Have you ever wondered what causes insomnia? Would you be surprised that most of it has to do with your state of mind? What’s on you mind has a significantly affect on your sleep. Too much on your mind or an overactive imagination can cause you to have difficulty sleeping. Staying awake working or watching T.V. at night can compound these problems and can over stimulate your already overactive mind. Simply learning to relax and let go of the day’s events can help you sleep better.

Let’s look at what causes insomnia.

1. Stress - Stress induced insomnia is probably the number one reason that people have difficulty sleeping. Concerns about work, school, health or family can keep your mind too active, giving you trouble falling asleep. Excessive boredom, such as after retirement or during a long illness, may occur and also can create stress and give you trouble falling asleep.

2. Anxiety – Many people today suffer from anxiety. Small, everyday anxieties as well as severe anxiety disorders may keep your mind too alert to fall asleep.

3. Depression – Many studies have linked sleep and depression. If you are depressed you may either sleep too much or have difficultly sleeping. This may be due to chemical imbalances in your brain or because worries that accompany depression may keep you from relaxing enough to fall asleep.

4. Stimulants – Stimulants can come from many different places. Prescription drugs, including some antidepressants, high blood pressure and corticosteroid medications, can cause your trouble falling or staying asleep. Many over-the-counter (OTC) medications, including some pain medication combinations, decongestants and weight-loss products, contain caffeine and other stimulants. Antihistamines may initially make you groggy, but they can make urinary problems worse, causing you to get up more during the night.

5. A change in your environment or work schedule - Travel or working the late or early shift can disrupt your body’s circadian rhythms. Your circadian rhythms act as internal clocks, guiding such things as your wake-sleep cycle, metabolism and body temperature. Circadian rhythms are what help you sleep so disturbing them can make it difficult to fall or stay asleep.

6. Long-term use of sleep medications – In addition to being addictive, used over time, sleep medications can lead to sleeping disorders. This includes over the counter sleep medications. If you need sleep medications for longer than a few days, talk with your doctor, preferably one who specializes in sleeping disorders.

7. Medical conditions that cause pain – Pain can keep nearly anyone awake. Pain from arthritis, fibromyalgiaand neuropathies, among other conditions can give anyone difficulty sleeping. Make sure that your medical conditions are well treated as this will definitely help you with your insomnia.

8. Behavioral insomnia – Not keeping a regular sleep pattern can result in behavioral insomnia, especially in children. Behavioral insomnia may also occur when you worry excessively about not being able to sleep well and try too hard to fall asleep. This can spiral into a vicious cycle of having difficulty sleeping. Most people with this condition sleep better when they’re away from their usual sleep environment or when they don’t try to sleep, such as when they’re watching TV or reading.

9. Eating too much too late in the evening – Although you may feel tired as a result of all your blood flowing to your stomach after eating a huge meal, eating too much is one of the biggest preventable reasons for having difficulty sleeping. While having a light snack before bedtime is OK, eating too much may cause you to feel physically uncomfortable while lying down, making it difficult to get to sleep. You may experience heartburn, a backflow of acid and food from the stomach to the esophagus after eating. Any of these cause you trouble falling or staying asleep.

10. Aging – Having difficulty sleeping becomes more prevalent with age. As you get older, changes can occur that may affect your sleep.

While this list isn’t all inclusive it does give you a place to start to determine what is giving you difficulty sleeping. Once you find out what it is you may be able to overcome your insomnia and start sleeping again!

Wil Dieck is the founder of Total Mind Therapy and author of an e-Course “Overcoming Insomnia” that you can have at absolutely no charge. Drop by http://howtosleepinfo.com/ for your copy today.

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