Sleep Conditions

Poor sleep can affect your quality of life including your safety, relationships, work performance, thinking, mental health, weight and can lead to other long-term conditions.

You might have a sleep disorder if you experience one or more of the following symptoms:

• Struggle to stay awake when inactive, such as when watching television or reading?
• Have difficulty paying attention or concentrating at school or home?
• Have performance problems at work?
• Often get told by others that you look sleepy?
• Have difficulty with your memory?
• Have slowed responses?
• Have difficulty controlling your emotions?
• Need to take naps almost every day?

Treatment

An assessment for sleep disorder involves assessing the cause of your sleep condition, the impact on quality of life, duration of symptoms, sleep hygiene and for suspected secondary causes of insomnia.

Some doctors may ask you to keep a sleep diaries, these are useful to help identify your habits prior to going to sleep and during the night which that may affect the inability to achieve a good nights sleep.

GPs now rarely prescribe sleeping pills to treat insomnia. Sleeping pills can have serious side effects and you can become dependent on them.

Sleeping pills are only prescribed for a few days, or weeks at the most, if:

• Your insomnia is very bad
• Other treatments have not worked

Tips for improving your sleep

• Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day
• Relax at least 1 hour before bed, for example, take a bath or read a book
• Make sure your bedroom is dark and quiet – use curtains, blinds, an eye mask or ear plugs if needed
• Exercise regularly during the day
• Make sure your mattress, pillows and covers are comfortable