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Insomnia, RLS and circadian disorders

Apnea is only one variant. Free validated questionnaires exist for the rest.

Beyond apnea there are insomnia, restless legs syndrome, circadian rhythm disorders and chronotype mismatches. Galpin recommends starting with free, short, scientifically validated questionnaires — the Check tab has five of them.

Insomnia is often arousal at bedtime: cognitive load, novelty-seeking media, or unresolved stress. Melatonin doesn't fix mid-night waking — it's a circadian tool. First-line treatment in every major guideline is CBT-I, not pills.

Sources · 6

Validation of the Insomnia Severity Index as an outcome measure for insomnia researchBastien CH, Vallières A, Morin CM · 2001The 7-item ISI; ≥15 indicates clinical insomnia.A new method for measuring daytime sleepinessJohns MW · 1991The 8-item Epworth scale; ≥11 suggests excessive daytime sleepiness.Restless legs syndrome/Willis-Ekbom disease diagnostic criteriaAllen RP, Picchietti DL, Garcia-Borreguero D, et al. · 2014The four essential criteria plus 'not solely accounted for by another condition' used in the RLS screen.Horne & Östberg morningness-eveningness questionnaireAdan A, Almirall H · 1991The 5-item rMEQ chronotype scale used in the Check tab.European guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of insomniaRiemann D, Baglioni C, Bassetti C, et al. · 2017CBT-I is first-line treatment; hypnotics only short term.Management of chronic insomnia disorder in adultsQaseem A, Kansagara D, Forciea MA, Cooke M, Denberg TD · 2016Strong recommendation: all adults with chronic insomnia receive CBT-I as initial treatment.

Related topics

Insomnia, RLS & instruments

Frequently asked questions

Insomnia, RLS and circadian disorders?

Apnea is only one variant. Free validated questionnaires exist for the rest.

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No. SleepShred Pro is $4.99 per month or $29.99 per year, with no free trial and no ads. Everything stays on your iPhone.

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SleepShred turns this research into a 20-second daily habit: log your night, see which of your own behaviours move your sleep, and screen for the disorders nobody diagnoses.

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Educational summary of published research, not medical advice. Screening scores are not diagnoses. If a score is elevated or you feel unwell, talk to a clinician.