Sleep Disorders Essay Example for Free

Sleep Disorders Essay Nightmares are bad dreams occurring during REM sleep. Children experience nightmares more than adults because they spend most of their sleep in REM sleep. Nightmares can be physical such as sleeping in an uncomfortable position, having a fever, or psychological causes such as stress, anxiety, and ingestion of drugs used in pain killers such as oxycodone and hydrocodone. REM behavior disorder is a disorder where the mechanism that blocks the movement of the voluntary muscles fails allowing the person to thrash around and even get up and act out nightmares. These behaviors can be violent in nature and sometimes can cause injury to either the patient or their bed partnerIt usually occur to men over 60 of age. Sleepwalking also known as somnambulism is an episode of moving around or walking around in one’s sleep. They arise from a slow wave sleep stage in a state of low consciousness and perform activities that are usually performed during a state of full consciousness. It’s common in childhood and occurs more in boys than girls. Most children grow out of their sleepwalking by adolescent age. Night terrors is when a person experiences extreme fear and screams or run around during deep sleep without waking up fully. Sleep terrors usually begins between ages 3 and 12 years and then usually gone during adolescence. In adults they most commonly occur between the ages of 20 to 30. Insomnia is the inability to get to sleep stay sleep or get a good quality of sleep . The cause of insomnia can be psychological and physiological. Those who are having trouble sleeping sometimes turn to sleeping pills, which can help when used occasionally but may lead to dependence or addiction if used regularly for an extended period. Insomnia can occur at any age, but it is particularly common in the elderly. It can lead to memory problems, depression, irritability, an increased risk of heart disease and automobile related accidents. Sleep apnea is when a person stops breathing for nearly half a minute or more. Sleep apnea is a leading cause of excessive daytime sleepiness. Most people who have sleep apnea dont know they have it. A family member or bed partner might be the one to notice signs of sleep apnea. Untreated sleep apnea can increase the risk of high blood pressure, heart attacks, stroke, obesity, and diabetes, increase the risk of heart failure, and irregular heartbeats.