Sleep difficulties CAN cause cognitive symptoms that mimic dementia, but are often treatable
When we think of sleep difficulty, the first thing that comes to most people's minds is insomnia -- trouble falling asleep. Most of us have had that for one reason or another, at some point in our lives. Most of us also know what it's like to have to function after a night of not enough sleep -- whether due to crying baby, a snoring bedmate, or a stray smoke detector that inevitably burns through its batteries at 2 am!
Sleep difficulties that keep repeating over time are quite another matter, however: We NEED restorative sleep to function at our best, and we also need ENOUGH of that restorative sleep on a regular basis. For many, many reasons ( pain, noisy or light-filled sleeping spaces, late-night screen use, too much caffeine, unavoidable stressful situations in our lives, etc., etc.), many of us don't sleep well or don't sleep enough (or both...).
Sleep disorders are recurring sleep difficulties that interfere in significant ways with getting restorative sleep, and they really CAN cause us trouble, if they aren't diagnosed and properly treated. The trouble is, we may not KNOW we are having a sleep disorder -- because we're asleep (or trying to be) while we're having it! People with breathing-related sleep disorders, for example, may stop breathing during sleep and partially wake up, as their bodies react to the lack of oxygen -- wrecking their chance at sound, restorative sleep, but not usually alerting them to the problem that causes it. Walking or talking during sleep means that a person's brain is not properly shutting down their bodily movement, and this too will undermine sound sleep -- even if the affected person is not aware this is happening. People working different shifts, or who must constantly travel across time zones can also experience sleep difficulties, simply due to the multiple disruptions of their normal sleep-wake cycles.
All of these and more require a doctor's diagnosis and treatment, if they are not to cause worsening cognitive difficulties. The good news is that sleep disorders very often CAN be treated... and then, the cognitive symptoms they have caused can improve or even resolve!! If you believe (or at least, have heard from someone who has slept in the same room with you!) that there is ANY cause for concern about your sleep, a conversation with your doctor about whether you need to see a sleep medicine specialist would be wise!
When we think of sleep difficulty, the first thing that comes to most people's minds is insomnia -- trouble falling asleep. Most of us have had that for one reason or another, at some point in our lives. Most of us also know what it's like to have to function after a night of not enough sleep -- whether due to crying baby, a snoring bedmate, or a stray smoke detector that inevitably burns through its batteries at 2 am!
Sleep difficulties that keep repeating over time are quite another matter, however: We NEED restorative sleep to function at our best, and we also need ENOUGH of that restorative sleep on a regular basis. For many, many reasons ( pain, noisy or light-filled sleeping spaces, late-night screen use, too much caffeine, unavoidable stressful situations in our lives, etc., etc.), many of us don't sleep well or don't sleep enough (or both...).
Sleep disorders are recurring sleep difficulties that interfere in significant ways with getting restorative sleep, and they really CAN cause us trouble, if they aren't diagnosed and properly treated. The trouble is, we may not KNOW we are having a sleep disorder -- because we're asleep (or trying to be) while we're having it! People with breathing-related sleep disorders, for example, may stop breathing during sleep and partially wake up, as their bodies react to the lack of oxygen -- wrecking their chance at sound, restorative sleep, but not usually alerting them to the problem that causes it. Walking or talking during sleep means that a person's brain is not properly shutting down their bodily movement, and this too will undermine sound sleep -- even if the affected person is not aware this is happening. People working different shifts, or who must constantly travel across time zones can also experience sleep difficulties, simply due to the multiple disruptions of their normal sleep-wake cycles.
All of these and more require a doctor's diagnosis and treatment, if they are not to cause worsening cognitive difficulties. The good news is that sleep disorders very often CAN be treated... and then, the cognitive symptoms they have caused can improve or even resolve!! If you believe (or at least, have heard from someone who has slept in the same room with you!) that there is ANY cause for concern about your sleep, a conversation with your doctor about whether you need to see a sleep medicine specialist would be wise!