Chronic Insomnia

Archive for the ‘Insomnia Causes’ Category

Chronic insomnia causes are what we’ll focus on here, knowing that insomnia is a symptom of something else. Specifically, stress is one of the leading causes of sleeplessness. Ongoing stress over your job, family, health, finances, or any of a myriad of issues can cause chronic insomnia. Of all the insomnia causes this is the most common. This can play out by keeping your mind going long after your body is ready to crash.

Any unsettling life event inevitably causes stress either short or long term. And stress means chronic insomnia for however long the stress and source of stress is present. If the stress is long term it turns to chronic insomnia. The snowball effect of stress is that the anxiety of whatever life altering event is coupled with sleeplessness which results in more stress in and of itself, doubling the effect of the stress and doubling the difficulty sleeping. Death of a family member, divorce, problems with children, job loss, among many other possibilities that result in short to long term stress, are insomnia causes.

Sleeplessness can be dealt with temporarily in a number of ways, but in discussing the causes of insomnia, we deal with known roots for producing chronic insomnia. And if we can cut out the root, we cut out the insomnia. Sounds simple, but if it were, there wouldn’t be the thousands of books, herbs, medicines, therapies, etc. for dealing with stress. While it is critical that we get sleep, the first and foremost way to try to deal with any of the causes of chronic insomnia is to try to eradicate or {deal with the cause without medication.} There are many useful tools on the market, some used by major hospitals and sleep centers to bring much needed relief, helping people deal with the root of their stress, consequently dealing with the root of their insomnia.

Tranquilizers and other stress relief drug sales are at an all time high because medicating ourselves out of stress, grief and other normal life emotions has become a harmful norm. We are made mentally and emotionally, to naturally deal with unsettling life issues. And in fact, medicating ourselves for extended periods of time during stressful life events leaves us in a sort of limbo, only to find deeper emotional and mental issues when the medication stops. This is where many prescription drug addictions begin. Consequently, while sleep aids and relaxation drugs taken a few times as necessary should not be problematic, taking them to “get us through” an extended life event takes away the natural process of dealing with it and can leave us emotionally handicapped for long periods of time, if not for life.

A great stress reliever is a decision. Yes, a decision. Decades ago, I went through a gut wrenching divorce that left me mentally, emotionally and physically drained. I didn’t eat or sleep for weeks. I lived on cola, aspirin and wine for the first few weeks of my separation. About six weeks into the process and nearing the finalization of the divorce, driving over a bridge one day, I slammed my hand down on my steering wheel and said out loud, “that’s enough”. And enough it was. I simply decided I had enough stress, enough sleepless nights, enough headaches, enough emotional upheaval. It was time to scoop up the pieces and put them back together. And I did. The effects of that determination were dramatic and immediate. A couple of months later the divorce was final but I was not devastated. Needless to say, today I’m good to go and things turned out fine. But it required a decision. And I’ve seen people go through things like this and never make that decision resulting in them being in that same stressed stated years later and with the inevitable chronic insomnia that accompanies it.

So, a little intentional stress medication as needed won’t do most people any harm. But some good stress coaching, some exercise, time spent with good, positive friends, and that decision that will turn the tide will have positive and permanent results that will leave you standing tall on the other side of any stressful life event. Of all the insomnia causes, stress is the most common and most commonly dealt with of them all.