What are the different types of insomnia and what causes them?

Insomnia is usually caused by more than one factor working together over time. For example, people who have a death in the family often have several sleepless nights immediately following the death. In reaction to their poor sleep, they may start taking sleeping pills at night and drinking more caffeine during the day. They may also spend more hours in bed at night in hopes they will sleep a little more. In this case, the insomnia is caused by more than one factor: the stress, the sleeping pills, the caffeine, and too much time in bed.

Mood problems like depression (feeling sad) or mania (feeling elated) and anxiety problems may worsen insomnia. Although people with these problems may think their mood will improve if their sleep gets better, it usually works better to treat the mood or anxiety problem first.

Another factor that increases the risk of insomnia in some people is an irregular schedule of getting to sleep and waking up. Good examples are policemen and nurses and others who do shift work. The brain has its own internal clock or time keeper that directs the body in its daily rhythms of sleeping and waking. If a person goes to sleep and wakes up at different times on different days, the time of day he or she needs to sleep or wake up on any given day may not be the time of day that the brain thinks the body should sleep or wake up.

Insomnia can be caused by prescription medication or by street drugs. When you begin a medication, ask whether it is likely to interfere with sleep or cause tiredness during the day. Cocaine and related drugs can interfere with sleep. Nicotine may also affect sleep.

Some people use alcohol as a sleep aid. This is a mistake since alcohol disturbs the normal stages of sleep. Many people who drink alcohol in the evening find they wake up in the middle of the night and have trouble getting back to sleep.

Caffeine in coffee, tea and some soft drinks can also affect sleep. Too much caffeine can make it hard to fall asleep.

Chronic pain can cause insomnia, as can a problem called Restless Leg Syndrome.