Doctors associate a variety of signs and symptoms with insomnia. Often, the symptoms intertwine with those of other medical or mental health conditions.
- People with insomnia complain of difficulty falling asleep or waking up frequently after falling asleep. The problem may begin with stress. Then, as you begin to associate the bed with your inability to sleep, the bedroom becomes "hostile territory" and the problem may become chronic because of this negative association.
- Depression and other mental illnesses are often associated with insomnia.
- Most often daytime symptoms will bring people to seek medical attention. Daytime problems caused by insomnia include the following:
- Poor concentration and focus
- Difficulty with memory
- Impaired motor coordination
- Irritability and impaired social interaction
- Motor vehicle accidents because of fatigued, sleep-deprived drivers
- People may worsen these daytime symptoms by their own attempts to treat the problem:
- Alcohol, antihistamines, and some non-prescription sleep aids may compound the problem because they can lead to poor sleep quality.
