BETTER-SLEEP

Diagnosing insomnia usually starts with your family doctor, the doctor then decides if a specialist is needed. The doctor will ask about recent changes in your life, medications and alcohol use, how long you have been having difficulty sleeping, and how it is affecting your daylight hours. A full medical exam will assist in finding any medical causes for the insomnia.
Life changes such as marriage, a new job or promotion, and a residential move can all affect sleep. Newlyweds often have trouble sleeping. They may be unused to sleeping close to another person or they may be too happy to go to sleep. A new job or a promotion can cause stress even if the change is a good one. Changing where you sleep, or try to, can affect sleep as well. Your body and mind may not realize that this new place is for sleep. This type of insomnia is short term only and is easily diagnosed.

The doctor will perform a full medical exam, and may ask about recent weight gain or snoring. Particular attention may be paid to nasal passages and measurement of the neck to assess for sleep apnea. The lungs and heart should be examined thoroughly as well, coughing at night as well as an irregular heart rhythm could be the underlying cause of the insomnia.

The level that lack of sleep or sleep that does not leave you feeling rested affects your day to day functions may provide diagnostic information to the doctor. The doctor may ask you to wear an actigraph, which measures movement, during daylight hours to assess how much you are being affected. An actigraph is worn like a wristwatch, it has a microprocessor and memory so the doctor can retrieve the data.

Chronic or severe insomnia may require observation and treatment from a sleep specialist. Sleep specialists can diagnose many different types of sleep disorders and recommend treatment. You may be asked to keep a sleep diary for two weeks. A sleep diary is to keep track of bedtimes, what time you fell asleep, how many time you awakened during the night, and time of awakening in the morning. The specialist may also ask for you to keep track of how you feel emotionally and physically during the day.