by Tricia Muller

Created on: January 28, 2010

More and more people are suffering from insomnia in todays busy, high stress world. Statistics show that over 30 million Americans suffer from insomnia, women are more likely to suffer from it than men, and even children are having to learn to deal with it. The effects of insomnia vary from person to person, but there are some facts that can make it easier to know what to expect and to help your loved ones understand what you are going through.

One of the most obvious effects of insomnia is, of course, fatigue. After a night of staring at the ceiling wishing you could sleep, finally dozing off two hours before the alarm goes off makes it difficult to get on with a normal day. You can't call the boss and call off because you're too tired to work, can't tell the kids to drive themselves to school, all you can do is try to cope.

Another effect that doesn't seem to be as well known is weight gain. People who suffer from insomnia are 27% more likely to become obese. If you have trouble sleeping getting plenty of exercise is a must, no matter how tired you are. Proper exercise may also help you to sleep at night.

Depression is a common symptom of people dealing with insomnia. It's hard to keep your spirits up when you have no energy to do the things you must, let alone do the things you enjoy.

The financial cost of insomnia is on the rise in America as well. Hundreds of billions of dollars are spent each year on the medical costs of sleep disorders. According to the U.S. Surgeon General insomnia costs the government over 15$ billion per year in health care costs. The rising cost of medicine also makes it difficult for the average consumer to afford even over the counter sleep aids, to say nothing of the high cost of prescription sleeping medicines.

Insomnia also has an effect in every day dealings with others. A person suffering from insomnia tends to be more easily irritated, less interested in spending time with others, less interested in sex, less interested in life in general. It can be hard to keep relationships thriving without a great deal of understanding and love.

In all, insomnia is a life altering problem and more research needs to be done to help the many people that deal with it, whether sporadically or chronically.

Statistics taken from http://www.better-sleep-better-life.com/insomnia-sta tistics.html

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