Sleep

7 Common Sleep Disorders

From insomnia to sleep apnea to parasomnias like sleepwalking, any condition that prevents you from getting a good night’s sleep can have a big effect on your health.

By Medically Reviewed by 
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Medically Reviewed
woman exhausted in morning from restless sleep
Sleep disorders can interfere with even your best efforts at good sleep hygiene.Ivan Gener/Stocksy

We all have trouble sleeping from time to time. But if you regularly sleep poorly or wake up feeling tired, you may have an underlying sleep disorder.

Sleep disorders are conditions that impair your slumber or prevent you from getting a good night’s rest, according to the Cleveland Clinic.

An estimated 70 million people in the United States have a sleep disorder.
You may be suffering from a sleep disorder if:

  • You have trouble falling asleep or remaining asleep
  • You find it difficult to stay awake during the day
  • Your sleep-wake patterns are irregular, or interfere with a healthy sleep routine
  • You are prone to unusual behaviors that disrupt your sleep

Different sleep disorders are caused by different problems, and some come with long-term health risks that are more serious than others. But the bottom line is that any issue that’s preventing you from getting a good night’s sleep poses a risk to your health and well-being, and warrants looking into.

The good news is that most sleep disorders can be managed with the help of a sleep specialist, your primary care doctors, and some changes to your nighttime routine.

Here is a list of seven common sleep disorders and how each one can be treated.

1. Obstructive Sleep Apnea

What it is A common, but estimated to be frequently underdiagnosed, sleep disorder, obstructive sleep apnea is characterized by extended pauses in breathing while you sleep. Sleep apnea can occur when the upper airway gets blocked repeatedly during sleep, cutting off airflow.

Someone with sleep apnea may snore, gasp for breath, or choke during sleep, and may be unaware that it’s happening.

“Severe sleep apnea can cause irregular heart rate, lack of oxygen to the brain, and even death [if untreated for a long time],” says Mangala Nadkarni, MD, the medical director of the center for sleep disorders at the Saint Barnabas Medical Center in Livingston, New Jersey. Symptoms someone might notice earlier on after developing sleep apnea are excessive daytime sleepiness and fatigue, because the blocked breathing during sleep prevents someone from getting to the deep, more restorative stages of sleep. Long term, sleep apnea increases the risk of hypertension, heart failure, and stroke.

It’s estimated that between 2 and 9 percent of American adults have sleep apnea. It can affect children and adults of both sexes, although it’s more common in men.

How to treat it Apnea must be diagnosed with the help of a sleep specialist who'll conduct a physical exam and look at your medical history and the results of a sleep study.

Lifestyle changes such as weight loss, improvements to your diet, reduced alcohol intake, and side sleeping can be helpful for some. Specialists also use dental devices, surgery, or sleeping with a CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machine to help. CPAP machines are the most common form of treatment — they push air through a mask and into the airway to keep it open during sleep.

2. Insomnia

What it is If you’re lying awake struggling to sleep three times a week for at least three months, you may have chronic insomnia.

With insomnia, you may have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep or getting a good night’s sleep overall. The inability to get a good night’s rest can lead to a whole host of medical problems if it’s not addressed properly, including problems with memory, high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes, which is why getting help for sleep problems is important.

Some people are at a higher risk of this common sleep disorder, such as those who have an irregular sleep schedule because of work. Other risk factors include age, family history and genetics, and lifestyle factors, such as caffeine consumption, naps during the day, or use of electronic devices before bedtime. Research suggests that insomnia affects 30 to 48 percent of older adults.

And it may affect up to 23.8 percent of teenagers.

How to treat it A number of behavioral changes may help, such as making your bedroom cool, dark, and comfortable; practicing relaxation techniques before bed; and removing electronics from the bedroom and avoiding use close to bedtime, including your TV. If those things don’t help, talk to a doctor. He or she may prescribe cognitive behavioral therapy (the gold-standard first-line treatment for insomnia) or another strategy.

It’s important to remember that doctors have a lot of tools to help you improve your sleep, so don’t let this problem go unaddressed.

3. Narcolepsy

What it is Narcolepsy is a sleep disorder in which a person's sleep-wake cycle becomes dysregulated.

It can cause periods of excessive fatigue in the daytime (due to nighttime sleep disruptions), as well as involuntary periods of sleep throughout the day called “sleep attacks” that last from a few seconds to several minutes. These episodes can be extremely dangerous, depending on what you’re doing when you fall asleep, such as driving a car.
People with narcolepsy often have low levels of a neurotransmitter called hypocretin, which helps you stay awake. Sometimes people diagnosed with this sleep disorder don’t have lower levels of hypocretin; in this case, it isn’t clear why they have narcolepsy. Overall, a combination of genetics, autoimmune health, and environmental factors put some people at greater risk for narcolepsy.

How to treat it Narcolepsy is a chronic condition and there is no cure. Narcolepsy treatment usually focuses on improving safety, reducing symptoms, and making lifestyle adjustments to improve quality of life. Medication, supplemented by behavioral changes, is often effective. Some patients schedule short naps, avoid alcohol and sedatives, and make sure they exercise in the daytime to help them fall asleep at night.

4. Night Terrors

What it is Night terrors are a parasomnia that is most common in children and cause intense fear that will make your child almost inconsolable.

(Parasomnias are sleep disorders that cause undesired or disruptive behavior that disrupts your sleep, and can be dangerous; the behaviors can happen at any point during sleep.)

A night terror is not technically a dream, but a strong reaction as a child transitions from one sleep phase to another. They usually occur two to three hours after sleep begins, and last from seconds to a few minutes.
Sleep terrors affect almost 30 percent of children, and a much smaller percentage of adults, according to estimates.

Most children grow out of sleep terrors by the time they reach adolescence.

How to treat it It is best not to wake up your child if they are experiencing a night terror because they will be disoriented. Instead, sit by quietly and make sure they don't hurt themselves. To try to stop night terrors from occurring, do your best to reduce stress in the child’s environment, prevent them from staying up too late, and create a calming, soothing bedtime routine. In some instances, medication may be needed to control the night terrors, says Matthew Edlund, MD, the director of the Center for Circadian Medicine in Sarasota, Florida, and the author of The Power of Rest and The Body Clock Advantage.

5. Restless Legs Syndrome

What it is You may have restless legs syndrome if you lie down to sleep only to experience an unpleasant sensation in your legs coupled with an uncontrollable urge to get up and move. This condition is difficult to deal with because symptoms flare up when you want to do just the opposite — relax and go to sleep. Other symptoms include itching, prickling, pulling, or crawling — sensations that cause you to want to move your legs.

Restless legs syndrome, which is also sometimes known as Willis Ekbom disease, affects about 5 to 10 percent of adults.

It can also occur temporarily during pregnancy — research suggests it’s one of the most common movement disorders diagnosed in the third trimester, and the symptoms taper off after delivery.

How to treat it Cut back on caffeine, alcohol, or tobacco, and your doctor may recommend certain medications to control the condition. Dr. Edlund suggests taking a walk before bedtime to help fight the urge to move when you are ready to sleep.

Research has pointed to daytime exercise as helpful.

There’s also some evidence that massages and compression therapy may help.

6. Sleep Paralysis

What it is During sleep paralysis, individuals describe being awakened from sleep but unable to move. It’s a scary situation to be in, especially because these episodes are often accompanied by hallucinations, nightmares, or even a sensation of pressure on the chest. Some people who encounter sleep paralysis say they can see a supernatural creature or human intruder in their bedroom.

Sleep paralysis is categorized as a parasomnia. Researchers suggest it may be a mixed state of consciousness, mixing consciousness and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep together. This may be why people lose their muscle control and visualize images even though they feel awake. (REM sleep is the stage of sleep characterized by our most vivid dreaming and temporary muscle paralysis, thought to be a protective mechanism to prevent people from acting out their dreams and injuring themselves.)

How to treat it If you have narcolepsy or sleep apnea, which are often underlying problems contributing to sleep paralysis, the treatments mentioned above should also help. Sleep hygiene is a key component to treating sleep paralysis: Maintain a regular bedtime, exercise regularly, and make sure your bedroom is free from noise and bright lights that might interrupt your slumber.

7. Sleepwalking

What it is This is probably one of the best known of the parasomnias and, as the name suggests, it's when a person gets up and walks around while in deep sleep. Sleepwalking can be dangerous to the sleeper and others if the person tries to go downstairs, uses sharp or dangerous objects, becomes violent, leaves the home, or tries to drive a car or operate other machinery.

Sleepwalking more commonly occurs in children than adults. It’s also more likely to happen if there is a family history of the condition or if the person is sleep-deprived, stressed, or is prone to waking up at night.

How to treat it As with other parasomnias, you can reduce safety risks to the sleepwalker by making the bedroom safe. It may be necessary to keep doors shut and put gates at stairways. Some households install motion sensors or door alarms that trigger if a person gets out of bed. In some cases, medical evaluation and medication is necessary to control sleepwalking.

Additional reporting by Carmen Chai.

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