body basics

t If con stan t to ssin g and t urn i ng has bee 0m epa rt 0f you rbedtime activity, you could be a member of the insomniacclub. Medical attention is in order! TEXT SUZAN E AVADIAR

"I'VE BEEN BATTLING INSOMNIA FOR ALMOST FOUR YEARS NOW, AND IT CAN GET REALLY FRUSTRATING," SAYS JENNIFER CHIN,

a 45-year-old accounts manager. She usually tries to go to bed by IO pm and leaves theradio on. She dozes off slowly within an hour but then wakes up periodically throughoutthe night. When she wakes up, she usually just stays in bed and tries to relax so she cango back to sleep again. It does not overly affect her the next day, blft some workdays shegets really tired and sleepy. "The most I can do is try and squeeze in a short nap duringlunch breaks!" she adds.

vida! 133"

body basics

134 vida!

Jennifer's insomnia is caused by a variety of issues, butmostly by problems, personal and work-related. However,she does notice that most of the time it is anxiety andemotional breakdown that cause her restless nights.Jennifer reveals that she has never bothered to consult adoctor because she does not want to take sleeping pillsand grow dependent on them.According to Dr. J. Ng, a general practitioner, Jennifer

is not alone. In fact, too many like her have invited insomniainto their personal lives and prefer to 'deal' with it ratherthan seek medical attention. The most common miscon-ception people have of sleeping pills, Dr Ng says, is thatthey can get addicted to them. This is not entirely untrue,however, as it is for this reason that they are controlleddrugs and can only be obtained through prescription."The doctor treating a patient with sleeping disorder

will only prescribe a medication that is best suited for thecondition, and only for a certain length of time. The ideais to tune the body's internal clock to get into a certainsleeping pattern with the assistance of the pill, and thenslowly wean the patient off the pill. Usually, by this time,the patient should be slowly getting into a healthier sleepinghabit," the doctor explains.Common complaints from insomniacs include constant

fatigue, lack of energy and the inability to be productive atwork. This is a natural result because you are forcing yourbody and mind to keep going without any fuel. Stress,anxiety, poor sleep habits and depression, as well as disordersof the internal clock - such as jet lag and medication - canall cause insomnia. This form of insomnia is temporarybecause your internal clockwork is disrupted due to travellingor stimulants, but tends to fade away once you get yourroutine on track.P. Gopinath, a pharmacist at Medicine Point Pharmacy

in Subang Jaya, attests that many of his clients forprescribed sleeping pills are either from the airlineindustry or are older people. Some of the more popularprescribed sleeping pills are Stilnox and Imovane. Asidefrom these, over-the-counter medications, he says, arealso quite common. Although they are not as potent assleeping pills, medications such as Valerian and St. John'sWort, both of which are herbal pills, aid sleep becausethey tend to relax and calm the body.However, in most cases, insomnia stems from a more

long-term psychological problem such as on-going stressfrom work, personal matters and depression. These mayrevolve around self-esteem, financial difficulties, inability

to cope at work, or even to deal with relationship issues.This needs more attention, warns Dr. Ng, and requirespatients to see the bigger picture of what the problem is,and to find a solution. When factors such as stress anddepression are not acted upon with proper counsellingor medication, the result includes a damaging, long-terminsomnia.Insomnia can also be conditioned. If you begin to associate

bedtime with difficulty - because you have trouble sleepingfor a few days, and therefore expect to have trouble fallingasleep - you will eventually make it a continuous problem.Sub-consciously you become irritable, and this causes moreinsomnia! A lot of the time, the little habits we adopt in oureveryday lifestyle can induce insomnia. They range fromdaily and night-time routines to the food we eat, and howwe deal with our emotional and psychological well-being.

)

!j

.~j

,)

)

NIGHT-TIME ROUTINESIf you find yourself suddenly sitting up wide-eyed in themiddle of the night and quite often simply can't snoozeagain, then you have a problem. Waking up for no apparentreason in the middle of the night is a neon-light symptomof insomnia. Start paying close attention to what is on yourmind when you wake up. Are you thinking about work orsomething that has been bothering you? If you go to sleepwithout clearing your mind, little problems that stress youcan keep you from falling into a deep and restful sleep.Another habit that fuels insomnia is if you play the

couch potato late into the night - even when nothing ison the telly! It is obvious that you cannot get your mindand body to relax. This could be due to the fact that yourmind and body are used to being constantly on the go,perhaps due to the kind of work you do. Meditation is agreat way to learn the art of relaxation. You should alsothink about taking up a sport a few times a week, so thatyour body gets physically tired and yearns to sleep.Staying up reading and eventually falling asleep with

book in hand, contrary to popular belief, is not a verygood idea. Insomnia is not very far from you. Most peoplemake it a habit to indulge in bedtime reading, perhapsbecause they grew up falling asleep to stories. What theydo not realise is that being read to is different fromreading a story yourself. When you are reading, you areforcing yourself to be alert. While this may be a good wayto get your mind tired and to doze off, you could also beforcing your mind to stay awake and pay attention to thestory at hand!

;J)

))

-'

Exercising in the evenings is a good habit because ithelps you relieve stress and relax your muscles. However,if you do it too late or just before you sleep, your workoutwill tend to stimulate you rather than relax you. Don'tindulge in any form of strenuous exercise for at leastthree hours before you turn in.Strange as it may seem, many people do not realise that

their food intake contributes to their quality of sleep. Forexample, if you consume a lot of spicy food for dinner, thistends to cause gas or to upset the intestines and make yourinsides topsy-turvy at bedtime. This will definitely disruptyour sleep. If you stillchoose to have spicy foodfor dinner, try eatingearlier so that your foodis digested before youturn in. At least fourhours before should besufficient.Although food is not a

direct cause of insomnia,it can still lead to itbecause of the fact thatinsomnia can be condi-tioned. If you havetrouble sleeping becauseof the food you eat overa period of time, youwill eventually make ita long-term problem.Drinking a lot of

caffeine is a sure problem.This is a fact that allcaffeine addicts shouldknow about - it stays in your system for at least 20 hours!So if you are gulping down mugs of coffee throughout theday or indulging in one too many drinks at night and stillwonder why you cannot sleep, then you know where theproblem lies!

EMOTIONAL HAZARDSHave you ever been up half the night before a big presenta-tion or even a trip you have been looking forward to? This isbecause insomnia is commonly induced by emotions. If youare upset, worried, anxious or overly excited about something,you will tend to stay up all night. So, if stress is part ofyour daily life~you need to think about what you can do to

bring the level down a notch. Even when you worry aboutsleeping, you are fuelling insomnia. It's a vicious circle!When we do not get quality sleep at night we subsequently

wake up feeling tired. Your mind desperately needs to relaxand unwind, and sleep is the only way to do it. Many peopletend to turn to stimulants to keep going throughout the day,in the hope of being productive. This only serves as a short-term palliative for a damaging, long-term problem, however.You should visit the doctor to see what your options arefor getting quality sleep and enhancing your energy.When you are constantly fighting off sleepiness or feeling

tired from lack of sleep,you tend to have lessenergy and patience.Naturally, you will tendto become crabby andless pleasant to be

~_ around. If you are inthis state because ofyour sleepless nights,then your insomnia isproving to be a seriousproblem and needsimmediate attention.

GOODBYEINSOMNIA

-, To be rid of insomnia forgood, the best formulais to adopt a new set ofrules for your everydaylife. One proven methodis sticking to a strictbedtime schedule - at

least until your sleeping pattern is in order. This meansgoing to bed at a set time and waking up at the same timeevery day - even on holidays! Insomniacs should definitelyavoid napping during the day, no matter how tired they get.This will ensure you do not stay up late at night.Fitting relaxing habits into your daily regime is also

effective. Light exercises such as yoga, meditation or deepbreathing are very useful for a good night's rest. Redecoratingyour bedroom also helps. Keep it dark (or at least dim),cool and quiet. Invest in earplugs or eyeshades, if you must.The idea is to keep out disturbing noise and light so youdo not get distracted.Sleep well. V

vida! 135