It is defined as problems falling asleep, maintaining and ending sleep, restless sleep, insomnia.
Insomnia; It causes a feeling of tiredness during the day, changes in the emotional field (such as restlessness, irritability), a decrease in productivity, and even a deterioration in intellectual functions.
Insomnia has a meaning beyond not being able to sleep for the patient, and it also causes problems in psychosocial and professional fields.
Research indicates that people with insomnia have more problems in their daily life and general health, their quality of life decreases gradually and they tend to seek help more in terms of time/energy.
It is noteworthy that 75% of the psychiatric disorders suffer from insomnia.
Among these, sleep disorders that occur in depression have a special place. Changes in the sleep patterns of people with depression are accepted as biological indicators. Typical features of this pattern can be summarized as entering the REM period in a short time, waking up frequently at night, and waking up early in the morning.
Anxiety tables, on the other hand, often have sleep problems in the foreground. Some of these patients find it difficult to sleep because they cannot get enough relaxation due to tension.
It can be said that all factors leading to arousal can cause insomnia. For this reason, there may be short-term or permanent psychological/biological changes at the source.
Somatic diseases and some medications can be biological causes of insomnia.
It can be said that the tension and anxieties of the individual, which cause stress, prevent the expected relaxation at the beginning of sleep, and even that sleep or sleep emerges as an anxiety-provoking experience. Thus, the patient’s sleep is delayed or unable to fall asleep, and sleep continues with interruptions even if it starts.
In some of the sleep-deprived people, significant benefits can be obtained only by regulating sleep hygiene. For sleep hygiene, attention should be paid to the following points:
– not being very hungry or full,
– avoiding caffeinated, alcoholic, cola drinks and tobacco use,
– exercising regularly, but avoiding activities that will create excitement in the evening hours,
-not going to bed before sleep,
-using the bedroom only for sleep and sexual intercourse,
-not trying to sleep when you can’t sleep, getting out of bed and bedroom and returning to bed when you sleep,
– getting up at a certain time in the morning no matter how much sleep one gets,
-not sleeping during the day and isolating the bedroom in terms of sound, light and heat.
If insomnia persists despite these regulations, acupuncture treatment can be applied. Acupuncture, with its regulating effect on the limbic system, will make the person more resistant to stress, as well as improve our sleeping pattern, which is under the control of the limbic system, and enable us to sleep more comfortably and restfully. In the treatment of insomnia, 15 sessions of acupuncture treatment are applied to the patient, which starts with 3 times a week and becomes less frequent in the following weeks.
