One third of men, women, and children in Northern America complain about their sleep. This would be approximately 50 million people. Another 20 to 30 million people have trouble getting the sleep that they need. The complaints range from not getting enough sleep to people getting too much. Experts aren't sure why we sleep, all they know is that it recharges the body to support daytime awareness.

"Mental health professionals define sleep disorders as persistent disturbances in the quantity or quality of sleep that interfere with an individuals ability to function normally for a month or more" (Dianne Hales and Robert E. Hales, M.D.). What's the significance of all these problems and what might be done about them? Some very recent research by scientists is starting to present some of these answers. As these studies have been done, the brain activity during sleep falls into different states, stages, and cycles.

There are many different sleep disorders. They range from Insomnia, to Hypersomnia, Circadian Rhythm, and Parasomnia. Insomnia is known as the most common form of sleep disorder. Insomnia is when a person lacks the amount of sleep needed which in turn interferes with a persons ability to function during the day. Hypersomnia, is mostly experienced by people who have excessive sleep or daytime drowsiness. Circadian Rhythm is problems in falling asleep or staying awake at the appropriate times. Parasomnia occurs during sleep or in the period between wakefulness and sleep, and more prevalent in children than adults.

Most people fall asleep within 30 minutes of going to bed, while a person with Insomnia toss and turn for an hour or more. Most of the time Insomnia occurs before a main event in a persons life. It will usually last for 3 or 4 nights, but on the other hand it could last for years. Insomnia can occur at any age, but it increases as a person ages. An estima

Some common words found in the essay are:
Circadian Rhythm, MD What's, Northern America, Parasomnia Insomnia, Sleep Apnea, People Parasomnia, Dream Sleeping, circadian rhythm, parasomnia occurs, sleep disorders, sleep people, insomnia factors, ability function, percent people, sleep person, sleep apnea, getting sleep,
Approximate Word count = 655
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)