The Prevalence and Treatment of Insomnia Today

Everyone experiences trouble sleeping from time to time. Indeed, the events from a busy day can easily intrude on sleep to the point where people fail to get enough rest each night and the ongoing global Covid-19 pandemic has added more fuel to these sleep-disrupting fires. When people consistently fail to get enough sleep for sustained periods of time, however, they can suffer from a wide range of physical and mental health disorders that can have life-changing implications. Although greater attention has been focused on sleep disorders such as insomnia in recent years, far too many people continue to suffer from this common but potentially harmful condition today. The purpose of this evidence synthesis paper is to provide a review of the relevant literature concerning the prevalence of insomnia among American adults today, a summary of the adverse mental health and physical problems the disorder can cause and what pharmacological and behavioral-based regimens have been identified as most efficacious for its treatment. Finally, a summary of the research and important findings concerning insomnia and its treatment are provided in the conclusion.

Review and Discussion

Background and overview

Like fire and dark energy, sleep is still a mysterious phenomenon in many ways to scientists today. Despite having been the focus of a growing body of research over the past several centuries, much still remains unknown or unclear about sleep and its role in human physiology. Moreover, there are still numerous misconceptions and myths about sleep that may prevent people from seeking professional assistance when they need it for disordered sleep. For example, according to the American Sleep Association (2020), Prior to the mid-20th century, researchers conceptualized sleep as a passive, dormant part of our daily lives [but] fast forward 70 years and we now know that our brains are very active during sleep (What is sleep and why is it important?, para. 2).

Although there is no universally accepted definition, two representative definitions of sleep include the following:

1. A condition of body and mind such as that which typically recurs for several hours every night, in which the nervous system is relatively inactive, the eyes closed, the postural muscles relaxed, and consciousness practically suspended (Google dictionary).

2. The natural, easily reversible periodic state of many living things that is marked by the absence of wakefulness and by the loss of consciousness of one's surroundings, is accompanied by a typical body posture (such as lying down with the eyes closed), the occurrence of dreaming, and changes in brain activity and physiological functioning, is made up of cycles of non-rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and REM sleep, and is usually considered essential to the restoration and recovery of vital bodily and mental...

This evolution in the precision of the definition of sleep may have also affected the prevalence of sleep-related disorders such as insomnia by raising consumer awareness and these issues are discussed further below.

Prevalence of insomnia

At the global level, insomnia is widely prevalent and the disorder has been reported to affect up to 33% of the adult population (Sharma & Andrade, 2017). Indeed, some researchers estimate the global prevalence of insomnia as being even higher, perhaps as high as 50% to 60% in some cases. In this regard, Bhaskar, Hemavathy and Prasad (2016) report that, Various studies worldwide have shown the prevalence of insomnia in 10%30% of...

…2009).

Conclusion

The research showed that obtaining a sufficient amount of restful, REM sleep each night is essential for maintaining good mental and physical health. The research also showed, however, that the frail human condition is replete with events that intrude on individuals ability to get to sleep and stay asleep for the full 7 hours that are recommended for adults by the CDC. In sum, and to paraphrase Hamlet, To sleep, perchance to dream ay, theres the rub. Even under the best of circumstances, the human brain is a relentlessly busy machine, constantly churning out random neurotransmissions during sleep that manifest in infinite ways which accounts, in part, for the increased prevalence rate for insomnia in the United States in recent years. Improvements in definitional clarity with respect to insomnia disorder have also contributed to this increase by helping clinicians better diagnose the condition. The research was also consistent in showing that there are several evidence-based behavioral and pharmacological interventions that have been used to treat insomnia disorder with varying degrees of effectiveness, suggesting there is no one-size-fits-all treatment strategy that is appropriate for all adult insomniacs. In the final analysis, it is reasonable to conclude that the prevalence of insomnia in the United States will continue to escalate unless and until and an effective vaccine for the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic is developed and made widely available and the social, political and economic turmoil that is wracking the nation has been successfully resolved. Finally, as noted throughout, even under optimal circumstances, though, most people will experience trouble sleeping at some point in their lives but the vast majority manage to overcome these transient episodes and return to their normal sleeping patterns. Therefore, clincians should remain vigilant concerning new evidence-based behavioral and pharmacological interventions that can be used to treat the symptoms…