Causes of Insomnia

If you can not sleep at night you are not alone. Almost every person in the world will suffer from insomnia at one point or another in their lives. For some, it happens once in a while and they go on to sleep again in a night or two. For others, insomnia can go on and on for weeks leaving someone exhausted, mentally sluggish, and down right frustrated. There are many different causes of insomnia and many different things that may help correct the situation. If you find you can not sleep for nights on end, it may be something that needs attention by a doctor.

The body needs sleep. This is when our brains file away what we have learned that day and our bodies repair the damage from the day. If you are a child or teenager, your body is growing while you sleep. This is why babies sleep so much after they are born. They grow more in the first year than in any other time period, so they have to sleep to allow the body to do what it needs to do. If you are not sleeping, your immune function is not what it should be and you could get sick much more easily. That being said, you can see why finding and fixing the causes of insomnia are important.

For many, the causes of insomnia are related to stress and mental health. If you have a lot on your mind and you are stressed out, your brain may be in overdrive trying to fix your problems thus you can not sleep. You may find you are so worried that you can not turn off your brain to get sleep. The lack of sleep then make the problem worse. Depression and deeper emotional problems can develop when insomnia starts this way as the lack of sleep can make any problem worse.

At times, insomnia has other roots that are easier to take care of and a good night of sleep can be had with little effort. Some make the mistake of drinking the wrong things at the wrong times, leaving a person awake when they should be sleeping. It could be that the causes of insomnia in some people are simply personal habits that leave them worked up when it is time to go to sleep. Simple changes in lifestyle can easily fix these problems. This type of insomnia is not a long term problem and usually turns around in a matter of days.

In other cases, the causes of insomnia are medical. You may have a problem that needs attention by a doctor or perhaps a mental health professional. There are some drugs that can induce sleep, but do not take these without serious consideration as some have very strange and potentially dangerous side effects. The pros and cons should be weighed in each individual case. However, if you are so tired you can not safely drive, work, or care for your family, you may want to take something as a short term fix until something else helps you with your situation.