Overview
Insomnia is persistent difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep or waking too early, leaving you tired and irritable by day. Stress, irregular schedules, late screens and stimulants are the usual drivers. Lasting fixes come from retraining sleep habits rather than from sleeping tablets.
Symptoms
- Taking longer than 30 minutes to fall asleep
- Waking repeatedly during the night
- Waking too early and unable to return to sleep
- Daytime tiredness or irritability
- Poor concentration and memory
- Worrying about sleep itself
Causes & risk factors
- Stress, anxiety or depression
- Irregular sleep schedule and late-night screen use
- Caffeine, energy drinks, nicotine or alcohol
- Noisy or hot sleeping environment, shift work
- Pain or other medical conditions
Treatment & self-care
Keep a fixed wake time, reserve the bed for sleep, avoid screens and caffeine in the evening, and get out of bed briefly if not asleep within 20 minutes — these behavioural changes (CBT for insomnia) outperform tablets long-term. Address underlying stress, anxiety or pain with a professional. Sleeping tablets, if ever used, should be short-term and doctor-prescribed only.
See a doctor urgently if
- Insomnia persisting beyond a month despite good sleep habits
- Loud snoring with pauses in breathing
- Falling asleep while driving or working
- Low mood or anxiety accompanying the sleeplessness