Can insomnia be dangerous?

Insomnia is the inability to obtain an adequate amount or quality of sleep. The difficulty can be in falling asleep, remaining asleep, or both. People with insomnia do not feel refreshed when they wake up. Insomnia is a common symptom affecting millions of people that may be caused by many conditions, diseases, or circumstances.

Causes and symptoms:
Transient insomnia is often caused by a temporary situation in a person's life, such as an argument with a loved one, a brief medical illness, or jet lag. When the situation is resolved or the precipitating factor disappears, the condition goes away, usually without medical treatment.

Chronic insomnia usually has different causes, and there may be more than one. These include:

a medical condition or its treatment, including sleep apnea
use of substances such as caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine
psychiatric conditions such as mood or anxiety disorders
stress, such as sadness caused by the loss of a loved one or a job
disturbed sleep cycles caused by a change in work shift
sleep-disordered breathing, such as snoring
periodic jerky leg movements (nocturnal myoclonus), which happen just as the individual is falling asleep
repeated nightmares or panic attacks during sleep
Another cause is excessive worrying about whether or not a person will be able to go to sleep, which creates so much anxiety that the individual's bedtime rituals and behavior actually trigger insomnia. The more one worries about falling asleep, the harder it becomes. This is called psychophysiological insomnia.

Symptoms of insomnia:
People who have insomnia do not start the day refreshed from a good night's sleep. They are tired. They may have difficulty falling asleep, and commonly lie in bed tossing and turning for hours. Or the individual may go to sleep without a problem but wakes in the early hours of the morning and is either unable to go back to sleep, or drifts into a restless unsatisfying sleep. This is a common symptom in the elderly and in those suffering from depression. Sometimes sleep patterns are reversed, and the individual has difficulty staying awake during the day and takes frequent naps. The sleep at night is fitful and frequently interrupted.

Diagnosis:
The diagnosis of insomnia is made by a physician based on the patient's reported signs and symptoms. It can be useful for the patient to keep a daily record for two weeks of sleep patterns, food intake, use of alcohol, medications, exercise, and any other information recommended by the physician. If the patient has a bed partner, information can be obtained about whether the patient snores or is restless during sleep. This, together with a medical history and physical examination, can help confirm the doctor's assessment.

A wide variety of health care professionals can recognize and treat insomnia, but when a patient with chronic insomnia does not respond to treatment, or the condition is not adequately explained by the patient's physical, emotional, or mental circumstances, then more extensive testing by a specialist in sleep disorders may be warranted.

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Yes....if you have to do things the next day such as drive. I fell asleep driving with a car full of kids once, after several sleepless nights. (On the thruway). SCARY!!! Thank God I didn't crack it up and kill everybody.

Be careful.

Yes! Not enough sleep at night can wreck havoc on our bodies. It can be the cause of all sorts of issues like obesity, because your body's metabolism starts to shut itself down with out the proper amount of sleep. Which in turn, can and will lead to type 2 Diabetes, I have also read that if our bodies aren't rested enough on a regular basis ,a perfectly healthy individual can develop high blood pressure which can lead to strokes. I know this to be true, because I am walking or should i say waking proof! Our bodies replenish and rejuvenate during our resting hours and if we aren't resting they can't do what they need to! It was said on the radio last week that anything under 6 and over 10 hours can potentially be bad for your health! Get your self into a routine at bedtime now before you end up in a unwanted sleepless routine like myself where you find yourself here at yahoo answering other people's questions! Good Luck to you

age up faster,slow your metabolism,make you anxious and on edge.

yea and the immune thing
and the high blood pressure

I won't say danger, but it can cause your immune system to weaken, cause confused thinking, dangerous decision or driving, etc.. so it depends on what you consider dangerous. It is something that needs to be addressed by a doctor.

not dangerous. but may hv emotional problems the other day, feel stressed or too much tension. drink a glass of hot milk to sleep better