Tag Archives: Hypersomnia

Straight, No Chaser: Insomnia – You Are Not Getting Sleepy

Sleep, , , , , , ,

Insomnia-picture

This is part of a Straight, No Chaser series on sleep disorders. 

So the pendulum swings from hypersomnia to insomnia. Talking about insomnia makes me, well, tired. You know what the problem is. You either can’t fall asleep or you can’t stay asleep. You’re tired when you wake and throughout the day. Lack of sleep saps your energy and your productivity.
Insomnia really isn’t very cool to deal with, either as a person or as a physician. Patients are frustrated and sometimes cranky from being tired, or they can be extremely nervous and stressed, which will perpetuate a vicious cycle.
insomnia
Unfortunately, there are many mental factors that can disrupt your ability to sleep. Medical professionals tend to think of insomnia in two forms for purposes of evaluation. Either the insomnia is the main problem (primary insomnia), or it’s secondary to another condition (secondary insomnia) such as reflux, uncontrolled asthma, arthritis or other pain syndromes. It could be due to medications, depression or just stress. It could be due to some undiagnosed condition, such as cancer, an enlarged prostate (making you have to get up to urinate throughout the night), thyroid disease or sleep apnea. Then there’s the caffeine (coffee/tea), nicotine (cigarettes) and drunk scene (alcohol).

insomnia comps

The thing is, whether acute, intermittent or chronic, any type of insomnia really is an inconvenience and can even be incapacitating. Before you subject yourself to a million dollar medical workup, just remember: If it’s secondary insomnia, and you know (for example) that your pain is keeping you awake, try dealing with the primary issue. Alternatively, if it’s primary insomnia, there are a lot of things you might try. In fact, consider this my Top Ten Tips presented in the order you might consider implementing them.

  • Adhere to good diet and exercise habits, which make your body perform as it should and which will clean up a lot of potential problems that will affect sleep.
  • Avoid naps during the day. You want to be good, tired and ready to sleep when night comes.
  • Develop the habit of only using your bed for sleep or sex. That conditions your body to be ready to sleep when confronted with the stimulus of your bed.
  • Get your snoring partner some help if s/he is part of what keeps you awake. Check here for tips to deal with snoring.
  • Try not to eat for several (3-4) hours before you sleep. Nothing says “no sleep” like heartburn all night. (By the way, this is the real reason you shouldn’t eat after a certain hour – not concerns about your weight.)
  • Avoid nighttime stimulants (e.g., cigarettes, coffee, tea and exercise close to the time you want to sleep, if this proves to be a problem).
  • Don’t drink and sleep. Although alcohol is a sedative, it’s also on the “don’t do” list, because it can cause restless sleep and interrupt the sleep cycle.
  • Find a way to relax before sleep. Consider a bath, sex, a book or soothing music … or all of them.
  • Set the alarm for the morning. Then hide your clock. You don’t need to have a clock to remind you that you aren’t sleeping all night.
  • Use “white noise” for background if you’re bothered by other sounds.

Here’s a bonus tip: If you fell asleep during the reading of this post, keep it for future reference.
As Edward R. Murrow used to say (well before I was born): good night and good luck.
Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant any questions you may have on this topic.
Order your copy of Dr. Sterling’s new book Behind The Curtain: A Peek at Life from within the ER at jeffreysterlingbooks.com, iTunes, Amazon, Barnes and Nobles and wherever books are sold.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) and 844-SMA-TALK offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress, like us on Facebook @ SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and follow us on Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
Copyright © 2016 · Sterling Initiatives, LLC · Powered by WordPress

Straight, No Chaser: Why Are You So Sleepy (aka Hypersomnia)?

Sleep, , , , , , ,

hypersomnia-and-narcolepsy-overlap-445x275-445x273

This is part of a Straight, No Chaser series on sleep disorders.

Are you one of those individuals who is always tired and sleepy? You take iron, you exercise and you’re getting sleep at night. However, you’re still tired! What’s that about?
Hypersomnia (i.e., excessive sleepiness) is characterized by prolonged nighttime sleep and/or recurrent bouts of excessive daytime sleepiness or prolonged nighttime sleep. This is not the variety of sleepiness due to physical or mental exhaustion or insufficient sleep at night.  Hypersomnia makes you want to nap repeatedly during the day. Ironically, even if you do take a nap or even after you sleep overnight, you’re still fatigued.

hypersomnia

The functional importance of this is somewhat obvious. Hypersomnia interrupts your life, your work, your ability to normally interact with others. Symptoms are what you might expect from someone not getting enough sleep. Here’s a typical list:

  • restlessness
  • anxiety and irritation
  • decreased energy
  • slow thinking
  • slow speech
  • loss of appetite
  • hallucinations
  • memory difficulty
  • loss the ability to function in family, social, occupational, or other settings

Hypersomnia is difficult. It takes time to realize you’re affected beyond just regular fatigue. It’s also difficult to pin down the cause. Consider the following potential groups of causes:

  • Physical causes may include damage to the brain (e.g., from head trauma) or spinal cord, or from a tumor.
  • Medical and mental/behavioral health causes may include obesity, seizure disorder (epilepsy), encephalitis, multiple sclerosis and other sleep disorders (e.g., sleep apnea, nacolepsy).
  • Mental/behavioral health causes may include depression, drug or alcohol use.
  • Medications or medication withdrawal may cause hypersomnia.

hyperinsomnia

Unfortunately, treatment is symptomatic and often requires some degree of trial and error. For some individuals, stimulants, antidepressants and other psychoactive medications are effective. For others, behavioral changes appear to be more effective.
Any disruption in the quality or amount of sleep warrant investigation. Discuss your concerns with your physician if you have the opportunity. You always have the option of discussing with your SterlingMedicalAdvice.com expert consultant.
Special thanks go to the Hypersomnia Foundation for use of the lead logo for this posting. Please visit their website at http://hypersomniafoundation.org for more information on their efforts to combat this condition.
Feel free to ask your SMA expert consultant any questions you may have on this topic.
Order your copy of Dr. Sterling’s new book Behind The Curtain: A Peek at Life from within the ER at jeffreysterlingbooks.com, iTunes, Amazon, Barnes and Nobles and wherever books are sold.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) and 844-SMA-TALK offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress, like us on Facebook @ SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and follow us on Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
Copyright © 2016 · Sterling Initiatives, LLC · Powered by WordPress

Straight, No Chaser: Insomnia – You Are Not Getting Sleepy

Sleep, , , , , ,

Insomnia-picture

This is part of a Straight, No Chaser series on sleep disorders. 

So the pendulum swings from hypersomnia to insomnia. Talking about insomnia makes me, well, tired. You know what the problem is. You either can’t fall asleep or you can’t stay asleep. You’re tired when you wake and throughout the day. Lack of sleep saps your energy and your productivity.
Insomnia really isn’t very cool to deal with, either as a person or as a physician. Patients are frustrated and sometimes cranky from being tired, or they can be extremely nervous and stressed, which will perpetuate a vicious cycle.
insomnia
Unfortunately, there are many mental factors that can disrupt your ability to sleep. Medical professionals tend to think of insomnia in two forms for purposes of evaluation. Either the insomnia is the main problem (primary insomnia), or it’s secondary to another condition (secondary insomnia) such as reflux, uncontrolled asthma, arthritis or other pain syndromes. It could be due to medications, depression or just stress. It could be due to some undiagnosed condition, such as cancer, an enlarged prostate (making you have to get up to urinate throughout the night), thyroid disease or sleep apnea. Then there’s the caffeine (coffee/tea), nicotine (cigarettes) and drunk scene (alcohol).

insomnia comps

The thing is, whether acute, intermittent or chronic, any type of insomnia really is an inconvenience and can even be incapacitating. Before you subject yourself to a million dollar medical workup, just remember: If it’s secondary insomnia, and you know (for example) that your pain is keeping you awake, try dealing with the primary issue. Alternatively, if it’s primary insomnia, there are a lot of things you might try. In fact, consider this my Top Ten Tips presented in the order you might consider implementing them.

  • Adhere to good diet and exercise habits, which make your body perform as it should and which will clean up a lot of potential problems that will affect sleep.
  • Avoid naps during the day. You want to be good, tired and ready to sleep when night comes.
  • Develop the habit of only using your bed for sleep or sex. That conditions your body to be ready to sleep when confronted with the stimulus of your bed.
  • Get your snoring partner some help if s/he is part of what keeps you awake. Check here for tips to deal with snoring.
  • Try not to eat for several (3-4) hours before you sleep. Nothing says “no sleep” like heartburn all night. (By the way, this is the real reason you shouldn’t eat after a certain hour – not concerns about your weight.)
  • Avoid nighttime stimulants (e.g., cigarettes, coffee, tea and exercise close to the time you want to sleep, if this proves to be a problem).
  • Don’t drink and sleep. Although alcohol is a sedative, it’s also on the “don’t do” list, because it can cause restless sleep and interrupt the sleep cycle.
  • Find a way to relax before sleep. Consider a bath, sex, a book or soothing music … or all of them.
  • Set the alarm for the morning. Then hide your clock. You don’t need to have a clock to remind you that you aren’t sleeping all night.
  • Use “white noise” for background if you’re bothered by other sounds.

Here’s a bonus tip: If you fell asleep during the reading of this post, keep it for future reference.
As Edward R. Murrow used to say (well before I was born): good night and good luck.
Thanks for liking and following <em>Straight, No Chaser</em>! This public service provides a sample of what 844-SMA-TALK and www.sterlingmedicaladvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.
<div>
Copyright © 2014 · Sterling Initiatives, LLC · Powered by WordPress

Straight, No Chaser: Why Are You So Sleepy (aka Hypersomnia)?

Sleep, , , , , ,

hypersomnia-and-narcolepsy-overlap-445x275-445x273

This is part of a Straight, No Chaser series on sleep disorders.

Are you one of those individuals who is always tired and sleepy? You take iron, you exercise and you’re getting sleep at night. However, you’re still tired! What’s that about?
Hypersomnia (i.e., excessive sleepiness) is characterized by prolonged nighttime sleep and/or recurrent bouts of excessive daytime sleepiness or prolonged nighttime sleep. This is not the variety of sleepiness due to physical or mental exhaustion or insufficient sleep at night.  Hypersomnia makes you want to nap repeatedly during the day. Ironically, even if you do take a nap or even after you sleep overnight, you’re still fatigued.

hypersomnia

The functional importance of this is somewhat obvious. Hypersomnia interrupts your life, your work, your ability to normally interact with others. Symptoms are what you might expect from someone not getting enough sleep. Here’s a typical list:

  • restlessness
  • anxiety and irritation
  • decreased energy
  • slow thinking
  • slow speech
  • loss of appetite
  • hallucinations
  • memory difficulty
  • loss the ability to function in family, social, occupational, or other settings

Hypersomnia is difficult. It takes time to realize you’re affected beyond just regular fatigue. It’s also difficult to pin down the cause. Consider the following potential groups of causes:

  • Physical causes may include damage to the brain (e.g., from head trauma) or spinal cord, or from a tumor.
  • Medical and mental/behavioral health causes may include obesity, seizure disorder (epilepsy), encephalitis, multiple sclerosis and other sleep disorders (e.g., sleep apnea, nacolepsy).
  • Mental/behavioral health causes may include depression, drug or alcohol use.
  • Medications or medication withdrawal may cause hypersomnia.

hyperinsomnia

Unfortunately, treatment is symptomatic and often requires some degree of trial and error. For some individuals, stimulants, antidepressants and other psychoactive medications are effective. For others, behavioral changes appear to be more effective.
Any disruption in the quality or amount of sleep warrant investigation. Discuss your concerns with your physician if you have the opportunity. You always have the option of discussing with your SterlingMedicalAdvice.com expert consultant.
Special thanks go to the Hypersomnia Foundation for use of the lead logo for this posting. Please visit their website at http://hypersomniafoundation.org for more information on their efforts to combat this condition.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what 844-SMA-TALK and http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

Copyright © 2014 · Sterling Initiatives, LLC · Powered by WordPress

Straight, No Chaser: Why Are You So Sleepy?

Sleep, , , , , , , , ,

hyperinsomnia

This is part of a series on sleep disorders.

  • Click here and click here for discussions about insomnia.
  • Click here for a discussion of night terrors.
  • Check back for discussions of narcolepsy and sleep apnea.

Are you one of those individuals who is always tired and sleepy? You take iron, you exercise and you’re getting sleep at night. However, you’re still tired? What’s that about?
Hypersomnia (i.e., excessive sleepiness) is characterized by prolonged nighttime sleep and/or recurrent bouts of excessive daytime sleepiness or prolonged nighttime sleep. This is not the variety of sleepiness due to physical or mental exhaustion or insufficient sleep at night.  Hypersomnia makes you want to nap repeatedly during the day. Ironically, even if you do take a nap or even after you sleep overnight, you’re still fatigued.
The functional importance of this is somewhat obvious. Hypersomnia interrupts your life, your work, your ability to normally interact with others. Symptoms are what you might expect from someone not getting enough sleep. Here’s a typical list:

  • restlessness
  • anxiety and irritation
  • decreased energy
  • slow thinking
  • slow speech
  • loss of appetite
  • hallucinations
  • memory difficulty
  • loss the ability to function in family, social, occupational, or other settings

Hypersomnia is difficult. It takes time to realize you’re affected beyond just regular fatigue. It’s also difficult to pin down the cause. Consider the following potential groups of causes:

  • Physical causes may include damage to the brain (e.g., from head trauma) or spinal cord, or from a tumor.
  • Medical and mental/behavioral health causes may include obesity, seizure disorder (epilepsy), encephalitis, multiple sclerosis and other sleep disorders (e.g., sleep apnea, nacolepsy).
  • Mental/behavioral health causes may include depression, drug or alcohol use.
  • Medications or medication withdrawal may cause hypersomnia.

Unfortunately, treatment is symptomatic and often requires some degree of trial and error. For some individuals, stimulants, antidepressants and other psychoactive medications are effective. For others, behavioral changes appear to be more effective.
Any disruption in the quality or amount of sleep warrant investigation. Discuss your concerns with your physician if you have the opportunity. You always have the option of discussing with your SterlingMedicalAdvice.com expert consultant.
Thanks for liking and following Straight, No Chaser! This public service provides a sample of what http://www.SterlingMedicalAdvice.com (SMA) offers. Please share our page with your friends on WordPress. We are also on Facebook at SterlingMedicalAdvice.com and Twitter at @asksterlingmd.

Copyright © 2013 · Sterling Initiatives, LLC · Powered by WordPress