Insomnia: mendacious or false?

Let me tell you how this thread came about,

I was at Barns and Noble, when a kid comes up to me and has the nerve to ask me three questions, all rather simple, the first question was "what is my name?" "Victor" I said. The next question was "What color is the sky?" Luckily for me, there was a window near by, and I said "Blue" His next question was a real humdinger, he pointed to the ceiling and asked, "What direction am I pointing?" "Up" I said. I wish I would have never said those words.

He left, laughing, I didn't know what to do, I was so embarassed, I grabbed a book, and what a stange book it was, a black and white comic, about a slender form, wicked and vile he was, twisted in his ways, from his head came two spikes and his attire would be enough to shatter and illusion of hope in a man's heart and soul, rancorous be he, shadow of night, to a small man with an animal was man's creation a small man, so paranoid so fearful of the nefarious tall revolting figure in his life.

When I looked to the cover of this book, there was only a "Z?" where a title would be. Needless to say I was confused, I went over to a young man beside me, warlike in his appearance, starled by my own self, he backed away, I told him not to fear and I showed him the book and asked him what it meant. He told me it meant I should question sleep. Obviously, the man I was talking to and the one in the book, were the same person. He told me that the man who write it had insomnia and I recalled from a time where a man said on the television that insomnia was a shame and he submitted that it did not exist.

So do people with so caled insomnia have control of their actions, can they in fact sleep, was the the man in your hand over your land rover. Obviously not. There were a few times in my life I could not get to sleep, but I wouldn't call that insomnia, and if they do exist, should they be considered mentally unstable?

[Chez Daja]

I wouldn't say "mentally unstable", those would be way too harsh of words to use. Meh, I think of insomnia as "just can't sleep", I don't look deeply into the meaning of insomnia.

Just people who can't get to sleep as well as others, or at least. After 10 - 12 + days without sleep you can die, so... insomniacs must have SOME way to sleep at least a while... Meh. If I can't get to sleep, I grab some pills from the kitchen that say "warning, may cause drowsiness" and then I can usually sleep about ten - fifteen minutes later. Than again, I don't suffer from insomnia...

[SOLDIER #819]

I would say I have at least at one point suffered from insomnia, but lots of people say they suffer from it. Just like they say they suffer from depression. Some people can have it really bad while it is simply a matter of perspective for others. Like with most things it is hard to generalize.

For me, about a year ago I had a lot of trouble getting to sleep due to stress. I had been taking various types of medication at the time that were known to make a person drowsy during the day, but that didn't really do anything for me at night when I had to sleep. So I took sleeping medication, too. Some types helped, some did not, and even when they did work the results really were mixed. At times I could get to sleep just fine. Other times I would definitely feel the effects, but would be unable to sleep anyway, so I'd be just be in a sedated half-sleep. And then there were the times that it worked too well at the wrong times, and I'd sleep 12+ hours at a time and **** up my cycle entirely. Maybe I just have problems with sleep in general, though.

Anyway, just because lots of people use the term does not mean it does not exist. Things just tend to be taken lightly when that happens.

I know sometimes people hath trouble to sleep upon the night, tis be the will of our stressful emotions that keep us up in the wee hours of dawn. What I'm saying is, is insomnia an actual disorder or is it just be in people's head? Like if you tell yourself your sick you'll become sick. I feel that the people who think of an imaginary disease is not good for their and public affairs. Those on the one that did to be wrapped up be in the lifes of soft walls and closely knit jackets.

[SOLDIER #819]

Again, circumstances. If it is a chemical imbalance, there is always a chance that it is to some extent out of the control of the person. In some cases it can be controlled by the person, but that is a case by case basis. It could just as well be that the person himself/herself is the cause for whatever number of reasons. Depression doesn't have just one trigger, and neither do things like insomnia.

Vague, I know. I just don't think you just say it's true or false, though.

Sham, I say! Sham! Show be you that have no proof of claim that chemical change to be one's mind. Anon! Show us, hero, show us conclusive evidence that be there indeed such a claim to the actual disease, and to consider upon, what you would call insomnia.

[SOLDIER #819]

Hahaha. :D

As Chez Daja said before, I don't think insomnia is classified as a disease. Rather a...State? Condition? Something like that. Maybe.

Originally Posted by dictionary.com

Main Entry: in·som·nia
prolonged and usually abnormal inability to obtain adequate sleep called also agrypnia

http://www.stopgettingsick.com/Condi...s_menu.cfm/223

That was the first thing to come up in a search result. And we all know how many other sites there are that will cover the same thing.

Originally Posted by SOLDIER #819

Hahaha. :D

As Chez Daja said before, I don't think insomnia is classified as a disease. Rather a...State? Condition? Something like that. Maybe.



http://www.stopgettingsick.com/Condi...s_menu.cfm/223

That was the first thing to come up in a search result. And we all know how many other sites there are that will cover the same thing.

Even though insomnia is the result of many causes (including mental disorders) I still stand by the fact that anyone can fall asleep if they simply relax themselves.

[SOLDIER #819]

Simply relax yourself? How do you simply relax yourself? Do these simple methods of relaxation work for everyone?

Stress, a possible cause of insomnia, is like insomnia in that it is caused by many different things or a combination of those different things. Some people may be stressing themselves out, but other times it is something that is out of their control to at least some extent. Do you not believe in chemical imbalances or psychology/neurology, or something?

One single thing does not work for every person.

Only the ones who do not wish to sleep, can be counted among what would be set as a standard of mentally unstable. I say if one is tired one will sleep, and a body at rest remasins to sleep. Those be the rules of our life, and the wher our atomies work shant be turned against on.

[SOLDIER #819]

What? Maybe it's my turn to ask for proof of what you're saying. =P

[LocoColt04]

Originally Posted by EonZ

but I wouldn't call that insomnia, and if they do exist, should they be considered mentally unstable?

I am bipolar. Sometimes, insomnia can be credited to bipolar disorder. Technically, yes, one could consider me to be mentally unstable.

...but I don't think everyone who's an insomniac automatically has a mental disorder, either.

In any case, I can use myself as an example for this one. Let's say I'm exhausted, come home at midnight, and go straight to bed. I will lay there, staring at the ceiling for AT LEAST three hours in an attempt to sleep. I cannot for the life of me seem to fall asleep. Many times, I cannot sleep before three in the morning, regardless of whether I'm tired or not.

I'd be willing to say that true insomnia is, in fact, a disorder -- or at least a symptom of some other mental disorder.

On the contrary, when someone has periodical "bouts of insomnia," I wouldn't call that true insomnia. Sure, their bodies may be portraying signs of insomnia, but they likely cannot sleep because they are stressed about something, or distracted, or something of the sort. If it's not a permanent thing, then it's not a disorder at all.


For at least the fifteen years that I can remember, I have not been able to willingly fall asleep before midnight. The older I get, the less I sleep. I made it through four years of highschool by falling asleep every single night between one and three, and still waking up at 5:15 every morning, regardless of what time I eventually fell asleep.

Sure, there are rare cases once every month or two when I can crash and burn hard, and sleep for ten or twelve hours, but that's usually the extent of it.

[Chez Daja]

It's funny. For about two years I had a moderately severe case of depression, which would sometimes leads me to hardly sleep a wink. Now, I do not have a mental disorder, although I did have a case of S.A.D, which is a sunlight deffiency problem, which means I didn't get enough serotonin into my brain. Serotonin is a feel-good chemical, released by eating chocolate, being social or hanging out in the sun. Now, Luckily, I was able to leave my S.A.D behind me after just two years. But still had the insomnia aftwards.

S.A.D was a horrible way of growing up, because it was triggered by all of my crazy hormones rushing around like wild fire. I think everybody gets slight depression now and then.

Sometimes I cannot sleep well at all, in fact, as of late I have been taking more and more sleeping pills because I can't sleep. The pills help me to become drowsy, even if I don't feel relaxed. It sends me to sleep whether I like it or not.