Insomnia - a national problem for our students?
The sound most people dread first thing in the morning is the buzzing of the alarm clock. Most of us fantasise about hurling it at the bedroom wall just for an extra five minutes in bed. Most would love to never set the alarm clock again.
For three per cent of the population this is not a problem. They have insomnia.
Insomnia can be anything from not being able to get to sleep to staying asleep to even waking up too early. British Sleep Society Chairman Neil Stanley explained, "Anyone who says they are tired all the time is not sleeping enough and therefore by definition has insomnia."
One in three people will suffer from insomnia at some point in their lives whether it is for one night, a month or several years.
David, 21, a student from Switzerland has suffered from sleep deprivation since he was 12. In the past few months he has visited doctors who have diagnosed him as a chronic insomniac.
The university student sleeps around two hours a night and can't remember the last time he slept well. He believes the reason for this is simply that he is never tired but the truth is he probably has a disorder called idiopathic insomnia, which is insomnia for no reason. These people will never get a good night's sleep even with drugs.
Many sufferers complain that their local GPs give them conflicting or even inaccurate advice, leaving them confused about their insomnia.
David visited a doctor for the first time a few months ago and straight away the diagnosis was that his insomnia was related to some kind of trauma. He was prescribed anti-depressants simply because the doctors know so little about trying to cure the disorder.
Combating insomnia is a daily struggle for people like David. He finds it hardest to cope with feeling alone and being isolated. He also has frequent memory lapses and often feels disorientated. He has tried everything from caffeine to social drugs to now taking sleeping tablets as well as his anti-depressants. More than anything he is bored of having to battle to get to sleep.
When the medication fails to have an effect there is always extreme physical
sport. He used to scuba-dive to depths of 35 metres and he claims this gave him the best night's sleep of his life. Obviously he can't scuba dive every day.
David says that his insomnia is part of his identity and that he has come to terms with the fact that he will probably never sleep properly again.
Mr Stanley revealed, "The surprising fact is that only half of doctors have had any training in sleep and of those the average time spent in those seven years of training on sleep is five minutes. We spend a third of our lives sleeping but doctors know nothing about it."
Mr Stanley adds, "The doctors seem to be scared of using the correct drugs and aren't really aware that there are clinics to help and often believe it is a waste of money to refer someone there."
The expert, who appeared on Channel 4's Shattered, believes that insomnia is very much a psychological problem, "The basis of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is that if they stop worrying about getting to sleep the likelihood is that it will naturally happen anyway."
He also thinks sleeping pills affect the way insomniacs view their disorder. "With most drugs you have to take them before you sleep – before the problem has even occurred. People think 'I'm going to have a bad night’s sleep so I need to take this drug.'"
There are five new hypnotic medication drugs in development at the moment and two of them work differently to anything sleep researchers have found before.
The main drug, Zaleplon, is a short-acting pill that can be taken at any stage during the night as it carries minimal side effects. Instead of taking a pill before you sleep, patients try to get to sleep first and then tackle the problem with Zaleplon if sleep doesn't occur naturally.
One of Mr Stanley's colleagues has a novel way of relaxing after travelling on planes; she eats turkey sandwiches, which contain the same calming agent Tryptophan as Horlicks. This explains why we become more relaxed after our meals on Christmas Day.
After nine years of insomnia it will take more than turkey to cure David's sleep disorder. He plans on visiting a sleep clinic but has mixed expectations. His ultimate fantasy is sleeping undisturbed for three whole days.
Mr. Stanley says music can help with relaxing and falling asleep. He suggests using an album you know off by heart leaving you free to concentrate on the task of getting to sleep. But what kind of music is ideal for nodding off? The expert listens to Pink Floyd.
Lack of sleep knowledge for doctors
Drink warm milk, count sheep and use lavender pillows. These are the suggestions an insomniac can expect to receive when visiting a local GP. We spend one third of our lives in the land of slumber but the lack of training given to doctors in dealing with sleep problems is shocking.A doctor studies for seven years. Only half of them study sleep. According to the Chairman of British Sleep Society, those that do receive the training spend approximately a mere five minutes studying sleep. So how can these so-called experts effectively diagnose any sleep-related illness?
If your GP had not been trained in how to treat influenza, you would be very reluctant to take prescribed medication from him. So why should an insomniac feel comfortable being treated by someone with little or no formal training in that particular field?
Doctors jump straight to the conclusion that patients who complain about sleep deprivation also have some kind of depression or trauma. They prescribe anti-depressants regardless of whether or not the patient needs them.
While this is clearly unacceptable, the blame does not necessarily lie with the doctor. Perhaps the question we should be asking is 'Why are doctors not receiving sufficient training in the area of sleep disorders?' Although the budget for medical training has doubled since 1997 to £3.4 billion, the knowledge that is so sorely needed for diagnosing sleep disorders is not being given the funding it requires. How long will it take for the medical schools to wake up and realise that this is simply not good enough?
Maybe they should sleep on it.
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