Insomnia and Quality of Life Research Paper Example

Introduction

Insomnia is among the major disorders that affect the quality of life in human beings. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines the Quality of Life (QOL) as the individuals' perception of their position in life, in the context of culture and the value in which they live in a manner that is related to the goals, expectations, standards as well as the concerns. Studying the relationship between Insomnia and QOL is vital in offering a degree of satisfaction that one has with health, social, occupational status as well as other involvements. Fundamentally, the Insomnia is described as the difficulty of an individual to initiate sleep, early morning awakening as well as the non-restorative sleep. Notably, these symptoms potentially and drastically affect the patient's ability to maintain a sense of well-being and self-satisfaction that are associated with the health, occupational and social functioning. Various studies have linked Insomnia to the diminished loge quality and status for both syndromic as well as symptomatic insomnia. The prevalence of insomnia in general and its associated medical conditions makes it an important area of study. The research shows that nearly 30 percent of the Insomnia symptoms having a range of about 10 to 40 percent are defined. Overall, this type of sleep disorder is common in women above 18 years than men, with its prevalence being noted with the increase in age of both sexes. According to Kyle, Morgan, & Espie (2010), the Insomnia may be a primary disorder or the secondary disorder to the various number of physical or psychiatric illnesses. These illnesses include the depression anxiety, environmental factors or the psychosocial issues. Imperatively, the identification and the treatment of the underlying conditions related to the insomnia is a priority in the management of this disease.

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Importance of studying the relationship between insomnia and Quality of Life for Social Work Practice

The link between Insomnia and social work cannot be underestimated. This condition primarily exists in the presence of the medical, psychiatric and the psychosocial stressors. The sleeping problems may affect many aspects of life such as the job performance, the state of the mood, social functioning as well as the mental health. According to Vallieres et al., the unemployment, the recent death of a friend or a close member of the family, a recent end of a relationship as well as the individual health were the most common determinants of the short-term inability to initiate and maintain sleep. All these conditions act as the precipitants of the stress. The underlying stress may be some of the factors that can immensely contribute to insomnia as well as independent impairment of the individual's life quality. The stressors further add to the severity of insomnia in addition to other comorbid conditions. This process may also play a significant role in contributing to several downstream effects on the QOL as well as the ability to function well. Its association with some conditions especially in the patients of age above 18 as well as the effects instills a sense of need in me to study about the Insomnia.

Historically, the social workers especially those in the urban settings have been tasked with the provision of the essential services for the people with the background of the sleep disorders, including insomnia. The Association of Social Workers describes its principal mission of social workers as the enhancement of the people's health, along with the empowerment of the vulnerable individuals and allow them to meet their primary health requirements. The application of the evidence-based social psychotherapies by the social workers as the intervention towards insomnia and other related conditions have been on the increase for the past two decades. Notably, the social workers utilize the basic professional principles, skills, as well as the values to deliver their professional social work services, thereby helping those affected by the disorder.

The treatment of Insomnia in relation to the social work is successful if self-esteem is facilitated and enhanced in clients. This helps to strengthen the skills that enable the potential victims to control factors in such as stress that emanate from their environment. The patients further become able to increase their interpersonal skills while modifying work habits, assisting individuals to acquire a controllable and the situation that is satisfactory. It, therefore, means that the systematic approach towards insomnia among the patients above the age of 18 needs the application of the multidimensional treatment methods, which primarily focuses on the biological, psychological, social and the environmental elements of the long-term recovery.

My principal motivation towards studying the Insomnia and its relationship to the QOL is based on the tremendous impact that the disorder has on the individuals' health and well-being, which ultimately affects the QOL. As a prospective social worker, I believe that studying it will instill appropriate knowledge and skill base into me, thus enabling me to assist people who may otherwise suffer from the effects of the disease. As an urban social work expert, I will be able to use the cognitive behavioral therapy as the intervention in the systematic approach towards treating the Insomnia. In this case, I will attempt to improve the social work, professional and the mental statuses of the patients. Secondly, I will also use the knowledge gained from the study in this area to help the patients identify the resources, thereby increasing their health and life quality.

Literature Review

Tessaro & Navarro-Peternella (2015) examined the sleeping effects in the quality of life of women who have the Insomnia. As part of the research process, the researchers interviewed 11 women from a specific questionnaire with the aim of evaluating the Quality of Sleeping Index (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality/PSQI), in addition to one for life (SF-36).

Tessaro & Navarro-Peternella (2015) found that all the participants demonstrated the changes in sleep, as well as the quality of life, were associated with tobacco and the lack of the physical activity. The average found in the SF-36 was 39.0, with the most affected aspects of life including the general health, social functioning, and the limitations of the physical activities. The pain and the mental health challenges were further reported to be among the affected aspects of the life quality. The researchers also found in PSQI score that the poor quality of sleeping had the significant correlation between the questionnaires. The domains of physical functioning, social aspects portrayed moderate relationship.

Waguih et al. (2012) also examined the quality of Life in Patients who have Insomnia. This study was primarily a systematic review of the literature about the quality of life in the adults who have the Insomnia. Specifically, Waguih et al. addressed the following questions: What is the impact of insomnia on quality of life? 2) To what extent do comorbid conditions affect the quality of life in patients with insomnia? 3) What is the impact of insomnia treatment on quality of life? As part of the research design, this study was conducted through the use of the MEDLINE/PubMed and the PsycINFO databases. The keywords "Insomnia" and the "Quality of Life," QOL was used to search for the relevant articles. The researchers found that the QOL is tremendously affected in the individuals with Insomnia. Besides, the comorbid conditions profoundly affect the QOL more negatively. The researchers further found that the techniques aimed at restoring sleep such as the cognitive behavioral therapy and medications immensely helped in improving the QOL. While this is so, the researchers explicitly made concern that the restoration of the QOL to the community levels was still not apparent because of the limited research. In conclusion, Waguih et al. recognize that insomnia and its related conditions or illnesses affect an individual negatively. However, different treatment modalities of treatment can generate the improvements in physical as well as the psychosocial wellbeing as well as the QOL.

In another study, Zhang et al. (2017) examined Relationship between insomnia and quality of life. The researchers aimed at exploring the potential mediating effects that neuroticism, depressive and anxiety symptoms, as well as the somatic symptoms, have in the relationship between the Insomnia and the related health qualities. As part of the study, Zhang et al. (2017) employed a cross-sectional technique, which integrated and recruited a total of 297 adolescents and the 318 parents. The QOL was after that measured by a short form-36 (SF-36) health survey. Zhang et al. confirmed that individuals with insomnia depict poor health qualities compared to those who do not have the disorder. The quality of health, in this aspect, were associated with insomnia, severity, mood symptoms, neurocriticism as well as the somatic symptoms. In the study, the analysis of the mediation showed that a close relationship between insomnia severity and the impaired health quality were related.

The studies by Kyle, Morgan & Espie (2010) further offered confirmation of the relationship and the association between the QOL and insomnia. According to the authors, there exists a close association between insomnia and QOL. It is based on the fact that the chronic Insomnia is associated with various risks that include the chances for future chronic diseases, psychiatric illnesses, and other medical conditions. The models used by the authors offered a clear indication that the severity of the Insomnia is not only related to the physical health component of the Quality of Health, but also a considerable degree of the attenuation.

The Johansson et al. (2010) concluded that poor sleeping quality could tremendously lead to the quality of life of the individuals with the Insomnia. According to Johansson et al. Insomnia as a chronic disease that mainly interferes with the individuals' professional experience, family, as well as the social aspect. In this way, it makes it difficult for the professionals to respond to the external stimulation that causes difficulties in the concentration and the many precluding activities of the daily routine. These activities contribute to the low QOL. Based on the fact that the determinants of the health-disease are multifactorial and complex, Researchers concluded that the diseases could configure the processes related to the economic, socio-cultural, the lifestyle as well as the personal experience. According to Johnson et al., poor sleeping quality can be further associated with the various diseases such as the coronary artery. In this case, therefore, having a proper understanding of insomnia helps to minimize the morbidity and the mortality in patients suffering from the disease. A closer look at the article will reveal that the authors have succeeded in highlighting the significant risks factors associated with insomnia. These included gender, level of education, income level, and the marital status.

In another study, Talbott (2009) examines the Direct and Indirect Costs of Untreated Insomnia in Adults in the United States. The research aimed at estimating both the direct and indirect costs associated with untreated insomnia among the younger adults of age between 18 and 64 years. A closer observation at the study reveals that the researchers employed a retrospective and observational study that compared various insomnia patients to the matched samples. The participants of the study included the 138,820 younger adults and 75,558 elderly patients with insomnia. As part...