this treatment. If you follow this practice for some time, you can get rid of this problem completely. It is also believed that melatonin in the brain may also increase the chances of insomnia. If you are not interested in the above methods, you can also take the help of milk. The consumption of a glass of warm milk before bedtime will also help in this case.

Milk contains tryptophan, a serotonin ingredient change and become like melatonin that is a chemical that triggers sleep. Following these methods, you can boost the amount of melatonin that is present in your body. The above methods are some of the natural cure for insomia.

Insomnia is one of the most frequent complaints or diseases reported to physicians. It is a disease that afflicts 1/3 of the adult population, but in women, elderly adults, workers with shift changes and patients with psychiatric and medical disorders.

Insomnia is a heterogeneous in nature evil that reduces the quality, durability or efficiency of sleep, difficulty initiating and maintaining sleep with frequent awakenings, early awakenings or restless sleep, which causes during the day, morning fatigue, loss of energy, lethargy, drowsiness, clumsiness, anxiety, irritability and problems with concentration and memory.

Insomnia Relationship between age and sex, women are more likely to have sleep problems than men, and the population over 65 is even more likely than younger adults. However, insomnia affects both sexes appearing more frequently with age.

The problem of insomnia is not a trivial problem, nor insignificant and lack of sleep, was a contributing factor in 10% in fatal car accidents, significant deterioration in psychosocial and occupational, as well as reduced quality of life.

The association between sleep-disturbances and psychiatric disorders have been found up to 50% of patients. The high ratio of mental disorders, especially depression, anxiety and alcohol abuse. While the association between mental disorders and insomnia is strong, other factors that can lead to sleep difficulties, such as: external factors, such as an adverse sleep environment (noise, light, heat etc), hospitalizations, job changes, sensitive loss (divorce, grief, misfortune, offal etc), use of drugs (hypotensive drugs [beta-lock], antidepressants [fluoxetine Prozac], anticonvulsants [phenytoin], bronchodilators [theophylline], amphetamines, caffeine, decongestants. chronic pain associated with arthritis, muscle pain, trauma or cancer can also cause chronic insomnia and organic diseases such as hypertension, heart failure, hyperthyroidism, gastroesophageal reflux, peptic ulcer, asthma, obstructive pulmonary disease and Parkinson’s disease, can contribute to insomnia.

Consequences of sleep disorders. – The morbidity associated with untreated insomnia, going from morning fatigue, problems with memory and concentration, difficulty fulfilling everyday tasks, even psychiatric problems such as anxiety, depression and irritability. In addition to accidents and traffic.

Classification of insomnia.
Transient. – is insomnia that lasts less than 1 week, and is caused by an acute stress, such as changing jobs, housing, intercontinental travel, environmental causes, hospitalization for surgery.

Short-term insomnia. – It lasts 1-3 weeks, associated with situational stress and almost always with a strong emotional component associated with work, family life, marriage, finances (debts). Usually responds well to treatment with hypnotic drugs.

Chronic insomnia. – It lasts longer than 3 weeks in a 1/3 to 2/3 of patients suffering from chronic insomnia have psychiatric disorders, with depression being the most common. Other psychiatric disorders such as anxiety, panic, obsessive compulsive behavior, personality, bipolar, anorexia nervosa, dementia and post-traumatic disorders of stress, can cause chronic insomnia. Between 10 to 15% of patients with chronic insomnia is due to alcohol and drug abuse.

Treatment of sleep disorders.
Those treatment methods are typically aimed at changing the bad habits regarding sleep or incompatible behaviors that reduce sleep, such as: watching TV, eating, reading or doing work in bed at bedtime, exercising, eating and excessive drinking stimulants (coffee, alcohol, soft drinks black) before going to bed. Developing good sleep habits, such as regulating the hours that the patient should be in bed and set a specific time for getting in and out, even on weekends and to be lifted after a period of time (20-30 minutes) if sleep does not come.

In conclusion, patient education is to provide the habits and attitudes that encourage sleep, ” non-drug therapies “(progressive relaxation therapies [progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery training, meditation, hypnosis], sleep restriction therapy, Education in sleep hygiene, stimulus control therapy).

Nonpharmacologic therapy:
A. – stimulus control therapies. – is a series of rules which are designed to teach the patient to re-associate the bed with sleep.

The following are the steps:
A. Only go to bed when sleepy.
B. Only use the bed for sleep or sexual activity.
C. Do not read, watch TV, or resting in bed.
D. When unable to sleep after 15-20 minutes, get up out of bed and go to another room.
E. Return to bed only when sleep will come. (This step could be repeated often as necessary at night).
F. up at the same time every morning.
G. Avoid taking a nap or sleep during the day light.

2. elaxation therapies
- Patients with insomnia often reflect a high level of tension, anxiety during the day and night. Various techniques are used such as muscle relaxation , to reduce muscle tension. The meditation, using methods such as focus of attention training in imagination (focusing on pleasant mental images) and procedures that stop ideas or thoughts that torment or disturb.

3. sleep restriction therapy
Patients with insomnia often use excessive amounts of time in bed in an effort to prolong the dream wrong. This excessive time spent in bed may well perpetuate fragmented sleep and insomnia. The sleep restriction therapy induces moderate stages of sleep loss, which favors a more rapid onset of sleep, deep sleep and more efficient.

The insomnia is characterized by the inability to fall asleep wake up early in the morning from sleep, or sleep is interrupted often for no apparent reason. Apart from pure provocation and causing insomnia lethargy, researchers have found that insomnia can be very detrimental to overall health.

Less severe effects of insomnia include irritability, disorientation, or excitability. In the long term, these minor annoyances can lead to more serious disorders such as depression or anxiety. Insomnia may be the cause or a symptom of depression. Determining this requires the help of a doctor who can make suggestions more qualified for a night’s sleep.

In addition, insomnia have difficulty concentrating on tasks and may suffer from memory or judgment. The response time can also be dropped, weakening the ability of one to act in certain situations, such as those presented during driving. A sleep-deprived individual may not be able to tread breaks quickly enough to avoid a collision. Beauty and the bathroom, an online publication, suggests that more than half of traffic accidents are caused by drowsy drivers. Moreover, lack of sleep affects the ability to deal effectively with stressful events. Victims of insomnia can be treated and treat the problem themselves, so that dependence on alcohol and drugs often accompany this problem. Consuming large amounts of alcohol actually worsens insomnia. The need for quick energy can cause sleep deprived adults using amphetamines and dangerous street drugs like cocaine or crystal meth.

Serious long-term effects of insomnia may be related to diseases such as diabetes, heart disease and cancer. prolonged lack of sleep even causes premature aging. Sleep is the time when the body renews and rejuvenates itself, is a time of adjustment, detoxification, and re-start the immune system. Cortisol, a natural anti-inflammatory, occurs during the day and prevents the natural cellular repair to occur. During sleep, cortisol levels are reduced, allowing normal growth and repair to take place. Melatonin, another hormone in the body, is released during the night, working to fight the growth of abnormal cells. It is suggested that a failure of the body to release melatonin increases the likelihood of breast cancer risk among women who work in jobs night shift or women who experience prolonged sleep, insufficient.

Acupuncture is a safe and drug free cure your insomnia and get a copy of your sleep again. If you’re tired of going to bed with sleeping pills every night and work all day with a feeling awkward then just get rid of those pills first sound before attempting to get rid of insomnia. Believe me! I just delete my insomniac nights only afterget rid of them. Alternatively try acupuncture and see your insomnia was miraculously cured. But before asking to try this method first will explain what is acupuncture?

Traditionally, acupuncture is an ancient Chinese method that revives the cells of your body to increase blood flow or energy in your body. The Chinese believed that every body is created from energy and if that energy flows within your body active, then suffer less illness and disease. Sometimes this energy is unable to flow from your body due to a blockage at some points. Acupuncture is a process that is blocked points will be restored back to normal allowing the energy flow freely again throughout your body.

In the process of acupuncture were stuck several needles into specific points on the skin. These needles react chemically with the system to stimulate blood flow which has the power to heal many types of physical and mental ailments. Read the rest of this entry »