Treatments and medication are geared toward improving the quality of sleep and reducing pain, but there does not appear to be a complete cure for the disease. A popular area of study in the field of psychology is called Health Psychology. Psychologists who specialize in Health Psychology research the relationship between psychological factors and physical health. They also assess the psychological and physical effects of stress and develop programs to help people reduce stress in their lives. With rare exception, the mental health community has only been able to come up with questionnaire based reports.
Scientists know that sleep is necessary.
Studies involving sleep deprivation have shown that humans, when deprived of sleep for long periods of time, develop problems in their ability to think and reason. Some subjects suffered from hallucinations, and developed hand tremors, double vision and reduced pain thresholds. When autopsies were done on the rats, it was determined that they died not from one single cause, but from a variety of causes that included stomach ulcers, an imbalance of body chemistry, and internal hemorrhages. Sleep studies show that we all dream even though we may not remember our dreams. This suggests that dreams serve an important function in our lives.