EDUCATION
What are some of the most critical issues surrounding sleep today?
The major sleep health organizations in the US recognize that untreated sleep illness and chronic sleep loss have a cumulative impact on nearly every key public health indicator and increase the risk of:
- physical health problems
- mental health problems
- premature death
- mortality
- chronic illness
- accidents
- injuries
- disability
- workplace problems
- relationship problems
Learn more: “AASM partners with CDC to address chronic sleep loss epidemic”
What if I become drowsy while driving? Should I be concerned?
Yes! If you are too tired to drive, you become a safety risk not only to yourself but to others and to property owners.
Sleep deprivation can be caused by lack of quality sleep, which can be caused by any number of problems: drug interactions, anxiety, sleep breathing disorders, movement disorders of sleep, even neurological disorders you might not even know you have.
If you don’t address issues of sleep deprivation, you can not only find yourself at fault in a deadly vehicular crash, but in the long term, you could also be aggravating preexisting health conditions or setting into motion a host of new problems with obesity, heart disease, metabolic disorders, breathing concerns, cognitive problems, even mental health issues.
Why put yourself at risk? Sleep disorders and deprivation are easily treated. It’s imperative to find out why you can’t sleep so that you can treat the underlying problems.
Do these statements sound familiar?
I can fall asleep but I can’t stay asleep.
(or)
I can’t fall asleep.
(or)
I fall asleep and stay asleep, but when I wake up, I’m still extremely tired.
These are all problems that point to an imbalance in your physical well being. When sleep is interrupted or no longer refreshes you, even when you have long periods of uninterrupted sleep, it’s important to find out why.
These kinds of sleep problems can lead to systemic, chronic health problems later. The good news is that once diagnosed, they are easily treated.
