Insomniacs' sleep stress keeps them awake. Insomniacs seem to be
more easily aggravated by daily stress than sound sleepers, according to
new research from Canada.
By
Colin Allen, published on April 01, 2003
Insomniacs seem to be more easily aggravated by daily stress than
sound sleepers, according to new research from Canada. The average
troubled snoozer--defined as someone who regularly struggles for 30
minutes or more to fall asleep-- coped worse with daily tribulations such
as traffic jams than did good sleepers, who rated their lives as less
stressful, despite experiencing an equal number of daily
hardships.
These new findings, published in the journal
Psychosomatic Medicine, tracked 40 people with
insomnia and 27 who were satisfied with their sleeping schedules. While
both groups reported experiencing the same number of stressful events
during the day, bad sleepers were significantly more rattled by such
events.
Study author Charles Morin of Universite Laval in Quebec, Canada,
suggests that treating insomnia requires more than just inducing Zs. He
suggests that doctors who treat the disorder should also consider how
sufferers manage life's daily aggravations.
"We reduce the worry about losing sleep," explains Mark Chambers,
clinical director of American Sleep Diagnostics in Las Vegas, Nevada. As
someone who regularly encounters insomnia, Chambers finds that
sleep-related worries--not a lack of sleep itself--are the primary
culprits. "Insomniacs go to bed every night with dread," in anticipation
of lying awake, he notes. "They imagine a thousand worries related to
their sleep problem."
Unconvinced that all insomniacs are chronic daytime worriers,
Chambers suspects that sleep researchers often ignore personality,
leaving those who don't complain about insomnia overlooked.
For those who are troubled by an inability to sleep, Chambers
reminds that it's not something you can force yourself to do. "Just let
it happen," he advises. "Sleep is something you should not have to work
at."
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