"Neurasthenia" is directly translated as "weakness of the nerves". Neurasthenia name is the United States of America's G. M. Beard first put forward, he believes that neurasthenia is different from the nervous system organic diseases of a functional disease, most of the patients with neurotic qualities. At present, it is believed that neurasthenia is due to certain long-standing mental factors cause excessive tension in brain function activity, which produces a weakening of the ability to mental activity. Its main clinical features are easy to excite and easy to fatigue. Often accompanied by a variety of physical discomfort and sleep disorders, many patients have some kind of susceptibility to pre-morbid qualities or bad personality.
The symptoms of neurasthenia are varied, but they are mainly manifested in the following five groups of symptoms
(1) head tension discomfort: such as dizziness, headache and headache.
(2) Sleep disorders: most of them are insomnia, and a few of them show sleepiness and dreaminess, and remain sleepy after sleep.
(3) Decrease in the rate of mental work: mainly mental work can not be sustained, attention can not be concentrated, memory impairment, often forgetfulness of general things, but not easy to forget the things that bother you.
(4) Weakness and fatigue: manifested as general weakness and fatigue disproportionate to the intensity of labor.
(5) Mood troubles: easily agitated over trivial matters and accompanied by other somatic reactions caused by mood troubles, such as panic, loss of appetite, etc.
Neurasthenia can be prevented under certain conditions. Because the pathophysiological characteristics of neurasthenia is a mild dysfunction of the brain, rather than organic lesions of the brain. In terms of etiology, the disease is due to mental factors. But in the same mental factors, some people can be onset, while others are safe and sound, indicating and each person's different character qualities and the ability to transform the external environment and adaptability. If the elderly can avoid or reduce the influence of adverse mental factors on people or improve the human body's ability to transform and adapt to external harmful factors, it can reduce or avoid the occurrence of this disease. Its preventive measures are as follows:
One is to improve the psychological quality of people, enhance the body's self-defense capabilities. The occurrence of neurasthenia and your personality characteristics are closely related to your personality, not fixed, with plasticity, after the education and exercise of the acquired environment, can be changed. In order to prevent the occurrence of neurasthenia, it is necessary to first transform the bad personality. For example, the weak neurological type, with this character quality of the person is more withdrawn, silent, sensitive and suspicious, poor communication, good alone fantasy, lack of confidence, good sulking and so on. To transform this personality, must be through long-term study and practice, and gradually set up a correct outlook on life, more participation in group activities, expanding the horizons, in a variety of practical life, to cultivate its ability to live, and cultivate bravery and self-confidence, so that this personality towards the development of healthy aspects, so that it will change the aloofness for the group, from the interest of narrow interest into a wide range of interests, change the suspicion for the cheerful, change the timidity for the courageous, the lack of confidence to life into full of confidence and so on. The first thing that you need to do is to get your hands on a new pair of shoes or boots.
The second is to cultivate a good interest. The first one is the good interest and the bad interest. Good interest, not only can enhance the function of the brain, improve work efficiency, but also can prevent the occurrence of neurasthenia. Because you are engaged in any activity, if you have a strong interest, you can do fast and good, and can last a long time without fatigue; on the contrary, if there is a lack of interest, it is not easy to do fast and good, and fatigue is easy to appear, and it is even difficult to continue. If you are forced to do will cause brain dysfunction, long term, there is a possibility of neurasthenia.
Third is to maintain a good mood. Emotions can be divided into negative emotions and positive emotions. Negative emotions make you depressed, physical decline, pessimism and despair, downcast, the so-called "sadness and doze", is this emotion, this emotion is very harmful to health, long-term not to lead to neurasthenia. Positive emotions make you refreshed, increased physical strength, energetic, energetic, the so-called "people are happy with the spirit of freshness", refers to this kind of emotion, it is beneficial to your mental health.
Fourth, pay attention to sleep hygiene, develop good sleep habits. Should be the following four points to start:
(1) to ensure that the sleep time. If sleep time is not guaranteed, it will directly affect brain function. Sleep time is related to a person's age, health, climate and other conditions. It is generally believed that to the old age, sleep time should be longer, such as physical illness, can be appropriate to sleep more, the climate is hot, increase the nap time, the brain is beneficial.
(3) Sleep on time. Sleep on time, means and sleep cycle synchronization, with the alternation of day and night, regular work and sleep, developed such a habit, to sleep, will naturally go to sleep. When it's time to get up, you'll wake up again naturally, as rhythmically as the sun sets and rises.
(4) Overcome irregular sleep. Irregular sleep means that one is disrupting the body's biological clock, which will inevitably affect the rhythm of awakening and sleep over time. For example, some elderly people play mahjong day and night, watching TV, if it is a short-term behavior, the impact on your mind and body is not great, if the regular recreation time is excessive, it will affect the health of the mind and body.
Fifth, strengthen physical exercise. "Muscle hunger is the bane of modern health". According to records, 100 years ago, 94% of all work was done by people's physical labor. Nowadays, with the progress of science and technology, mechanization, automation gradually increased, coupled with the retirement of inactivity, living in deep simplicity, the degree of physical labor is getting lower and lower, and if there is a lack of physical exercise, the result will make the muscle atrophy, physical deterioration, health and brain function is not good. Clinical experience has proved that many of the neurasthenia of the elderly and long-term neglect of physical exercise has a certain relationship. If you have daily exercise, but also to promote a good night's sleep, improve the body's immune function, enhance the muscle function of the heart muscle, accelerate the blood flow rate, which greatly improves the brain, the heart itself and the whole body's blood circulation, to promote the function of the digestive organs, accelerate the metabolism, so that the body is fit and healthy, energetic, so as to reduce the occurrence of chronic diseases such as neurasthenia.
Sixth, pay attention to the combination of work and rest. Neurasthenia occurs due to improper use of the brain, or excessive fatigue, mental overstress, do not pay attention to the combination of work and rest. The brain is the most delicate and subtle organization in the human body, but also the most prone to fatigue of the organization. Fatigue is a protective reaction of the human body, inhibition is a protective measure of the brain, which can prevent over-excitement caused by the failure of nerve cell function. Brain fatigue, if with constant stimulation to force it to work, do not pay attention to the combination of work and rest, not only the efficiency of the work is greatly reduced, the loss is not worth the gain, and may cause disorders of the brain function, leading to the occurrence of neurasthenia. Therefore, the elderly should not be too long for continuous intense intellectual activities.