Essay/Term paper: Sleep problems

Essay, term paper, research paper:  Miscellaneous

There are a wide variety of sleep problems in the world today. For example sleep apnea, snoring, sleepwalking, confusional arousals, sleep-related eating, sleep paralysis, nocturnal seizures, teeth grinding, Rapid Eye Movement (REM), and sleep talking. Many of these disorders can be damaging to your health, or might not effect you at all. Also, if one does have difficulties sleeping there are things that are recommended in order to get a good night sleep.

There are many different kinds of parasomnias. A parasomnia is a disruptence while you sleep. It has been proven that as one ages they are more likely to experience a number of brief arousals during the night. These arousals are often noticed if a person is crying or kicking around in bed. Usually the person appears awake, confused, and upset. They tend to push help away. An episode like this can range from a few seconds to a half an hour. When ended the person is usually calm, then wakes concisely, and then returns to sleeping. Sleepwalking is another common parasomnia. This is normally seen in older children. This is when a person gets up and walks around. They could just walk around the room, or could even walk around the whole yard. A sleepwalker could either return to bed, or wake up in a totally different part of the house. Sleepwalkers can carry on conversations, (that which may be difficult to understand) or even rearrange furniture. Nobody knows why, but usually sleepwalkers don"t inquire any injuries. Sleep-related eating is another type of parasomnia, however very rare. People, who have this, usually eat while they are sleeping, but are unaware of it. It happens in both sexes, but is most common in females.

Sleep terrors are also another kind of parasomnia. It is a very extreme and dramatic form of an arousal disorder. A sleep terror can be very distressing to witness. At first the person starts to scream and/or shout. This person could also be sweating, have dilated pupils, experience rapid breathing, and have a racing heart. This person can run out of bed, around the room or sometimes around the whole house. In this type of parasomnia a person can injure himself or herself unlike sleepwalking. The individual who is having a sleep terror are usually totally unaware of what they are doing, and do not remember it when they wake up. Sleep terrors usually occur in elderly people. These are just a few types of parasomnias.

Another common sleeping disorder is snoring. One out of every four people is a habitual snorer. This disorder is more common in mails. Snoring is caused by obstructed breathing during sleep. Obstructed breathing occurs when the muscles in the throat relax too much and start vibrating against each other. To eliminate snoring you have to decrease the excessive bulkiness of tissue in the back of the throat. Snoring can prevent others from sleeping, and the snorer from a restful, peaceful sleep. Some things that happen when you snore are disrupted sleep, morning headaches, daytime drowsiness, irritability, difficulty staying alert, and disruptive family life. So snoring is a risk to your health, and others.

In order for a good night sleep people should do the following things. Follow a schedule, have a regular wake-up time in the morning. Exercise in the afternoon, but not in the evening because this can cause sleep fragmentation. Have a slight snack, because if you"re hungry this can disturb sleep. If you feel its necessary to have a sleeping pill, do so occasionally, but not chronically. Try not to have too much caffeine in the evening. Do not use tobacco chronically. Have as little alcohol as possible. Yes, alcohol does make you drowsy, but you may wake up early because of it. Don"t go to sleep angry. Last of all don"t sleep more then needed. These are some ways so that people can make sure that they don"t get hassled by snoring, or any parasomnia"s.