The Faithless Insomniac Thread
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Oceanbreeze
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I'm going to have to visit my Dr for a proper diagnosis. I'm not sure this is a true migraine. The pain was bad enough that I thought it was, but, I'm also getting over a sinus infection, so this could be a sinus headache. Regardless of type, I've not had a headache this bad in a loooooong time!
I feel for you, Kristina. I really do. Migraines run in our family. My sister and Grandmother suffer from them. My Mother does not. Far as I know, neither do I, but, that maybe changing.... *sigh*
AlleyCat
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I'd say no. just a different type of severity.
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But they are caused by different things:
stress
chemical imbalances
trauma to the head
traumatic events
mental disorders
medications
physical disorders and/or abnormalities
maybe ones diet can contribute to it?
The severity can be linked to the cause as well I believe.
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right. Insomnia simply means a difficulty in getting to sleep and it has many causes - what you just listed.
different cause. different severity. same label.
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No, cause and severity are two separate things but can be linked if the cause determines the severity.
Cause: noun, verb, caused, caus·ing.
–noun
1. a person or thing that acts, happens, or exists in such a way that some specific thing happens as a result; the producer of an effect: You have been the cause of much anxiety. What was the cause of the accident?
Source: Cause | Define Cause at Dictionary.com <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/cause>
Severity: –noun, plural -ties.
3. intensity or sharpness, as of cold or pain.
Source: Severity | Define Severity at Dictionary.com <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/severity>
Thesaurus entries:
Main Entry: severity
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: asperity
Synonyms: acerbity, austerity, cruelty, grimness, hardheartedness, hardness, harshness, rigor, sharpness, sternness, strictness, unkindness
Antonyms: kindness, pity, softness
Source: Severity Synonyms, Severity Antonyms | Thesaurus.com
<http://thesaurus.com/browse/severity?rh=dictionary.reference.com&__utma=1.868335786.1284424707.1284431066.1286169025.3&__utmb=1.5.9.1294892352132&__utmc=1&__utmx=-&__utmz=1.1286169025.3.2.utmcsr=google|utmccn=%28organic%29|utmcmd=organic|utmctr=diction&__utmv=-&__utmk=253119881>
Cause:
Main Entry: cause
Part of Speech: noun
Definition: agent, originator
Synonyms: account, agency, aim, antecedent, author, basis, beginning, causation, consideration, creator, determinant, doer, element, end, explanation, foundation, genesis, ground, grounds, incitement, inducement, instigation, leaven, mainspring, maker, matter, motivation, motive, object, occasion, origin, prime mover, principle, producer, purpose, root, source, spring, stimulation
Antonyms: consequence, development, effect, end, fruit, issue, outcome, outgrowth, product, result
Source: Cause Synonyms, Cause Antonyms | Thesaurus.com <http://thesaurus.com/browse/cause>
Sorry but the two are not the same meaning, thus cannot have the same label.
AlleyCat
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Actually, I've got to agree with Dixie. I've had insomnia for 3 years. The first year was caused by a persistent backache that would awake me at 3 am because my back would hurt so much I could no longer stand to lie down. So I would be up at 3 am. And at work at 9 am. And eating lunch at 10 because I was ready for lunch after being awake 7 hours already. After a few months of visiting doctors we figured out the cause, and it was "girly" stuff (I'll just leave it at that). I was given meds to alleviate that, and it sure did the trick. However, those very meds had a side effect of insomnia, so I still had issues with that. I'd awake about midnight and sleep fit-lessly until 7. After a year of those meds (and weaning off), I'm finally (hopefully) done with the "girly" issues. So there are different causes, different severity, different amounts of what I call "good sleep". I go to work with bloodshot eyes, but I deal with it.
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best to go with medical context, not dictionary.
cause - there are many causes that can cause insomnia. Could be side effect from any medication or anxiety or stress or pain or ......
severity - everybody's got different level of severity. generally - the term is usually "mild", "chronic", "transient", and "acute".
so based on cause of insomnia, the severity can vary among people.
Oceanbreeze
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scary drug! People who take it have been known to do things while under the influence of the med, and not remember doing them. I actually took the med in the hospital and I absolutely hated the medication.
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Well is that's why they ask you on a scale one to ten how severe your pain is with 10 being the worst. You just further proved my point by clarifying even further.
Cause is the reason behind the insomnia.
Severity is how intense the insomnia is.
A particular cause of insomnia can determine the severity of it.
For example:
Caffeine overload can cause you not to sleep well the night you consume it. This is considered 'mild' insomnia. You usually return to your normal sleeping pattern the following night.
A severe back pain that is caused by a pinched nerve can cause pain when lying down in a normal sleeping position thus you cannot sleep until you go to the doctor to get this pain treated. This would be considered acute insomnia. If the physical problem is treated, then the insomnia is also treated.
A person is on a drug binge and has been up for the past 4 days straight. These binges take place at least once or twice a week. This is considered 'chronic' insomnia in which the person absolutely cannot go to sleep due to their drug abuse. They usually require hospitalization to force their bodies to sleep and rest or risk complete shutdown resulting in death. But the drug abuse issues is never dealt with therefore the insomnia continues.
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I've taken that and had my heart rate accelerate to dangerous levels. The doctor took me off after only 2 doses and said that due to my allergies, there was nothing available for me with my problems sleeping. He suggested I use natural methods and do my best to avoid stress. Hah! With my household, stress is a part of life.
Melatonin, Unisom, Nyquil. If you take enough you sleep.
What's funny is if you go to a sleep clinic the first thing they recommend is sudafed. I was like; "but I don't have a cold."
Sudafed never worked, Nyquil kept me clear as I lay there awake, unisom didn't put me to sleep but it did make me extremely drowsy and light headed. Melatonin works once or twice but then my body says "nah, that's enough" then it won't have any affect for a few months. In the mean time, between melatonin I have to take seconal or nembutal, pretty much anything with barbiturates in them. Of course this requires a visit to your doctor who forces you to go through hours and hours of sleep clinics before they give up and drug you. I've been to 2 sleep clinics and just signed up for a insomniac study as the university of berkeley, but haven't heard back from them yet. I try not to med myself to sleep but every once in a while I need to to prevent that bathroom incident I mentioned in an earlier post from reoccurring.
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What's funny is if you go to a sleep clinic the first thing they recommend is sudafed. I was like; "but I don't have a cold."
Sudafed never worked, Nyquil kept me clear as I lay there awake, unisom didn't put me to sleep but it did make me extremely drowsy and light headed. Melatonin works once or twice but then my body says "nah, that's enough" then it won't have any affect for a few months. In the mean time, between melatonin I have to take seconal or nembutal, pretty much anything with barbiturates in them. Of course this requires a visit to your doctor who forces you to go through hours and hours of sleep clinics before they give up and drug you. I've been to 2 sleep clinics and just signed up for a insomniac study as the university of berkeley, but haven't heard back from them yet. I try not to med myself to sleep but every once in a while I need to to prevent that bathroom incident I mentioned in an earlier post from reoccurring.
I usually am taking enough stuff to kill a horse for sleeping. It's a problem I have had for many years and I just can't stand to stay awake all night.
Scary! I used to do that too, when I first started having trouble I was WAY medicated. Now I try not too at all.
deafbajagal
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PTSD is the cause of mine. 
And it's worse now that someone tried to break in a couple of weeks ago PLUS someone actually did break in a few doors down from mine. Our place is supposedly in a "nice" community. PFFFFT. Whatever.
Now I'm like super paranoid, and it's really hard to sleep. GEEZ. I think I get an average of 3 hours per night, and not all at once.
And it's worse now that someone tried to break in a couple of weeks ago PLUS someone actually did break in a few doors down from mine. Our place is supposedly in a "nice" community. PFFFFT. Whatever.
Now I'm like super paranoid, and it's really hard to sleep. GEEZ. I think I get an average of 3 hours per night, and not all at once.