Symptoms and Effects of Primary InsomniaThe APA Psychology Dictionary defines insomnia as “difficulty initiating or maintaining restful sleep that results in fatigue, including fatigue. severity of persistence causes clinically significant causes. distress or functional impairment” (VandenBos, 2007, p. 485). The pineal gland in the brain produces melatonin which functions in “circadian” rhythms, which over time helps control sleep (Gillam, 2009). Using polysomnography, researchers found that a possible cause of insomin is a longer period of stage 1 sleep and shorter periods of stages 3 and 4. This disorder exists primarily in young adults and people middle-aged. “Population surveys indicate a one-year prevalence of insomnia complaints of 30 to 45% among adults. The prevalence of primary insomnia is approximately 1 to 10% in the general adult population and up to 25% among older adults” (American Psychiatric Association, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 2000, p. 601) . The following conditions are often confused with insomnia because of their similarities: “Short sleepers” have less difficulty falling asleep than people diagnosed with insomnia, but “short sleepers” may develop an insomniac sleep style if their condition is unknown; people with circadian rhythm sleep disorders only experience insomnia symptoms at certain times when they are not accustomed to sleep; Breathing disorders such as sleep apnea are primarily associated with difficulty breathing (DSM-; IV-TR, 2000). Symptoms of primary insomnia should not occur at the same time as another mental or sleep disorder. sleep or when consuming substances. In other words, insomnia symptoms must occur independently of other factors. According to the DSM-IV-TR (2000), primary insomnia...... middle of article...... Viorel, L., Vasile, B. (2009). Treating primary insomnia: a comparative study of self-help methods and progressive muscle relaxation., Cognitive and Behavioral Psychotherapies, 9, 67-82. American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed., Text Rev.). Washington, DC: Author. Douthwaite, A. H. (1958). Drug treatment of the disease: Insomnia. The British Medical Journal, 2, 1347-1349. Gillam, T. (2009). Understanding primary insomnia in older adults. Nursing Older People, 21, 30-33. Okajima, I., Komada, Y. and Inoue, Y. (2011). A meta-analysis on the treatment effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy for primary insomnia. Sleep and biological rhythms, 9, 24-34. doi:10.1111/j.1479-8425.2010.00481.xVandenBos, GR (ed.). (2007). APA Dictionary of Psychology. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.