Causes of Sleeping Too Much

A good laugh and a long sleep are the best cures in the doctor's book. ~ Irish Proverb

Yes, sleep is considered to be a blissful thing that rejuvenates us from a day of stress and strain. If you do not get enough sleep you will feel tired the whole day. Some people find it hard to sleep during the night, and use the day instead to get some rest. Sleep has the power to revitalize the human body but if there is less or too much sleep, your body will not respond positively.

The average sleeping time for an adult is eight hours. There are several causes as to why a person sleeps too much but some of the common causes are stress, lack of self-discipline and poor sleep in a span of a couple of days. These are some of the temporary causes that can be cured with a little will power and determination. But there are some causes, which are to be dealt clinically and are not as simple as the previous ones.

Causes of Oversleeping
Lets discuss some of the diseases that cause too much sleep or hypersomnia.

Sleep Apnea: Sleep apnea is a sleep disorder, which is more about having trouble breathing, which results in frequent disturbances in a long and deep sleep, thus leaving the person tired and slow even if he has slept for 10 hours. This condition becomes severe when people starts falling asleep while driving and at work. The worst part of this condition is that most of the people who have sleep apnea do not even know that they are suffering from such a problem. Because, they do not remember getting up in the night gasping for breath. Hence, they do not take any actions to stop it from happening. The breathing trouble happens so that the muscles of the walls of the throat can relax as the individual then finds it easier to breathe, this stops the air flow inside the body and either the individual gets up to breathe or he or she fails to go back into a deep level of sleep which actually regenerates and freshens our mind and body. Some of the symptoms of this kind of disease are dozing off irrespective of the place, heavy snoring, and headaches in the morning. Sleep apnea treatment involves certain clinical therapies and lifestyle changes.

Narcolepsy: Unlike sleep apnea, narcolepsy is a neurological problem that leads to over sleeping. This neurological problem hits that part of the brain, which controls and regulates sleep. People who have narcolepsy fail to identify and distinguish between the time to sleep and the time to remain awake. Such people can fall asleep anywhere and anytime. It is often considered to be a hereditary condition and it actually changes the lifestyle of a person, where clinical help is a must in the case of narcolepsy. A patient of narcolepsy might fall asleep for a few seconds or even for an hour but when these patients wake up they feel refreshed and energetic, but this condition does not prevail for long. They start feeling sleepy again. Environmental problems also that play a major role. It is said that people who suffer from narcolepsy lack the protein called Hypocretin, which actually regulates the brain's capacity to fall asleep.

Depression: Apart from the above two main reasons for sleeping too much, depression is also related to oversleeping. Oversleeping during depression is not healthy. Instead, one should establish regular and adequate sleeping hours to get over depression. Because, side effects of sleeping too much can add further mental stress on the person. Lack of motivation is also among mental causes of heavy sleep.

Medications: Hypersomnia can sometimes be a withdrawal symptom of some type of medication. Sometimes, drug abuse, alcohol and even caffeine might make a person sleep more than the required amount. In such a case, one needs to check the medications they are taking and avoid having alcohol or caffeine.

Poor Diet: A poor diet or eating little amount of food can make a person feel tired and sluggish. Eating unhealthy or junk food can lead to drowsiness and one might feel like napping after a heavy meal. Hence, one needs to eat a diet rich in nutrients and include lots of fresh fruits and vegetables in their diet and reduce the amount of junk food and greasy food.

Effects of Oversleeping
Sleeping too much than the recommended sleeping hours can lead to certain health problems. Here are some side effects of oversleeping.

• Many doctors believe that sleeping too much can lead to back pain.
• Oversleeping during the day or disrupted sleep during nighttime can lead to headaches.
• Oversleeping might lead to being less active. Lack of exercise or any physical activity during the day can lead to weight gain.
• Getting too much sleep increases risk of high blood pressure and coronary heart problems.
• Certain studies state that people who tend to oversleep have a higher death rate.
• People who tend to sleep more than nine hours every night have a fifty-percent greater risk of diabetes, than those who sleep seven hours every night.

These were the various causes of sleeping too much. If you tend to exceed the recommended sleeping hours and are suffering from any mental or physical side effects of this condition, then book an appointment with your doctor. The doctor will prescribe you some medication and advice on healthy lifestyle habits. This will help you reestablish regular sleeping habits.