> What Is Normal Sleep For An Adult?
> What Is Insomnia?
> How Do I Know If I Have Insomnia?
> What Are The Symptoms Of Insomnia?
> Do I Have Insomnia If My Sleep Problems Have Been Going On Less Than Three Months?
> Why Are There Two Different Classifications Of Insomnia?
> Is There A Cure For Insomnia?
> Do I Need An Overnight Sleep Study To Diagnose Insomnia?

What Is Normal Sleep For An Adult?

Generally speaking, sleep changes across your lifespan with younger adults sleeping better than older adults. A young adult can expect their sleep to have the following features:

• Fall asleep within 20mins

• Wake up around 1-2x per night

• Night awakenings to last no more than 5-10min each

• Get around 7 hours of sleep

• Have a sleep efficiency score of approximately 85% - 90% (sleep efficiency is the time you spent asleep divided by the total time you spent in bed x 100)

The video below explains more on what is normal sleep for an adult as you age.

What Is Insomnia?

Insomnia, or sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder characterised by problems falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up too early. The term ‘insomnia’ is derived from the Latin term in, meaning not or without, and somnus, meaning sleep. Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder, and it is also one of the most commonly occuring mental health disorders. Studies report up to 45% of people are experiencing at least one symptom of insomnia at any given time, while approximately 10-15% of people meet a diagnosis of chronic insomnia. 

How Do I Know If I Have Insomnia?

You may have insomnia if you have one or more of the following sleep problems:

1. Trouble falling asleep;

2. Find it difficult to stay asleep at night (i.e. getting back to sleep after awakening); or

3. You find you wake too early and struggle to get back to sleep;

4. Your sleep issues are affecting your daytime functioning.

Insomnia is actually a subjective sleep disorder. That means that, to a degree, it’s determined by the individual and the level of distress they feel about their sleep problems rather than an objective measurement of sleep taken in a lab.

What Are The Symptoms Of Insomnia?

In terms of diagnosing insomnia there are two slightly different classifications for the symptoms of insomnia. One definition of insomnia symptoms is found in the International Classification of Sleep Disorders, 3rd edition (ICSD-3) and another in the Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition (DSM-5). A clinician could use either and the core symptoms of insomnia in both classifications are:

1. Difficulty falling to sleep; and/or

2. Difficulty staying asleep (i.e., frequent awakenings or problems returning to sleep after awakenings); and/or

3. Early-morning awakening with the inability to return to sleep.

4. The sleep difficulties occurs on at least 3 or more nights per week. 

5. The sleep difficulties have lasted at least 3 months (chronic insomnia).

6. The sleep disturbance causes clinically significant distress (e.g. fatigue, decreased energy, mood problems, worries about sleep loss) OR impairment in social, occupational, educational, academic, behavioral, or other important areas of functioning. 

7. The sleep difficulty occurs despite adequate opportunity [e.g., lasting at least 7 hours] for sleep 

8. The sleep difficulty is not attributable to the effects of a substance (e.g., a drug of abuse, a medication). 

If you feel you meet these criteria, then you can assess how serious your symptoms are using our online questionnaire.

Do I Have Insomnia If My Sleep Problems Have Been Going On Less Than Three Months?

If a person meets all the insomnia symptoms listed in either the ICSD-3 or DSM-5 but their difficulties have lasted less than 3 months then the ICSD-3 has a classification of ‘short-term insomnia’. The DSM-5 would label this ‘other specified insomnia disorder’.

If you feel you meet these criteria, then you can assess how serious your symptoms are using our free online insomnia severity quiz.

Why Are There Two Different Classifications Of Insomnia?

There are two different classifications of insomnia because insomnia is considered both:

1. A sleep disorder treated by a behavioural sleep medicine specialist (and therefore listed in the sleep specialist’s primary text - The International Classification of Sleep Disorders, 3rd edition, ICSD-3); and

2. A psychological/mental health disorder treated by an appropriately trained sleep psychologist (and therefore listed in the mental health practitioner’s primary text - The Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition, DSM-5).

Is There A Cure For Insomnia?

Yes insomnia can be cured. Scientific studies have shown that Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Insomnia, also known as CBTi or CBT-i, is effective at curing insomnia (i.e. complete restoration of normal sleep) in around 70-80% of cases. Other studies show that around 90% of people treated for insomnia using CBTi will experience improvements in sleep.

Do I Need An Overnight Sleep Study To Diagnose Insomnia?

No, don’t waste your money. An insomnia diagnosis does not require an overnight sleep study. Insomnia is diagnosed via an interview with a sleep specialist.