Sleep disorders and symptoms
The Sleep Disorders Center of DeKalb Medical can evaluate over 125 different sleep disorders and symptoms. If you have problems sleeping, take our sleep quiz to see if you should be evaluated for a sleep disorder.
See below for a description of the most common types of sleep disorders.
Sleep Apnea
Insomnia
Restless Leg Syndrome
Narcolepsy
Excessive Daytime Somnolence
Sleep walking/talking/eating
Sleep apnea is a common sleep disorder with symptoms such as one or more pauses in breathing or shallow breaths while you sleep.
Breathing pauses can last from a few seconds to minutes. They often occur five to 30 times or more an hour. Typically, normal breathing then starts again, sometimes with a loud snort or choking sound.
Sleep apnea usually is a chronic (ongoing) condition that disrupts your sleep three or more nights each week. You often move out of deep sleep and into light sleep when your breathing pauses or becomes shallow.
This results in problems sleeping that make you tired during the day. Sleep apnea is one of the leading causes of excessive daytime sleepiness.
Most people who have sleep apnea don't know they have it because it only occurs during sleep. A family member and/or bed partner may first notice the signs of sleep apnea.
The most common type of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea. This most often means that the airway has collapsed or is blocked during sleep. The blockage may cause shallow breathing or breathing pauses.
When you try to breathe, any air that squeezes past the blockage can cause loud snoring. Obstructive sleep apnea happens more often in people who are overweight, but it can affect anyone.
It is important to learn about sleep disorders and symptoms if you suspect you or a family member have problems sleeping. For more information about causes, symptoms and treatments for sleep apnea, click here. You can also learn more by going to www.americansleepassociation.com.
Insomnia is a common sleep problem in which you have trouble falling or staying asleep. This sleep disorder and its symptoms can range from mild to severe, depending on how often it occurs and for how long.
Insomnia can be chronic (ongoing) or acute (short-term) sleep problem. Chronic insomnia means having symptoms at least three nights a week for more than a month. Acute insomnia lasts for less time.
Some people who have insomnia may have trouble falling asleep. Other people may fall asleep easily but wake up too soon. Others may have trouble with both falling asleep and staying asleep.
As a result, insomnia may cause you to get too little sleep or have poor-quality sleep. You may not feel refreshed when you wake up.
There are two types of insomnia. The most common type is called secondary or comorbid insomnia. This type of insomnia is a symptom or side effect of some other problem.
More than 8 out of 10 people who have insomnia are believed to have secondary insomnia. Certain medical conditions, medicines, sleep disorders, and substances can cause secondary insomnia. Secondary insomnia often resolves or improves without treatment if you can stop its cause—especially if you can correct the problem soon after it starts. For example, if caffeine is causing your insomnia, stopping or limiting your intake of the substance may cause your sleep problems to go away.
In contrast, primary insomnia isn't due to a medical problem, medicines, or other substances. It is its own disorder. A number of life changes can trigger primary insomnia, including long-lasting stress and emotional upset.
Insomnia can cause excessive daytime sleepiness and a lack of energy. It also can make you feel anxious, depressed, or irritable. You may have trouble focusing on tasks, paying attention, learning, and remembering. This can prevent you from doing your best at work or school. Insomnia also can cause other serious problems. For example, you may feel drowsy while driving, which could lead to an accident.
Lifestyle changes, which include better sleep habits, often help relieve acute insomnia. For chronic insomnia, your doctor may recommend a type of counseling called cognitive-behavioral therapy or medicines.
It is important to learn about sleep disorders and symptoms if you suspect you or a family member have problems sleeping. For more information about causes, symptoms, and treatments for insomnia, click here.
Restless legs syndrome (RLS) is a type of sleep disorder that causes a strong urge to move your legs. This urge to move often occurs with strange and unpleasant feelings in your legs. Moving your legs relieves the urge and the unpleasant feelings.
People who have this sleep disorder and its symptoms describe the unpleasant feelings as creeping, crawling, pulling, itching, tingling, burning, aching, or electric shocks. Sometimes, the feelings also occur in the arms.
The urge to move and unpleasant feelings occur when you’re resting and inactive. They tend to be worse in the evening and at night and are temporarily relieved in the morning.
RLS can cause problems sleeping because it is hard to fall asleep and stay asleep with RLS. It may make you feel tired and sleepy during the day. This can make it hard to learn, work, and do your normal routine. Not getting enough sleep also can cause depression, mood swings, or other health problems.
One type of RLS usually starts early in life (before age 45) and tends to run in families. It may even start in childhood. Once this type of RLS starts, it usually lasts for the rest of your life. Over time, symptoms slowly get worse and occur more often. If you have a mild case, you may have long periods with no symptoms.
Another type of RLS usually starts later in life (after age 45). It generally doesn’t run in families. This type tends to have a more abrupt onset. The symptoms usually don’t get worse with age.
Some diseases, conditions, and medicines also may trigger RLS. For example, it has been associated with kidney failure, Parkinson disease, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, pregnancy, and iron deficiency. When a disease, condition, or medicine causes RLS, the symptoms usually start suddenly.
Treatments for RLS include lifestyle changes and medicines. Some simple lifestyle changes often help relieve mild cases of RLS. Medicines usually can relieve or prevent the symptoms of more severe RLS. Research is ongoing to better understand the causes of RLS and to find better treatments.
It is important to learn about sleep disorders and symptoms if you suspect you or a family member have problems sleeping. For more information about causes, symptoms and treatment of restless leg syndrome, click here .
Narcolepsy is a type of sleep disorder that causes periods of extreme daytime sleepiness. It also may cause muscle weakness.
Rarely, people who have this disorder fall asleep suddenly, even if they're in the middle of talking, eating, or another activity. Most people who have narcolepsy also have trouble sleeping at night.
This sleep disorder and its symptoms may cause:
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Cataplexy. This condition causes a sudden loss of muscle tone while you're awake. Muscle weakness can occur in certain parts of your body or in your whole body. For example, if cataplexy affects your hand, you may drop what you're holding. Strong emotions often trigger this weakness. It may last seconds or minutes.
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Hallucinations. These vivid dreams occur while falling asleep or waking up.
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Sleep paralysis. This condition prevents you from moving or speaking while waking up and sometimes while falling asleep. Sleep paralysis usually goes away within a few minutes.
The two main phases of sleep are nonrapid eye movement (NREM) and rapid eye movement (REM). Most people are in the NREM phase when they first fall asleep. After about 90 minutes of sleep, most people go from NREM to REM sleep.
Dreaming occurs during the REM phase of sleep. During REM, your muscles normally become limp. This prevents you from acting out your dreams. People who have narcolepsy often fall into REM sleep quickly and wake up directly from it. This is linked to vivid dreams while waking up and falling asleep.
Narcolepsy affects between 50,000 and 2.4 million people in the United States. Symptoms usually begin during the teen or young adult years. Due to extreme tiredness, people who have narcolepsy may find it hard to function at school, work, home, and in social situations. Narcolepsy has no cure, but medicines, lifestyle changes, and other therapies can improve symptoms. Research on the causes of narcolepsy and new ways to treat it is ongoing.
It is important to learn about sleep disorders and symptoms if you suspect you or a family member have problems sleeping. For more information about narcolepsy, click here.
Excessive daytime sleepiness can be a symptom of sleep apnea. Also referred to as drowsiness it is not the same as fatigue. People with excessive daytime somnolence or sleepiness feel abnormally sleepy during the day. People with this sleep disorder and symptoms may fall asleep in inappropriate situations or at inappropriate times.
The condition can be caused by conditions such as depression, anxiety, stress or boredom as well as medications and certain medical conditions. Because excessive daytime sleepiness has been linked to higher risk of traffic and workplace accidents, it is important to test for sleep disorders such as sleep apnea.
It is important to learn about sleep disorders and symptoms if you suspect you or a family member have problems sleeping. For more information about excessive daytime sleepiness, click here.
Sleepwalking is a type of sleep disorder that occurs when a person walks or does another activity such as talking or eating while still asleep.
The normal sleep cycle has distinct stages, from light drowsiness to deep sleep. During rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the eyes move quickly and vivid dreaming is most common. Each night people go through several cycles of non-REM and REM sleep.
Sleepwalking (somnambulism) most often occurs during deep, non-REM sleep (stage 3 or stage 4 sleep) early in the night. If it occurs during REM sleep, it is part of REM behavior disorder and tends to happen near morning.
The cause of sleepwalking in children is usually unknown. Fatigue, lack of sleep, and anxiety are associated with sleepwalking. In adults, walking, talking or eating while asleep may be associated with mental disorders, reactions to drugs or alcohol, and some medical conditions.
It is important to learn about sleep disorders and symptoms if you suspect you or a family member have problems sleeping. Click here for more information about sleepwalking.
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