SAN ANGELO, Texas - Restful, uninterrupted sleep is as important to our health as nutritious food. Humans sleep for one-third of our lives because our bodies need rest to repair the damage that is done while we are awake.
Inadequate sleep increases the risk for high blood pressure, poorly controlled cholesterol, heart attack, diabetes, chronic pain and depression as well as other serious conditions. While many people believe that they can "get by" on four or five hours of sleep per night, our bodies actually need seven to eight hours of sleep to fully recuperate and to perform optimally the next day.
An ongoing lack of sleep is insidious because its effects accumulate and begin to affect you over time. Often it takes patients six months to a year to realize that they are having sleep issues. Sometimes people notice that their sleep gradually decreases over time, going from seven or eight hours per night to two or three hours per night. Other patients notice specific symptoms of inadequate sleep, including being constantly tired or excessively sleepy in the daytime for at least one month, developing depression, anxiety or a variety of aches and pains, and having a poor sense of well-being. Other indicators include very loud snoring, frequent nighttime awakenings for no apparent reason, and waking in the morning feeling as if you've had no sleep at all.
Patients who are troubled with the symptoms of ongoing sleeplessness can visit their family doctor and request a sleep study. A sleep study is an in-depth evaluation of a person's sleep habits and patterns that help physicians determine the cause of the problems and the potential treatments.
Sleep study patients spend a night at a sleep center to be evaluated. They are allowed to bring their own pillows, pajamas, blankets and other things to help make them comfortable. Study patients are hooked to a series of monitors that measure brain activity, oxygen levels and breathing patterns, and movement of the limbs, as well as other things to determine the cause of their sleep issues.
At 10 p.m., it's "lights out" and the monitors do their work. The next morning, patients leave the facility to tackle their normal days. After a sleep specialist has assessed the sleep study, the patient comes back to the facility to meet with the sleep specialist to discuss the results and treatment options.
In some cases, the sleep difficulties may be the result of organic sleep problems, psychiatric problems such as anxiety or depression, uncontrolled pain from fibromyalgia or some other pre-existing condition, or sleep apnea. If it's the latter and the apnea is moderate to severe, the sleep team will prescribe a CPAP machine to help prevent complications like heart attack or stroke.
In other cases, it may be behaviors that are contributing to poor sleep. Late nights with the television, computer or video games make it difficult for your brain to shut down and rest. Late night exercise makes it difficult for your body to shut down and rest. Late night meals increase the chance of acid reflux and discomfort, making it difficult to sleep.
Sleep centers, such as Community Sleep Center, diagnose potential sleep disorders and offer a personalized solution that will help you optimize your health, your performance and your overall well-being.
Archana Rao, M.D., is a neurologist with West Texas Medical Associates and an independent member of the active medical staff at San Angelo Community Medical Center. Dr. Rao also is the medical director of Community Sleep Center.
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