Sleep disturbance. Causes, types of disorders and methods of treatment, structure of normal sleep

Kalinov Yuri Dmitrievich

Reading time: 7 minutes

Sleep disturbance in adults is the scourge of our time. Often, problems with night rest, insomnia and other disorders become the cause of serious illnesses. Why do they appear and how to get rid of them?

Strong healthy sleep allows a person to relax and recharge with energy for the whole day. The modern rhythm of life and constant stress lead to the fact that about a third of the population suffers from insomnia, or insomnia. Defective night rest leads to a deterioration in the quality of life and increases the likelihood of developing dangerous diseases. Therefore, it is important to identify the cause of the problem in time and begin treatment.

Types and symptoms of sleep disorders (insomnia)

Rest needs vary from person to person. For some, six hours is enough to fully restore strength, while others need to sleep at least eight to nine. Problems due to lack of sleep at night may occur periodically or have chronic nature. There are several types of deviations with different symptoms:

Presomnia disorder, or difficulty falling asleep. A person may toss and turn in bed for hours trying to fall asleep. This is usually accompanied obsessive thoughts, anxiety states.
Intrasomnic. A person wakes up many times a night without obvious reason, after which it is difficult for him to fall asleep again. Sleep is often accompanied by nightmares.
Post-somnia – nap, early awakening. Many people dream of learning to get up early, but in this case the person does not feel that he got enough sleep because the amount of rest was insufficient. This is a reason to think about your health and eliminate sleep disturbances.

Another sign of somnological problems is constant feeling that night's rest even with normal duration does not give the required effect. The person feels “broken” and tired.

If these symptoms do not go away long time, it is recommended to seek help from a specialist. Frequent awakenings at night may have serious consequences for health: immunity decreases, the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases, diabetes, breast cancer, obesity.

How would you characterize the sleep disorder that is bothering you?

Poll Options are limited because JavaScript is disabled in your browser.

Difficulty falling asleep: I can toss and turn in bed for several hours. 39%, 312 votes

I constantly wake up in the middle of the night, and then it is difficult to fall back to sleep. 29%, 236 votes

Sleep does not bring a feeling of rest, regardless of the number of hours spent in bed. I always want to sleep! 18%, 142 vote

I wake up too early in the morning, regardless of my bedtime. 14%, 111 votes

12.03.2018

People call healthy sleep sound, peaceful, sweet. After such a dream, a person will wake up energetic, in good mood, ready to move mountains.

Sound sleep speaks of healthy body and a correct lifestyle. Shallow sleep, and even interrupted by frequent waking up, signals like a flashing light that not everything is in order in the body and help is needed. Since you are reading this article, it means that you are worried about the question “why can’t I fall asleep and often wake up at night?” Let's figure out what a bad dream tells us. What to do to restore falling asleep quickly without frequent waking up.

Poor sleep may be caused by various factors

Types of night rest disturbances

Sleep disturbance is manifested by difficulty falling asleep and frequent waking up or, conversely, drowsiness. Types of sleep disorders:

Insomnia is a sleep disorder characterized by difficulty falling asleep or waking up frequently.
Hypersomnia – increased drowsiness.
Parasomnia is a malfunction of organs and systems associated with sleep.

Most frequent violation sleep – insomnia. In everyday life it is simply called insomnia. All types of sleep disorders require treatment after examination using polysomnography.

Causes of insomnia

With insomnia, the question often arises: “why do I often wake up at night?” The most common cause of insomnia is night look a life in which a person works or has fun at night and then sleeps all day. The change from night to day is unnatural for humans. Biological rhythms Owls and predatory animals are adapted to hunting at night and are conditioned by the natural laws of survival and continuation of life. The functions of their organs are tuned to a nocturnal lifestyle - acute night vision. Human biological rhythms are genetically tuned to active life during the day and rest at night. The human brain produces the sleep hormone melatonin at night. With insomnia, the hormone decreases to critical level, and thus, insomnia becomes chronic.

The main hormone of the pineal gland is melatonin.

Insomnia can also be caused by short-term or permanent states or illness.

Most common factors that lead to insomnia:

situational insomnia due to emotional overexcitation;
mental or neurological diseases;
chronic alcoholism;
long-term use of sleeping pills and sedatives, as well as their withdrawal syndrome;
somatic diseases are disorders in the functioning of organs and systems that lead to insomnia for various reasons.

Elderly people quite often complain to the doctor, “I wake up at night, prescribe a remedy for good night" In old age, disruption of night rest is natural. Herbal medicines help older people get rid of light sleep. When treating sensitive sleep in older people, taking a vasodilator (for example, vinpocetine) is also recommended.

What diseases interfere with sleep?

If a person says, “I wake up often,” then he should think about what causes sensitive night rest. The reason for frequent waking up and bad sleep The following somatic diseases are:

cardiopulmonary failure;
restless legs syndrome;
obstructive syndrome sleep apnea in people who snore;

Sleep apnea disease

enuresis (bedwetting).

At cardiopulmonary failure the reason for a sensitive night's rest is oxygen starvation– hypoxia, which forces you to take an elevated position of the body to facilitate breathing.

The problem of “waking up often at night” occurs with restless legs syndrome. Often, varicose veins manifests itself vascular insufficiency legs If blood circulation in the legs is impaired, the need to move reflexively arises to restore it. lower limbs. It is this unconscious desire that causes restless legs syndrome. If during the day a person moves his legs without noticing it, then at night involuntary movements cause a person to wake up frequently. During Taken measures for treating legs, will help get rid of insomnia.

One of the serious reasons for a sensitive night's rest is obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSA) in people who snore. It is caused by dangerous stoppages of breathing at night due to diseases of the nasopharynx. A person wakes up from suffocation due to the cessation or restriction of air flow through the nasopharynx. The causes and treatment of sleep disturbances due to snoring are dealt with by somnologists and neurologists. If you are concerned about the problem of “I often wake up at night,” you should contact these specialists. Treating snoring will relieve you of insomnia.

Treatment with prepared drugs

Very popular ready-made products for insomnia in drops, tablets, capsules and solutions. The following medications will help you get rid of insomnia or light sleep:

Novo-passit is a combined mixture medicinal herbs and guaifenesin. This remedy not only soothes, but also relieves anxiety, which will make it easier to fall asleep. Novo-passit is often used to treat insomnia.
Phytosed has a calming effect and makes it easier to fall asleep.
Corvalol and Valocordin drops also soothe and help get rid of anxiety, thus improving the quality of night's rest.
Motherwort Forte tablets contain not only the plant, but also magnesium and vitamin B6. This composition of the drug relieves irritability and will help get rid of the problem of difficulty falling asleep. Treatment with motherwort is effective with light night rest.
Donormil tablets speed up falling asleep and increase sleep duration. They should be taken 15–30 minutes before going to bed for two weeks.
Valocordin-doxylamine has proven itself well as a mild sleeping pill. Its use is indicated for situational sleep disturbance after nervous tension.
Melatonin is a hormone-like drug. Just like a natural hormone, it regulates sleep. Its use is recommended at the very beginning of treatment for insomnia in order to start the correct rhythm of life - work during the day, rest at night. It is recommended to take the drug together with medications, preferably plant origin.

Ready-made products for good sleep can be purchased at any pharmacy without a prescription.

Using herbs for insomnia

Sedative herbs

For mild cases of sleep disturbances, herbal remedies are very effective. They can be prepared at home in the form of a decoction or infusion. The following popular herbs are used to treat insomnia:

valerian root;
Melissa;
motherwort;
lavender and oregano;
peppermint.

The pharmacy has ready-made herbal mixtures for the treatment of insomnia. To prepare the infusion, you should brew 2 tbsp. l. dry collection with a glass of boiling water, put on water bath for 15–30 minutes, then leave for 45 minutes. The product should be taken strained 3 times a day. Take the last dose of infusion 40 minutes earlier before going to bed. Infusions help deepen shallow and sensitive sleep.

Use of synthetic sleeping pills

In the treatment of insomnia, drugs of the benzodiazepine group are used. We give preference to the following medications:

Triazolam and Midazolam are recommended for difficulty falling asleep. These are short-acting sleeping pills.
Relanium, Elenium and Flurazepam differ more long-term action. It is recommended to take them when waking up in the early morning hours. However, they cause daytime sleepiness.
Sleeping pills average duration actions: Imovan and Zolpidem. These drugs are addictive.

Sleeping pills

Amitriptyline and doxemine belong to the group of antidepressants. They are prescribed by neurologists for depression.

The disadvantage of this group of funds is that they are addictive. When stopping the medication after long-term use Insomnia may develop.

As a result, we considered the most common reasons sleep disorders in people. We learned how to get rid of bad unproductive sleep with the help of herbs and ready-made pharmaceutical drugs. Remember, chronic insomnia needs to be treated, and for this you should consult a neurologist.

Health 12/14/2017

Dear readers, everyone will probably agree with me that sleep is vital for every person. Regular lack of sleep can disrupt the functioning of the entire body, and especially nervous system. If a person sleeps poorly or does not sleep at all for some time, he becomes restless, irritable, inattentive, and stops absorbing new information. In such a state it is dangerous to drive, perform important work. Sleep disorders are very serious, and today, together with your doctor, highest category Evgenia Nabrodova we will discuss this topic with you. I give her the floor.

The more successful a person becomes, the more he achieves, the more often he experiences sleep disorders. Insomnia or just disturbing dream very exhausting, can launch pathological processes, up to mental disorders and malignant cell degeneration.

Experts say sleep disturbance in adults is a real problem modern society, which is acute for many people. It can lead to diseases that will have to be treated long and hard. I would like to convey to you that it is necessary to treat sleep disorders, and not ignore the problem for months and years, hoping that it will disappear by itself.

Why is a good night's sleep so important for a person?

The regulator of circadian rhythms is the pineal gland - endocrine gland, which is located in the midbrain. It produces serotonin - the hormone of happiness or pleasure, a precursor to melatonin. A person’s well-being directly depends on the amount of serotonin. It acts as a neurotransmitter, controls many functions in the human body, participates in the process of blood clotting, cell protection and the occurrence of pain impulses. This hormone also plays important role in fertilization (serotonin is part of the follicular fluid) and regulation of uterine contractions during childbirth.

No less important is melatonin (a derivative of serotonin), which is produced mainly at night. It is noteworthy that its synthesis depends on the degree of illumination. Melatonin production at night accounts for up to 70%. If you are used to sleeping with the light on, it is better to give up this habit. Otherwise, nighttime melatonin production will decrease, which can lead not only to sleep disturbances, but also to other health problems.

To help you understand how important it is to sleep at night (without lighting), I will list the main functions of melatonin:

is responsible for the work of all endocrine system, constancy blood pressure and circadian rhythms;
slows down the aging process, has an antioxidant effect;
accelerates the process of adaptation, getting used to changing climate zones and time zones;
increases the activity of the immune system;
participates in the functioning of the digestive system and brain;
regulates sexual function;
increases resistance to stress;
regulates the process of cell renewal;
changes the level of production of many hormones and biologically active substances depending on daily rhythms.

With age, the activity of the pineal gland noticeably decreases, the production of melatonin increases, so in many older people, sleep becomes superficial, and insomnia often occurs. Recent studies have shown that the use of melatonin suppresses the growth of certain cells. malignant tumors. This is due to the antioxidant effect of the hormone, which is produced mainly at night and in complete darkness.

Experts conducted experiments on animals in which melatonin synthesis stopped. As a result, they began to age quickly, free radicals accumulated in their bodies, cell regeneration stopped and they began to grow cancerous tumors. The results of such experiments clearly demonstrate the importance of melatonin and night sleep for all living organisms, especially for humans.

Melatonin is most actively produced between 11 pm and 2 am. At this time, a person must necessarily sleep, but without additional lighting, to which the eye receptors react and transmit the corresponding signal of vigor to the brain.

Let's understand the causes of sleep disturbances

The causes of sleep disturbance in adults can be very different. They are often associated with the psychological situation in the family and at work, the influence of stress and psycho-emotional tension. Usually people do not know exactly what caused their sleep disorders. Must understand the reasons qualified specialist. Only in this case will the treatment of sleep disorders in adults be as effective as possible.

I will list the main predisposing factors:

busy work schedule, lack of rest and a full night’s sleep, which should last at least 7-8 hours;
falling asleep late for several months;
constant stress;
abuse of alcohol, psychostimulants, strong coffee and tea;
abrupt withdrawal of sleeping pills, sedatives;
diseases of the central nervous system, chronic diseases, which are accompanied by pain, cough and other symptoms that cause you to wake up frequently at night.

Most often, the causes of sleep disturbance in adults are associated with non-compliance with the daily routine and psycho-emotional instability. If a man for a long time is under the influence of stress, chronic insomnia occurs. Because of anxious thoughts and experiences, people cannot fall asleep for a long time or often wake up in the middle of the night. In the morning they feel very weak and drowsy. This sharply reduces performance and affects professional activities and personal life.

This video describes the stages of sleep, talks about melatonin and the mechanism of falling asleep, as well as ways to combat insomnia.

What sleep disorders exist and how do they manifest?

Experts identify several types of sleep disorders:

insomnia - insomnia caused by psychological problems, drinking alcohol or medicines;
hypersomnia - increased drowsiness associated with certain chronic diseases and pathologies bronchopulmonary system, use of medications or alcoholic beverages;
disturbances in sleep and wakefulness caused by changes in work schedule, change of place of residence, chronic fatigue syndrome;
parasomnia - disturbances of mechanisms affecting the quality of night sleep (epilepsy, enuresis, night terrors).

The manifestations of sleep disorders are varied. As a rule, patients complain of a shortening of the phase deep sleep, nightmares that do not allow you to fully rest. If sleep disturbance is combined with psychological problems and worries, then painful headaches and disruptions in work may occur. digestive system, skin diseases. This indicates a close connection psychological state a person with the work of the whole organism. Patients are very sleepy during the day, irritable, and cannot concentrate on anything, but as night falls they become anxious, often wake up, and are tormented by nightmares.

Experts highlight one interesting concept - “restless legs syndrome,” which in 15% of cases is the cause of chronic insomnia. It develops both against the background of psychological problems and due to a violation venous circulation. Main clinical manifestation are involuntary motor contractions. Patients also wake up at night due to general discomfort in the legs and a tingling feeling.

How to solve the problem

Treatment of sleep disorders in adults can be medicinal or non-medicinal. First, it is recommended to contact a neurologist. If acute or chronic diseases They are treated by specialized specialists. Doctors may prescribe sleeping pills sedatives, drugs folic acid and iron, multivitamin complexes.

A huge role in the treatment of sleep disorders is assigned to the correction of the daily routine. For patients who cannot sleep for a long time, it is better not to sleep during the daytime. It is also recommended to avoid activities that stimulate the nervous system if they take place in the evening. It is better to take it before bed warm bath, read an interesting book. Avoid late dinners. To help you fall asleep better, experts recommend taking a walk every day before bed. The body will receive the necessary amount of oxygen, and you will be able to relax and take your mind off bad thoughts. Be sure to ventilate the room 1-2 hours before bedtime.

Drug therapy in the treatment of sleep disorders is used with extreme caution. Since the causes of insomnia often lie in non-compliance with the daily routine, it is first of all recommended to make the necessary adjustments to your routine, stop staying up late, avoid psycho-emotional fatigue, especially during evening time. You can use relaxation techniques, massage, physiotherapy, yoga.

Treatment of sleep disorders in adults with sedative and hypnotic effect may cause addiction and withdrawal symptoms. Some medications used for insomnia cause severe daytime sleepiness and reduce performance. Such drugs are contraindicated for people who drive vehicles and work in responsible positions.

Melatonin medications can be used to make it easier to fall asleep. But their uncontrolled reception strictly contraindicated. To determine the treatment of sleep disorders in adults, a diagnosis must be carried out. Without examination results, medications cannot be selected.

At a young age, with normal night sleep, there is no need to take additional medications for sleep disorders with melatonin, since an excess of this hormone can be dangerous. Similar means prescribed by a doctor for insomnia, mainly in people with reduced activity of the pineal gland.

Melatonin is used to treat sleep disorders in the elderly and old age. Additionally prescribed vasodilators and tranquilizers of plant origin. Sleeping pills in old age can cause quite persistent dependence. To discontinue the drug, a gradual dose reduction is necessary.

Sleep problems and eating habits

The quality of food consumed affects big influence on the state of the nervous system. With a lack of vitamins and microelements, a person begins to feel weakened, lacks strength, and often develops daytime sleepiness and night insomnia. Sleep disturbances can also appear with regular overeating, abuse alcoholic drinks, fat and fried foods. Due to poor quality nutrition, digestive problems, abdominal pain, and flatulence occur. With these symptoms, people often wake up at night and then cannot sleep until the morning.

The habit of eating a large dinner before bed also contributes to sleep disorders. After eating, it starts to secrete hydrochloric acid, and if you don’t regularly follow a diet and eat at night, you will wake up from strong feeling hunger and desire to eat something.

Coffee and tea lovers are familiar with the feeling of insomnia. Many people drink these caffeinated drinks to feel energized throughout the day and get things done. But experts have already proven for sure that when frequent use coffee and tea there is some dependence, which manifests itself when these natural stimulants are withdrawn. As soon as you stop drinking caffeinated drinks, you will feel drowsy and your performance may decrease. If you drink coffee at night, you may have problems falling asleep.

The quality of night sleep largely depends on the person himself. Try to work with your doctor to understand the causes of insomnia and be sure to change your own lifestyle if it prevents you from getting a good night's sleep.

Doctor of the highest category
Evgenia Nabrodova

I thank Evgenia for the information. I invite you to read other articles on the blog:

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13 comments

Every person at least once in his life has encountered such a problem as difficulty falling asleep. Sleep is considered disturbed when it takes more than 30 minutes every day to fall asleep. There are many reasons for this, and one of the most common is our modern dynamic life, full of stress and information overload.

Poor sleep can be caused by poor diet in the evening. Eating too much in quantity and calories late at night forces your body to work and digest everything eaten. Even if a person has no diseases gastrointestinal tract, overeating may cause physical discomfort when taking horizontal position, and consequently, difficulties in falling asleep. In addition, episodes of belching and heartburn can wake you up during the night, provoke palpitations and even heart rhythm disturbances. On the other hand, the feeling of hunger will also prevent you from falling asleep, so train yourself to drink a glass of low-fat kefir an hour before bedtime or simply calculate the time from dinner to bedtime.

Poor sleep is common among smokers. A couple of cigarettes before bed, which seem to relax you, on the contrary, tone you up. Nicotine is one of the most powerful stimulants of the central nervous system, at least during the first phase of its action. Therefore, impending insomnia is another reason to quit smoking.

It is quite common to see an increase in the number of complaints about poor sleep with age. There is even a specific type of insomnia – “age-related” or “retirement age”. Delayed falling asleep in old age is primarily due to changes in health status. Chronic pain syndrome, caused by common pathologies such as arthritis or spinal problems, can interfere with quality sleep. Older men often have benign prostate hypertrophy, which leads to frequent urination at night, also interfering with normal rest. Women during menopause amid changes hormonal status are prone to hot flashes and depression, which also contributes to the development of insomnia.

Levels decrease with age physical activity, but it is activity that largely helps to ensure good, strong night sleep. Elderly people due to fatigue sleep frequently during the day, which can cause difficulty falling asleep at night. Sleep apnea and seizures calf muscles also become common with age.

Elderly people accept large quantity medications than at a young age. This increases the risk of developing sleep-related insomnia side effects some medications.

Restless legs syndrome causes discomfort in the extremities, worsening at rest and guaranteeing poor sleep. Relief from this disorder comes from exercise stress and walking; among patients with " restless legs“There are unfortunate people who are forced to walk around the bed all night.

Disruption of biological (circadian) rhythms is another cause of problems falling asleep. Irregular rhythm sleep-wakefulness is typical, for example, for people with weekend insomnia, workers with shift schedule or jet lag travelers. The first line in pharmacotherapy for insomnia caused by the above reasons is a safe and over-the-counter drug.

Insomnia (insomnia) is a condition in which the quality of sleep and its duration are disturbed, which causes a state of drowsiness, “brokenness” during the day. In addition, sleep disturbance at night leads to impaired attention, weakened memory, and causes anxiety and tension. If you think about what disease almost every person has suffered in life, then you need to admit that one or another sleep disorder is familiar to everyone. That’s why now we’ll talk about sleep disorders, causes in adults, symptoms, what to do to sleep normally.

It should be noted that everyone's need for night rest is different. Some people need 8-9 hours to get enough sleep, while others need 4-6 hours. This need is established in childhood and practically does not change throughout life. Therefore, if a person over time begins to sleep less than in his youth, it is not a matter of age. Most likely, we can talk specifically about insomnia.

There are transitional (transient) forms of the disease, periodic and chronic.

In the first case, sleep disturbance lasts from several nights to 2 weeks. In the periodic form, the disease manifests itself at certain periods of life. Chronic insomnia lasts more than a month.

Symptoms of insomnia

This disease, in addition to night sleep disorders, includes a whole range of problems. These include:

Difficulty falling asleep at night,

Frequent awakenings during the night, difficulty falling back asleep,

Frequent early awakenings

Lack of feeling of rest and vigor in the morning.

Such symptoms may appear all at once, or dominance of one or more of them may be observed. But we can say with confidence that all of them exhaust a person, do not provide the opportunity to rest, and also significantly reduce the quality of life. Indeed, in addition to morning fatigue, a person becomes irritable, quickly gets tired, and cannot work fully.

Causes of poor sleep quality

The causes of insomnia are most often attributed to age, since people over 60 years of age most often suffer from the disease. Also, the reasons include gender – women most often suffer from sleep disturbances.

Transient and periodic forms often appear due to stress, loud noise, and changes in air temperature. A person may have difficulty falling asleep in an unfamiliar environment, as well as due to the effect of certain medications.

Main reason chronic form are considered depressive states, hypertonic disease, joint diseases, asthma, heart disease and other quite serious illnesses. So pay attention to this.

In addition, any form of insomnia can lead to a large number of coffee consumption, alcohol abuse, violation of the established daily routine and constant stress.

How to treat sleep disorders?

If insomnia becomes a problem, you should consult a doctor. Only a specialist will be able to establish a diagnosis, determine the form of the disease and prescribe modern, effective drugs for her treatment. You cannot prescribe treatment for yourself, as it usually involves using sleeping pills. But they should not be taken for more than 2 weeks, as then addiction may set in and insomnia will become chronic.

Treatment usually consists of several stages:

Determination of the underlying disease causing insomnia, its treatment,

Determination of possible psychological and behavioral disorders, their full treatment,

Individual prescription of medications.

You can fight insomnia on your own. To do this, try to follow these rules:

Develop the habit of going to bed and waking up at the same time, do not make up for hours of sleep lost at night in the daytime,

Avoid gambling before going to bed, do not watch exciting TV shows, do not read such books,

Remove all irritants, luminous things, phosphorescent clocks from the bedroom, take care of fresh coolness, silence and darkness,

Before going to bed, refrain from drinking coffee and chocolate. You can eat an apple or 100 g of cottage cheese, as a small amount of food helps you fall asleep,

Before going to bed, take a warm bath,

Do not take sleeping pills without a doctor's prescription

If you can’t fall asleep for a long time, don’t just lie there for more than half an hour. Better get up, do something that doesn't require effort, stress and special attention. When you feel sleepy, go back to bed.

Try using sleep structuring techniques. If you spend a long time in bed trying in vain to fall asleep, try special program. She expects to sleep only a few hours at night and then get up. This should be done for several nights in a row until the desire to sleep becomes irresistible. Gradually increase the time you sleep at night to the desired level.

If insomnia has been bothering you for a long time and no simple methods do not help, it is better to consult a specialist. In addition to medications, you may need physiotherapeutic treatment: medicinal baths, electromagnetic procedures. You can seek help from naturopathic medicine: homeopathy, herbal medicine and acupuncture. If your insomnia is caused by psychological problems, such as stress, you will need an experienced psychotherapist.

Svetlana, www.site