Lying awake night after night, unable to sleep can be highly distressing and exhausting. If you’re struggling with insomnia and want nothing more than a good night’s sleep, Ocean Psychiatry in Fremont, California, can help. The practice’s expert mental health professionals determine the cause of your insomnia and provide effective therapies that finally allow you to get some restorative sleep. To find out more about insomnia treatments that work, call Ocean Psychiatry today or book an appointment online.
Insomnia is having difficulties sleeping. You might lie awake for hours, unable to fall asleep no matter how tired you feel. Or you might wake up frequently through the night. Either way, you get a few hours of sleep at best.
Everyone has the occasional bout of insomnia, usually when they’re sick or nervous about an upcoming event. These infrequent sleep problems aren’t harmful, but you shouldn’t suffer from insomnia repeatedly.
Long-term or recurring insomnia adversely affects your physical and emotional health. You’re likely to experience chronic fatigue and excessive daytime sleepiness and find you’re often irritable and short-tempered.
Everyone’s different, and some people only need four or five hours of sleep a day. But for most, between seven and nine hours of sleep is ideal. If insomnia is an ongoing problem, let the experts at Ocean Psychiatry help you find some peace.
Insomnia is sometimes a symptom of another health problem. It can also occur on its own. Common causes of insomnia include:
Certain medications like blood pressure pills, antidepressants, asthma medicines, and over-the-counter drugs containing stimulants are common causes of insomnia. Long-term conditions like hypothyroidism, cancer, and Parkinson’s disease can also stop you from sleeping or cause you to wake frequently during the night.
Insomnia affects older people more often because the aging process means they’re likely to sleep less.
Your provider at Ocean Psychiatry begins by reviewing your medical history, symptoms, and medications. Sometimes changing your medication and managing underlying health conditions more effectively can resolve insomnia.
It’s also vital to adopt healthy sleep habits. You should aim to try and sleep and get up at the same time each day and avoid naps. Make sure you have a supportive, comfortable mattress and pillows. Before settling down for sleep, avoid eating, watching TV, using smartphones, tablets, or laptops, and gaming.
If you still have problems sleeping, your Ocean Psychiatry provider can help with CBT-I (cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia). This therapy includes approaches like:
Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) might be helpful for patients whose insomnia is due to mental health disorders like depression or anxiety.
If you’re having trouble sleeping, speak to the compassionate team at Ocean Psychiatry. Call the office or book an appointment online today.