ASMR & INSOMNIA TREATMENTS

‘Insomnia’ is defined as having trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, or as having restless sleep despite going to bed and attempting to sleep.
Life is filled with events that occasionally cause ’sleep deprivation’ for a short time. This is not uncommon and is often brought on by situations such as stress at work, family pressures, or a traumatic event. 

Chronic insomnia is defined as having symptoms at least 3 nights per week for more than 1 month. Most cases of chronic insomnia are secondary, which means they are due to another disorder or medications. Primary chronic insomnia is a distinct sleep disorder; its cause is not yet well understood. About 30-40 percent of adults say they have some symptoms of insomnia within any given year, and about 10-15 percent of adults say they have chronic insomnia.

Chronic insomnia becomes more common with age, and women are more likely than men to report having insomnia.

Insomnia often causes problems during the day, such as extreme sleepiness, fatigue, a lack of energy, difficulty concentrating, depressed mood, and irritability. Thus, untreated insomnia can impair quality of life. Often, people who have insomnia enter into a vicious cycle—because they've had trouble sleeping on previous nights, they become anxious at the slightest sign that they may not be falling asleep right away.

That anxiety can make it more difficult for them to fall asleep. 

The more time they spend in bed not sleeping, and watching the clock, the more their anxiety-and sleeplessness— increases.

Some people who have chronic insomnia that is not corrected by behavioural therapy or treatment of an underlying condition may need a prescription medication. 

Many of my clients have understandably attempted to help treat their insomnia with alcohol, over-the-counter or prescribed short-acting sedatives, or sedating antihistamines that induce drowsiness.

The benefits of these treatments are limited, and they have risks. Some may help you fall asleep but leave you feeling unrefreshed in the morning.

Others have longer lasting effects and leave you feeling still tired and groggy in the morning. Some also may lose their effectiveness over time.

Doctors may prescribe sedating antidepressants for insomnia, but the effectiveness of these medicines in people who do not have depression is not known, and there are significant side effects that can make you feel extremely anxious and unwell and actually make the Insomnia  and mental health worse. This is a concern that I have come across frequently with client’s medication appeared to have helped them sleep, however, it wore off quickly and they were once  struggling to get a restful nights sleep.

so, how can I help? ’ASMR ‘ is undoubtedly relaxing and can most certainly help  many people with long-term relaxation, therefore in some cases help with Insomnia.