| Sleep, like wakefulness, is a natural | | | | as emotional trauma, fear, apprehension, |
| phenomenon. Humans spend almost one-third of | | | | anguish, drugs, or certain diseases. Loss of |
| their lifetime sleeping. During sleep the | | | | sleep for a day or two may not pose any |
| activity of the brain is altered, but not | | | | problem, but prolonged insomnia can cause |
| completely suppressed. It is an accepted fact | | | | physical and mental fatigue, leading to |
| that periodically the body needs rest. Nobody | | | | increase in automobile accidents, alcohol |
| knows why the brain or any other organ should | | | | consumption and poor performance and in such |
| need rest, nor what happens during sleep that | | | | cases, medical treatment becomes necessary. A |
| is beneficial. Only one thing is certain - | | | | large number of sedatives, hypnotics (causing |
| that sleep is necessary. If a person is not | | | | sleep ), and anti-anxiety drugs are available |
| allowed to sleep for 2 or 3 days mental | | | | for this, but the greatest difficulty is that |
| co-ordination gets impaired. Deprivation of | | | | all these have varying degree of addiction on |
| sleep increases suggestibility and is, | | | | potential and their withdrawal or |
| therefore, an effective technique for brain | | | | discontinuation may pose serious, problems. |
| washing. | | | | The withdrawal effects may be in the form of |
| | | | anxiety, insomnia, restlessness, tremors, |
| How much sleep is essential? Children sleep | | | | weakness, and convulsions and if untreated, |
| longer than adults. Old people tend to sleep | | | | may result in coma (unconsciousness) and |
| less. Among adults some feel completely | | | | death. Since they cause addiction, the drug |
| rested after 6 hours of sleep; others may | | | | laws prohibit the sale of these drugs without |
| need 8 or 9 hours. Mahatma Gandhi used to | | | | a prescription. |
| sleep for only 4 hours, and used to wake up | | | | |
| fresh. Stalin needed only a very short sleep | | | | Treatment and Drugs |
| and used to receive officials at the odd hour | | | | |
| of 3.00 am. | | | | The drugs for treatment of insomnia may |
| | | | contain a single drug or a combination of two |
| In order to sleep well, some need ideal | | | | or more drugs with similar effect. However, |
| conditions: a comfortable bed in a noiseless | | | | none of the combinations offer any advantage |
| room with controlled temperature. There are | | | | over a single drugs. They only add to the |
| others who manage to sleep soundly even on | | | | cost of treatment. |
| the hard wooden berth of a second class rail | | | | |
| compartment. It is really wonderful to be | | | | Pentobarbitone (Nembutal), Secobarbitone |
| able to sleep well, but there are times when | | | | (Seconal, Secobutal) |
| it is not possible to do so due to | | | | |
| circumstances. Travellers going long | | | | These two drugs are barbiturates which |
| distances on jet planes have to readjust | | | | inhibit REM* sleep (dreamy sleep) and do not |
| their sleeping hours in a new place. | | | | produce natural or refreshing sleep. In view |
| Presidents and Prime Ministers take | | | | of their potential abuse for committing |
| injections of sleep-inducing drugs to | | | | suicide and a marked addiction potential, |
| overcome travel-induced insomnia and to | | | | these have almost completely been replaced by |
| readjust to new working hours when travelling | | | | the benzodiazepine family of drugs. |
| abroad. | | | | |
| | | | AdvCare is one of the leading Canada drugs |
| Sleeplessness or insomnia means difficulty in | | | | websites. First established in January 2000, |
| falling or stay asleep, reduced total sleep | | | | its mission is to become the number one site |
| times or disturbed sleep. Sleeplessness or | | | | for ontario drug and prescription medication |
| insomnia may result from various factors such | | | | searches. |