Title : Latest sleep disorder keeping you awake is orthosomnia
link : Latest sleep disorder keeping you awake is orthosomnia
Latest sleep disorder keeping you awake is orthosomnia
- Sleep apps and wearable tech are making it easier to track your naps than before
- But people are becoming 'obsessed' with hitting certain sleep targets
- Tracking how many hours they get and in what sleep stage develops an anxiety
- Sleep expert Dr Carmel Harrington told FEMAIL they should take off the tech
With sleep apps and wearable tech tracking your every snore it's easier than ever before to know how long you were tossing and turning last night.
And while they do give general guidance on how many hours you get and what phase of sleep you were mostly settled into, some individuals are getting obsessed by the numbers.
Dubbed 'orthosomnia', Sleep For Health's Dr Carmel Harrington said it can be a real problem for some individuals.
Dubbed orthosomnia, Sleep For Health's Dr Carmel Harrington said it can be a real problem for some individuals
'We get people who use fitness trackers and they become obsessed by the numbers. It's the same as if someone had walked 9,999 steps in one day... they have to do the 10,000 steps to feel like they have achieved their target, she told FEMAIL.
'We see the same people with food anxieties who become obsessive with having two peas instead of three peas. The person develops an anxiety with all of the monitoring and decides they need eight hours sleep or else.
'This is ultimately very counter productive because the anxiety produces alert hormones like cortisol and adrenaline that will keep you awake,' she continued.
Over time if the condition isn't managed a person can become hyper-alert and struggle with large spells of insomnia.
'We see the same people with food anxieties who become obsessive with having two peas instead of three peas. The person develops an anxiety with all of the monitoring,' she said
And while this all looks to be bad news there is a silver lining - if you find yourself crunching the numbers everyday, take off the tech.
'Technology around sleep can be very beneficial and help us stay informed,' Dr Harrington said.
'But what you need to do is monitor yourself - if you feel you're getting anxious you need to stop wearing it. You should become very clever with checking for early warning signs and manage it before things get out of control,' she said.
What's more, the tech is based on taking an average and isn't equivalent to actually checking your rem or dream sleep levels in a lab.
What's more, the tech is based on taking an average and isn't equivalent to actually checking your rem or dream sleep levels in a lab
'If we were in a lab the experts would be checking your brain, your heart rate, your breathing rate, muscle tone and a number of other facets to create an entire picture.
'The technology merely takes an average. So it's not worth getting hung up on the numbers,' she said.
The Sleep Foundation recommends having a regular sleep pattern and trying to get between seven and eight hours of shut eye a night.
They also suggest removing clocks from the bedroom so you aren't mentally counting how much sleep you're getting - to reduce anxiety.
Thus Article Latest sleep disorder keeping you awake is orthosomnia
You are now reading the article Latest sleep disorder keeping you awake is orthosomnia with the link address https://coneknews.blogspot.com/2018/03/latest-sleep-disorder-keeping-you-awake.html
0 Response to "Latest sleep disorder keeping you awake is orthosomnia"
Post a Comment