Effects of Insomnia
The Side Effects of The Disorder are Serious and Treatment Should Not Be Ignored or Delayed

The effects of insomnia can range from minor to quite critical.  Patients who suffer from insomnia may experience a wide range of side effects that are directly related to the disorder.  Sleep deprivation, one of the side effects of insomnia, can be detrimental to a person's mental and physical well-being.  Insomnia contributes to this because insomnia patients experience great difficulty in getting to sleep, staying asleep or getting quality sleep.  Sometimes, the insomnia is exacerbated because the patient stresses over not being able to sleep and this becomes a vicious cycle that creates anxiety actually preventing him or her from sleeping.  The sleep deprivation stemming from this anxiety causes greater anxiety as the patient's thresholds are decreased because the patient is tired and sleep deprived. 

Insomnia also causes irritability, anxiety disorders, depression disorders, diminished performance in daily activities, poor memory and inability to concentrate.  The body needs sleep to regenerate and renew vital cells.  It requires rest to refresh and revitalize so that the body can continue operating at an optimal level.  To rob the body of vital sleep causes the body to be unable to conduct natural maintenance.  This causes the body to become run down.  There is an increased risk of contracting viruses and illnesses as the immune system begins to decline.  Joints ache, the patient may experience headaches, and muscle soreness as endorphin production in the brain is decreased.  Serotonin production is stifled as the body moves into fight or flight mode to protect the vital organs due to the stress that it is experiencing. 

The body recognizes this deprivation and the side effect, stress that is caused by it, as a crisis situation so it moves to protect the vital organs to sustain life.   This causes blood to be channeled away from secondary organs, such as the skin, and directed to the heart, lungs and other life sustaining organs.  This is why some patients experiencing severe stress will develop rashes or severely dry skin as a side effect.  Sleep deprivation disorder can cause severe stress and affect literally every aspect of a patient's life. 

Treatment of the symptoms are usually the first step in overcoming this disorder.  Medications designed to combat the symptoms of anxiety and stress are usually the first medications in the line of beginning to treat other symptoms.  When the patient receives medications and treatment for his or her symptoms this sometimes is enough to cure the insomnia.   However, if the treatment of the symptoms does not cure the insomnia, then medications and treatment of the insomnia will be the next step.

See Also: Eliminate Snoring

About The Author:
Kerri Iamele is a successful author and regular contributor to sleep-disorders-help.com.