The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1915-09-21
CAUSES OF INSOMNIA
AND SIMPLE CURES
Chambers JournaD

Inc problem OF steep mas Deen lol
ages the object of poetic wonderment
and of philosophic speculation, and
since the advent of scientific methods
the object of research; yet its funda-
mental nature and origin still remain
obscure. The primary cause of sleep
is probably a need for rest on the part
of the brain cells from the exercise of
their functions. Waste products ac-
cumulate during the day, and rehab-
ilitation period is necessary to restore
the brain to its normal condition. Dur
ing sleep the brain has diminished
blood-supply, and if from any cause
the circulation increases in activity
wakefulness is the result.
The brain cells during sleep are at
rest. If any of them remain active,
dreams are the result. We can dream
more in minute than we can relate
in an hour, and it is because of the
great rapidity of thought in sleep that
we cannot always recollect our
dreams. The dreams we remember are
mostly those which occur during the
period when we are just awakening,
and that is why our dreams are usu-
ally unfinished. Dreams are related
mainly to suppressed or dormant hopes
and fears and past experiences, and
originate chiefly in the subconscious
mental life. The troubled and horrid
dreams which occur during sickness
are probably due to the torturing of
the brain by the toxins with which the
blood is loaded; and so called night
mares may be caused by an overload
ed stomach, but more often by great
mental anxiety.
Sleep, besides being disturbed by
dreams, may be defective in other re-
spects; it may be too short, it may be
too prolonged, it may not be deep
enough, and it may be unrefreshing.
The most common complaint is insult
ficiency of sleep-that is, sleepless-
ness. AS in everything else, the wild
est differences may be observed be-
tween one person and another in re-
gard to the amount of slep required.
There are men who never sleep more
than five hours others must have sew
en- hours regularly, which is the aver
age for vigorous adults; and there are
some who sleep nine hours, and even
more Much depends on the nature of
the occupation and on habit, and there
are in this matter good and bad habits
| The habit of sleeping too little is less
| frequent than that of sleeping too
much. Persons of weak intellect
sleep more than hard brain workers,
who can do with very little, and yet
enjoy good health If they otherwise
live correctly. Sleep also varies with
the age of the person. Babies sleep
the greater part of their time; as they
grow older, gradually less sleep is re.
quired, until adult life is reached
| With the onset of old age more sleep
is again needed. The amount of sleep
required varies, too, with the quality,
profound and continuous sleep being
much more refreshing than superficial
and broken slep.
There are large number of people
who sleep badly, but their insomnia
appears under very different forms.
There are people who get asleep easily
but they wake up at the end of few
hours, and cannot get to sleep again !;
! others sleep but with agitated sleep
disturbed by dreams and Nightmares,
of which they may preserve no mem.
ory, but they are conscious of having
had an interrupted and disturbed sleep
ing. Again. some describe their sleep
at night as abnormally profund, but
complain that they are so little refresh
ed by it that they remain drowsy and
lethargic during the day, unable to at
tend to their work. Some people are
, representative, so that they are dis
turbed even by slight noises, such as
| 'h' tiNhih6 VI q "u''i w Nip'h, oopN
are kept awake by discomforts or pain
due to some bodily disorder; others
in perfect health, suffer from sleep
lessness due to physical causes, such
as overwork, mental anxiety, grief ant
shock. In mental overwork the cere
bral cells, being in constant use are ap
to remain active after work has beer
abandoned and while this is the casC
sleep is prevented. Work and worry
unfortunately often go together, ant
the feeling of anxiety keeps the mar
who worries awake, or so blends will
his dreams that sleep Is disturbed. A
the present day, owing to the genera
rush of life, and to newspapers, tele
phones, telegraphs. motor cars, an,
the increase of noises, the nervous sys
TEN is constantly kept at point o
tension, and it is not to be wondere
at that sleeplessness is so common
trouble.