Insomnia and micronaps

[Saffycat]

I have chronic insomnia, I can go up to ten days without sleep, but after about three or four days I start dreaming while I'm awake, and as I get further with no sleep the dream stages get worse and longer. For example, as of 3am, I will have not slept for five days, but I had a very horrific nightmare (featuring chainsaws) about twenty minutes ago... The cause of my insomnia is still unknown, but I have also been slipping in and out of being underweight (I'm currently 90lbs and 5 foot 5.) Can anybody help me with any of this? Thanks

[Saffycat]

Thanks for your suggestions, I will try them :)

[Paderla Anitha, DNB]

Hello and hope you are doing well.

A lot of studies have been done to highlight the importance of sleep and its rejuvenating capacity. Sleep is required to heal; it causes regeneration of the neurons within the cerebral cortex. Prolonged sleep loss leads to episodes of ‘micro sleep’, where in the person has several seconds of actual sleep in between wakefulness, this leads to a decrease in performance and in turn behavior. The implications as such are many, micro sleep episodes are the commonest cause for accidents.

But the best way would be to stop thinking about sleep and your sleeplessness. The more anxious you get, the more difficulty you will have falling asleep and this becomes a vicious cycle. You should stop becoming anxious and try to relax. Try to have a warm bath before sleeping. Have a glass of milk or read a book before trying to sleep. Don’t watch TV or do exercise before sleeping. Condition yourself that you can relax and that you can sleep well.

Please consult your primary care physician if problem persists. He may refer you to a sleep specialist if needed.

Hope this helped and do keep us posted.