Sleepless Nights: Tossing and turning at night?

In the stillness of the night, when the world around you has slipped into an effortless slumber, you might find yourself tossing and turning, unable to shut off your mind, battling with insomnia. Of course, as a human, from time to time, you may struggle with sleep especially when dealing with unforeseen circumstances. It becomes concerning when you are fighting with sleep on most nights.

What Is Insomnia?

Insomnia is a persistent inability to fall asleep, stay asleep, or experience restorative sleep, despite adequate opportunity for rest. In insomnia disorder, it takes over 30 minutes to initiate sleep, there is frequent awakenings, difficulty returning to sleep after awakening, or early morning awakenings with no opportunity to return to sleep.

This challenge in initiating and maintaining sleep, then contributes to significant distress or impairment in one’s social, occupational, educational, academic, and other areas of functioning. It’s a condition that transcends mere exhaustion, affecting every facet of life, including mood and cognitive function, physical health and overall well-being.

In insomnia disorder, impairment occurs at least three nights a week for a minimum of three months or if chronic, insomnia can last longer than three months.

If you start to notice a persistent challenge with sleep, it may be time to seek insomnia treatment in San Diego.

Why Can’t I Go To Sleep?

In the world of insomnia, a variety of factors play a role in one’s ability to get adequate rest. For some, insomnia can be triggered from underlying medical conditions such as sleep apnea or restless leg syndrome. For others, the demands of life, stress and anxiety, along with other mood disorders, may contribute to impairment.

Here are some common causes of insomnia:

1. When anxiety levels are elevated, the racing thoughts and worries will keep the mind active and running, impairing the onset of sleep
2. Mental health disorders such as bipolar disorder and PTSD, can cause emotional distress which interferes with sleep
3. Certain prescribed medications such as stimulants, antidepressants, or steroids can have side effects that disrupt sleep
4. Medical conditions, such as chronic pain, can cause discomfort interfering with sleep
5. Consumption of caffeine, nicotine, alcohol may initially induce drowsiness but often leads to fragmented sleep
6. Poor sleep habits can disrupt the body’s natural sleep-wake cycle,
7. Individuals that work overnight, or late into the evening often notice a disruption to the body’s circadian rhythm
8. Environmental factors such as excessive light exposures, uncomfortable temperatures, noisy surroundings, and disruptions from partners/pers can worsen sleep
9. Hormonal fluctuations during menstruation, pregnancy, menopause, or thyroid disorders may worsen sleep patterns

It is important to discuss treatment options with your mental health provider in San Diego if you are struggling to get a good night rest!

What Can I Do To Improve My Sleep?

As mentioned above, insomnia is multifactorial, with several causes contributing to sleep disturbances. Treatment options are dependent on the underlying causes and of the individuals need. It’s important for those with insomnia to work closely with a healthcare provider to rule out any other mental health condition such as anxiety disorders in San Diego when taking a holistic approach to treatment.

Cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is designed to address the thoughts, behaviors, and environmental factors that contribute to insomnia. It may involve techniques such as sleep restriction, stimulus control, relaxation training, and cognitive restructuring.

Implementing sleep hygiene can promote good sleep quality and quantity by encouraging the individual to maintain a regular sleep schedule, create a comfortable sleep environment, avoid stimulating activities before bedtime, limit caffeine and alcohol intake, and establishing a relaxing bedtime routine.

Medications, such as sedating antidepressants, non-benzodiazepine hypnotics, hypnotics, and benzodiazepines can be used to provide relief of insomnia.

Combination approaches, such as therapy with medication and/or lifestyle modifications, may offer the most comprehensive and effective treatment for chronic insomnia. If you’re seeking comprehensive evaluation and personalized care for insomnia, consider reaching out to Sacred Psychiatric in San Diego. Our experienced team is dedicated to empowering individuals with insomnia through thorough treatment and ongoing support.