Certainly any form of sleep deprivation, or a failure to reach REM when sleeping, can cause a variety of problems. Someone who is working a night shift would be effected by this greatly. Another situation may be with a newborn, because sleep is interrupted. However, once the situation is changed the individual can typically go back to their normal sleeping habits.
I do not feel that a sleep disorder is what causes fibromyalgia. Having it myself, I do know that a loss of adequate or restorative sleep enhances the pain that I feel. There are days where I can't get enough sleep. Looking back on my life when my first issues with fibro. are believed to have begun, I can't really say that I recall having any real problems with circadian rhythm that could be related to fibro. I do recall one bout of insomnia (but had much stress and it was relieved when the stress subsided). Otherwise, my sleeping habits were very normal....until the time when it seemed that the fibro symptoms worsened (RLS/PLMD).
Good luck with your research and I wish you the best with your endeavors.
Welcome aboard ! I've never heard of the circadian rhythm before, so I had to do a little bit of research. I found this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm_sleep_disorder
I don't have fibro (I have CFS). I think I'm one of the lucky CFS patients because I rarely have insomnia periods and usually sleep from 8-14 hours a day ! I'm sorry but I don't have any thoughts on fibro and circadian rhythm... I guess I would have to learn more about this sleeping disorder.
Good luck with your research ! I hope that you will stick around and continue to post.
Not a doctor, but in the healthcare field... I believe the circadian rhythm is essential to healthy individuality. I recently started a job that has kept me up for >24 hours for 2-3 days a month, and about 10 other days of the month I was only getting 3-4 broken hours of sleep. I was pretty good health-wise up until starting this job. Since then, I have been slowly getting feelings of vertigo/dizziness, weakness in legs, very weak left arm, muscle "knots" in neck, trap, and back, high fatigue... I can never get enough sleep, even when I have the opportunity, awakening after 3-5 hours an unable to go to sleep again, but still feeling VERY tired.
The circadian rhythm is what it is: A Rhythm. If this rhythm is broken, as in anything that has a rhythm, it will not run as efficient. Some people can continuously work these crazy hours, most can't. Now with the economy as bad as it is, people will be working more hours, if they have a job, and more people will be effected by this. Then there are the people who will not have a job, or will lose their job. Their anxiety and stress levels will go up, and they will be affected as well. This is a big, endless circle, and it will only get worse. Rhythm's are there for a reason. A band that has no rhythm sounds horrible! A body with no rhythm... yuck!