Insomnia comes in many different flavors.
- Difficulty falling asleep
- No problem falling asleep but difficulty staying asleep (many awakenings)
- Waking up too early

Three basic types of Insomnia

Transient insomnia - lasting for a few nights
Short-term insomnia - two or four weeks of poor sleep
Chronic insomnia - poor sleep that happens most nights and last a month or longer

Transient and short-term insomnia generally occur in people who are temporarily experiencing one or more of the following:
-stress
- environmental noise
- extreme temperatures
- change in the surrounding environment
- sleep/wake schedule problems such as those due to jet lag
- medication side effects

Chronic insomnia is more complex and often results from a combination of factors, including underlying physical or mental disorders. One of the most common causes of chronic insomnia is depression. Other underlying causes include arthritis, kidney disease, heart failure, asthma, sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, Parkinson's disease, and hyperthyroidism. However, chronic insomnia may also be due to behavioral factors, including the misuse of caffeine, alcohol, or other substances; disrupted sleep/wake cycles as may occur with shift work or other nighttime activity schedules; and chronic stress.

In addition, the following behaviors have been shown to perpetuate insomnia in some people:
- poor sleep hygiene in general
- expecting to have difficulty sleeping and worrying about it
- ingesting excessive amounts of caffeine
- drinking alcohol before bedtime
- smoking cigarettes before bedtime
- excessive napping in the afternoon or evening
- irregular or continually disrupted sleep/wake schedules

Difficulty sleeping at night is only one of the symptoms. Daytime symptoms include:
- Sleepiness
- Anxiety
- Impaired concentration
- Impaired memory
- Irritability

6 Useful Tips for Better Sleep
Guidelines for Better Sleep

Further reading:
1.Take a Good Night's Sleep (Chinese version) by Glory Publishing, Inc.
2. The Good Sleep Guide by Michael Van Straten

Insomnia

"True silence is the rest of the mind; it is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment."

William Penn

 

Introduction
Problems of Sleeplessness
Nightmare
Sleep-walking & Sleep-talking
Snoring