Insomnia May Lower Your Tolerance for Pain

Do you struggle to get sleep every night? And wake up in the middle of the night only to be left tossing and turning? Then, here’s something that you should be giving your attention to.Insomnia is a sleeping disorder characterized by the inability to fall asleep or stay asleep.  It depends on the quality of sleep and whether you feel refreshed or drowsy on waking up, not on the number of hours you sleep. People with insomnia may have the following symptoms – finding it hard to sleep, frequently waking up and trouble going back to sleep, waking up to early, being drowsy and tired upon waking, day sleepiness amongst others.It can not only leave you tired or fatigued, but can also make you feel depressed, irritable and anxious. Poor sleep quality can cause tension headaches, affect digestive functions and make it difficult for a person to concentrate and focus on tasks.A new study, published in the Journal Pain, shows that people suffering from insomnia and other sleep problems have increased sensitivity to pain. The results suggest that psychological factors may contribute to the relationship between sleep problems and pain, but they do not fully explain it.(Healing the Hurt: Natural Ways to Treat Pain)"While there is clearly a strong relationship between pain and sleep, such that insomnia increases both the likelihood and severity of clinical pain, it is not clear exactly why this is the case," said lead researcher Borge Sivertsen from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Bergen.The study included more than 10,400 adults from a large, ongoing Norwegian health study. Each participant underwent a standard test of pain sensitivity -- the cold pressor test -- in which the participants were asked to keep their hand submerged in a cold water bath.(Crossing Your Fingers Might Reduce Pain, Says Study)Overall, 32 percent of participants were able to keep their hand in cold water throughout the 106-second test. Participants with insomnia were more likely to take their hand out early: 42 percent did so, compared to 31 percent of those without insomnia. Further, it was also noted that pain sensitivity increased with both the frequency and severity of insomnia.(Rest Assured: What to Eat to Sleep Better?)The study concludes that pain sensitivity is linked to sleep latency, the amount of time one takes to fall asleep and not to the total sleep time. Stress and depression are the most common cause of insomnia. The study highlights the need for efforts to improve sleep quality among patients suffering with chronic pain and vice versa.With inputs from IANS