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Last month, a man having his sleeping habits examined in a Swedish research facility allowed himself to be filmed while sleeping – or attempting to. In an effort to raise awareness about insomnia, the footage was made available live online for insomniacs and anyone else interested to see. The standard procedure forms part of the process of determining whether a patient has a sleep disorder that needs treatment. If you’ve ever thought that you might have a problem with your sleeping habits, read on.

What is insomnia?

Everyone has a night now and then when they can’t sleep for one reason or another, but when a person suffers from a lack of sleep for too long, they may be classified as suffering from insomnia. Insomnia can involve not being able to go to sleep, waking up during the night, waking up too early in the morning, or even the kind of light sleep that means you wake up still feeling tired after a night’s sleep.

Do you have a problem?

As illustrated by the case of the man whose sleep study went live, it sometimes takes diagnosis by a professional to tell if you have a sleep disorder, but there are some things that indicate you have a problem. If you take longer than half an hour to fall asleep, wake often, feel tired and lack concentration during the day, or can’t sleep without the help or medication or alcohol, you may be an insomniac.

What should you do if you can’t sleep?

Try getting a better night’s sleep by taking a relaxing bath and listening to soothing music before bed, and by sleeping a completely dark, quite room – that means leaving the TV off! If you can’t sleep for a while after an upsetting incident or before a stressful event like an exam, there are plenty of other ways to try to get better sleep. Don’t worry too much in the short term, but see a doctor if the problem persists and you can’t bear any more sleepless nights.

Tags: insomnia, sleep, Sleeplessness