Insomnia, what is our body telling us?

Some people say that after the age of 30, you can tell how a person is doing just by looking at his face.

The face is a person’s second business card. People who suffer from long-term poor sleep look 10 years older than their peers, because long-term insomnia is equivalent to chronic suicide.

Hair loss, obesity, dark and rough skin, decreased immunity, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease...

Every day we don’t get enough sleep, the organs and functions of our body will age faster.

So, in addition to worrying about looking older than others, you may also:

“I’m afraid of physical examinations and I don’t dare to read the physical examination reports.”

Short-term lack of sleep can make people feel listless, tired, inattentive, and have reduced creative thinking, which will directly affect the next day's work and study.

Long-term insomnia will cause memory loss, such as losing things when doing things, forgetting what you just wanted to say, etc. It is also easy to cause depression, anxiety and physical illness. Psychological and physical discomfort will further affect sleep, falling into a vicious circle.

Long-term lack of sleep is also one of the factors that induce Alzheimer's disease. As we age, all cells in the body will age. When sleep time is reduced and sleep quality decreases, the brain is more susceptible to damage, eventually leading to cognitive impairment and dementia.

01 At what level of insomnia should it be taken seriously?

If you have the following symptoms, it is recommended to make timely adjustments - improve sleep and protect your health.

01Difficulty falling asleep: Unable to fall asleep after more than 30 minutes.

02 Difficulty maintaining sleep: waking up more than twice at night.

03 Early awakening: Waking up more than half an hour earlier than normal, or even 1 to 2 hours earlier than usual, and the total sleep time is less than 6 hours.

04 Shallow sleep: Insufficient sleep depth, poor sleep quality, shallow sleep and frequent dreams.

05 Daytime symptoms: Feeling dizzy, lack of energy, drowsiness, fatigue, etc. the next day.

Mild insomnia can be adjusted according to your own situation. If you have moderate to severe insomnia that obviously affects your daily life, you must seek professional help in time.

02 Common causes of insomnia

01 Bad mood insomnia:
It refers to the body's inability to adjust and adapt due to emotional excitement, such as excitement, joy, anxiety, sadness, fear, etc. Patients often have anxiety and depression reactions.

When the cause of emotional agitation is eliminated or after self-adjustment, the patient can return to normal within 1 to 2 weeks. Emotional insomnia may relapse due to emotional agitation, or the course of the disease may be prolonged due to the persistence of the trigger or excessive tension and anxiety, eventually developing into psychophysiological insomnia.

02Psychophysiological Insomnia:
Insomnia is caused by continuous mental stress, and it persists even after the cause is removed. The factors and manifestations that cause mental stress are:

Negative life events or long-term stressful work conditions often cause tension headaches, which further interfere with sleep.

The strong desire to have a good sleep before going to bed causes excessive anxiety and restlessness, which makes it difficult to fall asleep.

Excessive worry about the harm of insomnia to health. After a few nights of sleepless nights, this worry becomes more intense and all attention is focused on the insomnia problem, making the mind further tense and anxious.

03 Bad Habit Insomnia:
It refers to insomnia caused by bad sleeping habits, such as smoking, drinking, tea or coffee before going to bed, or strenuous exercise, excessive excitement, talking for too long, etc., which will increase the difficulty of falling asleep and reduce the quality of sleep. Some people sleep too much during the day, disrupting their day and night rhythm, and have difficulty falling asleep at night or sleeping too little, showing insomnia.

04Environmental influence on insomnia:
One is to develop certain behavioral habits that accompany falling asleep, such as falling asleep after watching TV for a long time, which forms a dependence on TV. Once there is no TV to watch, insomnia occurs. This type of insomnia is also called sleep-conditioned insomnia.

Second, adverse environmental factors have a direct impact on sleep, which is true environmental insomnia. Common factors include severe cold, heat, noise, strong light, etc., or being in an environment that requires vigilance, such as guarding a patient or being in a dangerous place. These factors can make people feel uneasy or nervous and anxious, and thus cause insomnia. Once the environment changes or the environmental factors disappear, this type of insomnia often disappears on its own.

05Physical reasons affect insomnia:
Physical illness and medications can also affect sleep, such as indigestion, headache, back pain, arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, asthma, sinusitis, ulcer disease, or taking certain drugs that affect the central nervous system.

03 5 ways to improve insomnia

01 Set the right temperature A room that is too hot will make you sweat, while a room that is too cold will make you shiver. Choose a temperature between 60 and 73 degrees Fahrenheit (about 16 to 23 degrees Celsius). A slightly cool temperature will help lower your body temperature, induce sleep, and ensure you stay comfortable throughout the night.

02 Relaxing your mind The key is to reduce stress, especially before bed. For most people, stress and diet will interfere with sleep and are the culprits that keep you awake at night. Your brain starts to think non-stop and you can't seem to turn it off.

03 Don’t put your electronic devices on the bed Watching TV in bed or answering late-night work emails tricks your brain into thinking your bed is just another place to get work done, not a place to settle down after a long day. It’s also a manifestation of “nosophobia.” Keep your bedroom free of electronic devices by watching evening shows in the living room to keep this space sacred.

04 Maintain a regular sleep schedule Another key sleep habit? Stick to a regular sleep schedule as much as possible to keep your circadian rhythm in check. Yes, even on weekends! When your body gets used to going to bed and waking up at the same time, you’ll find it easier to fall asleep and wake up naturally. Aim for an average of eight hours of quality sleep per night.

05 Exercise in the morning The endorphins produced after exercise are great, but they may be the reason why you can't sleep at night. Try to adjust your exercise plan to the morning. After completing the exercise early in the morning, you will feel great and it will be easier to relax at night. In addition, studies have shown that exercise can effectively reduce sleep disturbances and regulate insomnia symptoms.

To sum up, as long as we can correctly adjust our mentality, improve our inner conflicts, and form good living and eating habits, good sleep will always be there.

I wish everyone can have a satisfying sleep.