By Paul Howard
According to a new report published by the Mental Health Foundation, insomnia needs to be treated as a major health issue.
The report called “Sleep Matters” suggests there is a link between insomnia and poor relationships, and also low energy levels and an inability to concentrate. To see the full report go to Sleep Matters.
Every living organism has a dormant period, so clients that experience sleep disorders, such as insomnia, are exhibiting an abnormal behaviour. As a rule, most insomnia is generated by an underlying anxiety. Finding and removing or resolving the underlying anxiety usually allows the client to return to a normal sleeping pattern.
Lack of sleep has been linked to depression, immune deficiency and heart disease. However, insomnia affects many other aspects of their lives as when fatigued it is very often difficult to reason effectively so even making simple decisions can be difficult.
The number of adults suffering from insomnia in the UK has previously been estimated at around 30%. The report showed insomniacs are four times more likely to have relationship problems, three times as likely to feel depressed and three times as likely to suffer from a lack of concentration.
Hypnotherapy is very effective at discovering and resolving the underlying anxiety and therefore allowing the client to return to their normal sleep routine. It is important to understand that it is not purely about the length of sleep but also about the quality of the sleep attained.
Having removed the reason that the insomnia started, it is important to educate the client how to practise to create the new sleep pattern that perhaps they have not done for many, many years.