Why do people suffer from insomnia?

This is the 3762nd article of Da Yi Xiao Hu

With the arrival of a new wave of the COVID-19 epidemic, Shanghai has entered a special period, forcing our lives to enter another track. Everyone generally said, "My sleep is terrible."

"Since the war, I have slept little, how can I get through the long wet nights?", "I am sleepless worrying about wars, powerless to rectify the world", "How can I sleep soundly while the war is still going on?"... Du Fu, a Tang Dynasty poet known as the "Poet Saint", wrote hundreds of poems about insomnia, describing various manifestations of insomnia: difficulty falling asleep, waking up easily, waking up early, dreaming a lot, staying awake all night, etc. It can be seen that factors such as social unrest and war also affected the sleep quality of the "Poet Saint".

Insomnia is just like "fever" and "cough", it is just a symptom, which can be seen in many kinds of physical diseases, drug factors and mental and psychological disorders. At present, the most influential model in the academic community to explain the causes of insomnia is the "3P model" proposed by Spielman in 1987: quality factors, predisposing factors and maintaining factors.

1

Quality Factors

It refers to the pathogenesis of insomnia, including family history of insomnia, high body arousal state, anxious personality, etc.

2

Predisposing factors

It refers to life events that trigger insomnia. The most common triggering factors include tense interpersonal relationships, excessive pressure from work, study, and life, trauma, physical illness, jet lag, etc.

3

Maintaining Factors

It refers to the unhealthy coping methods adopted after insomnia, such as going to bed early at night, staying in bed and delaying getting up in the morning, making up for too much sleep during the day, drinking alcohol to help sleep, etc.

Normally, insomnia should heal naturally after the "life events" that trigger it disappear. However, studies have shown that 70% of people still suffer from insomnia one year after the onset of insomnia, and 50% of people still suffer from insomnia three years after the onset of insomnia. Why is insomnia so lingering and difficult to cure? Scan the QR code below to take a questionnaire and find out "Why do I suffer from insomnia?"

Then make appropriate adjustments based on your own situation:

1. Correctly face the epidemic and the changes caused by it, and adjust your mindset;

2. Continue to follow the usual working hours and maintain a regular schedule;

3. Adjust the lighting, improve the sleeping atmosphere in the bedroom, and improve the environment;

4. Try not to drink coffee, tea or other stimulating beverages in the afternoon;

5. Prepare for sleep before going to bed and avoid doing things that are not related to sleep, such as watching TV or playing with your phone;

6. Increase exercise during the day and move around the room appropriately after working for a while.

How long is the right amount of sleep per day? Is there a uniform standard?

In their latest research, experts from the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) in the United States gave recommendations on the amount of sleep required for people of different age groups. Newborns should sleep 14 to 17 hours a day, adults should sleep 7 to 9 hours a day, and the elderly over 65 years old can sleep 7 to 8 hours a day.

One-third of our life is spent sleeping. Although sleep, like food, water and air, is key to our survival, the length of sleep varies from person to person. There is no need to pay too much attention to it, otherwise it will cause insomnia!

To fight the epidemic, we need a good attitude and a healthy body; to deal with insomnia, we need the right methods.

References:

1. Chinese Society of Neurology. Sleep Disorders Group, Chinese Society of Neurology. Chinese Journal of Neurology, 2018, 51(5): 324-335.

Yueyang Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Shi YangDeputy Chief Physician

Clinic hours: Saturday morning (Room 1, 4th floor, South Building, No. 44 Qinghai Road)