Types of Sleep Disorders

By Priscah Angwenyi

Does it bother you when you go to bed and lie there for hours unable to fall asleep? It happens to most of us at times. But when sleeplessness becomes the rule rather than the exception, perhaps the sleep disorder called insomnia has set in.

Insomnia means nothing more than being unable to sleep. But sleeplessness may have a variety of descriptors and causes.

Newsline was able to interview Dr. Sarah Wawa, a consultant psychiatrist at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) Department of Mental Health and this is what she had to say on sleep disorders;

“Some people have a chronic problem with falling asleep. They feel tired and go to bed early enough, but then toss and turn for hours. Another form of insomnia happens when you go to sleep only to awaken and lie there for hours. This could result from several reasons, such as a spouse who snores, a cat that jumps on the bed, lights in the room, or noise. And if it happens regularly, you can certainly suffer from insomnia’’ says Dr. Wawa.

Dr. Wawa further said that some people fall asleep and remain that way all night. But in the morning, would not have rested. Their exhaustion may indicate sleep apnea, another potentially serious sleep disorder that prevents deep sleep during the night. Those with classical sleep apnea have a breathing disorder in which they just stop breathing for 10 to 20 seconds or so. And when breathing pauses happen 20 to 30 times each hour.

In central apnea, the brain is slow to signal the body to take another breath. More often, sleep apnea is called obstructive sleep apnea and is associated with carrying too much weight and not being in good shape, so when you lie down to sleep, loose soft tissue collapses and pinches the breathing tubes closed.

“Insomnia may also result in Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS), a disorder in which you constantly move legs because of unpleasant sensations in them. RLS is often a result of various other disease conditions such as stroke, and spinal cord injuries and one form has a genetic origin,” stated Dr. Wawa

“Narcolepsy, a chronic, lifelong condition, is a sleep disorder in which an affected individual has frequent sleep attacks during the day. It is not a mental illness, but it does qualify as a nervous system disorder because, for unknown reasons, the brain produces too little of a family of important brain neuropeptides called hypocretins or orexins,” says Dr. Wawa.

The hypocretins /orexins proteins, identified in all major groups of vertebrates, cause wakefulness when bound to hypocretin/orexin receptors. Lacking either the protein or the receptors cause narcolepsy.

Sleep disorders can only be clinically diagnosed. Before any medication is administered, one has to get the underlying causes which include stress, alcohol/drug use, weight issues, and physical illnesses such as airway obstruction. Natural remedies will be administered to improve the kind of sleep. Natural remedies create a good sleep hygiene pattern.

Good sleep hygiene are activities that you do during the day to make your sleep pattern better. They entail exercise, no taking of carbonated beverages, and eating early before bedtime such as 2-3 hours before sleeping While in bed you need to put your phone away, and your bedroom should have calming colors such as purple or blue. Playing calming music that has natural sounds. Reading good stories also calms the mind. Taking a cup of natural teas such as rosemary, passion , and even warm milk before bedtime tends to induce sleep.

A man having difficulty sleeping

PHOTO |STOCK

Dr. Sarah Wawa, a consultant psychiatrist at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) Department of Mental Health

PHOTO | COURTESY