Insomnia

If insomnia has been severely interfering with your daytime functioning for a month or longer, see your doctor to determine what might be the cause of your sleep problem and how it might be treated.

Insomnia may be difficult to diagnose because of its partly subjective nature and because so many factors can affect your sleep. Also, the kind of sleep patterns and degree of daytime fatigue that some people might consider to be indications of insomnia other people would not.

Your doctor may ask you questions about your sleep patterns, such as how long you've experienced your symptoms and whether they occur every night. Your doctor may also ask about whether you snore, how well you function during the day, whether you take any medications and whether you have other health disorders. You may be asked to complete a questionnaire to determine your wake-sleep pattern and your level of daytime sleepiness.

It's possible that your doctor may suggest you spend a night at a sleep disorders center. These centers are accredited by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. A team of people at the center can monitor and record a variety of body activities during the night, including brain waves, breathing, heartbeat, eye movements and body movements. But for most people whose main complaint is insomnia, their sleep is usually so distorted by the laboratory environment that doctors can learn little useful information.