4.4 Sleep Problems and Disorders

By the end of this section, you will be able to:

  • Describe the symptoms and treatments of insomnia
  • Recognize the symptoms of several parasomnias
  • Describe the symptoms and treatments for sleep apnea
  • Recognize risk factors associated with sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and steps to prevent it
  • Describe the symptoms and treatments for narcolepsy

Many people experience disturbances in their sleep at some point in their lives. Depending on the population and sleep disorder being studied, between 30% and 50% of the population suffers from a sleep disorder at some point in their lives (Bixler, Kales, Soldatos, Kaels, & Healey, 1979; Hossain & Shapiro, 2002; Ohayon, 1997, 2002; Ohayon & Roth, 2002). This section will describe several sleep disorders as well as some of their treatment options.

This lesson has no exercises.

The content of this course has been taken from the free Psychology textbook by Openstax