Sleep Disorders

The signs and symptoms of different sleep disorders may vary. Some of the most common and most researched symptoms include:

• Insomnia involves persistent difficulty falling or staying asleep, which can be coupled with frequent early morning awakenings. Chronic insomnia is diagnosed when symptoms occur at least three times a week for three months or more.
• Sleep-related breathing disorders, such as obstructive sleep apnea, involve abnormal breathing or difficulty breathing during sleep. Sleep apnea is a condition marked by brief, repetitive interruptions in breathing during sleep, which may sound like snoring or gasping.
• Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is marked by uncomfortable sensations in the legs, like itching, prickling, or creeping. RLS gives people an overwhelming urge to move their legs at night, which can make falling asleep difficult.
• Parasomnias are a group of sleep disorders that involve unwanted events or experiences that happen while falling asleep, sleeping, or waking up. Parasomnias include sleepwalking, night terrors, sleep paralysis, and sleep-related hallucinations. A parasomnia called REM sleep behavior disorder causes people to act out vivid dreams during sleep in a potentially harmful way.
• Narcolepsy is a relatively rare neurological disorder that causes persistent excessive daytime sleepiness. These symptoms impact a person’s work, school, or social life and increase their risk for injury and accidents.

If a person isn’t getting enough quality sleep, it can negatively affect their attention, learning, memory, and productivity. It can also impact their mood and physical health, leading to problems like heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes, obesity, and other conditions.

If you have trouble falling or staying asleep, struggle with daytime sleepiness, or have symptoms related to your ability to sleep, be sure to get in touch with your doctor. Your doctor will ask you about your medical history, symptoms, and sleep habits, and may conduct a physical exam to rule out other causes. Depending on your symptoms, it may help to ask your partner about your breathing or movements during sleep. Your doctor may also run tests, recommend an overnight sleep study, or refer you to a sleep specialist.

Treatment options for sleep disorders include therapy, surgery, rehabilitation and management, and medication. The specific treatment or combination of treatments will depend on a person’s symptoms and diagnosis, medical and psychiatric history, and preferences.

Special equipment may be required for treatment of several disorders, such as obstructive sleep apnea. Lifestyle changes, such as avoiding certain drinks or food, losing weight, or establishing healthy sleep habits, may also help reduce or prevent some disorders like sleep apnea. Adjusting your medications or treating underlying health conditions can improve sleep. When a sleep disorder is severe, there may be limits to how it can be managed.

Researchers are currently investigating the questions we still have about sleep disorders. Some areas of study include whether narcolepsy is an autoimmune disease, the cause and best treatment for restless legs syndrome, and how REM sleep behavior disorder may be linked to developing neurodegenerative disease. Sleep science continues to study the best ways to get quality sleep, how genetics and environment affect our sleep, and how sleep and circadian rhythms affect our health.