Wednesday, February 28

Interview with Sleep Doctor

There are not a whole bunch of sleep advocates on the web so when I discovered theinsomniablog.com I was quite impressed. This blog is not run by the typical sleep doctor nor by the typical insomniac. Dr. Breus is the author of Good Night: The Sleep Doctor’s 4-Week Program to Better Sleep and Better Health through out his career in sleep medicine he has been on several TV shows, and has been in several publications. He is truely dedicated to educating and informing the public about this precisions 1third of our lives. Below is the interview with the Dr. Breus.


1third: How long have you been a sleep specialist? Why did you choose to go into that specialty?

Dr. Breus: I have been a sleep specialist for the past 8 years. Meaning I passed the sleep boards at age 31, but I was studying sleep about 2-3 years before that. I chose it as a field of specialist for several reasons: 1) Just plain old curiosity. I had always wondered what happened when you fall asleep, and now I know; 2) It was the only area of psychology where I could change people’s lives almost instantly; and 3) it was fun, new and exciting -- some major research finding occurs each year in this field.

1third: What is the thing you like most about sleep and sleeping? For example, is there an aspect, benefit, or quality that you like the most?

Dr. Breus: There are several reasons why I personally like to sleep. First, it is simply a time out from everything else. I have a great life, but I also need a break sometimes, and in a house with 2 kids, 3 animals and 1 wife it can be hard to find some time on my own. I also like sleep because it really helps my thinking process; I certainly solve problems in my sleep. Finally, I like dreaming. Although I do not know what they really mean (and no one does), it is a great escape.

1third: Why is it so hard for so many people to get a good night’s sleep? What are some of the main factors at work when a person becomes an insomniac?

Dr. Breus: This is a tough question to answer, and one that science has not quite figured out yet. I personally believe there are many reasons why we do not sleep. The number one reason is, of course, stress. I would guess that 75% of my patients who have sleeping problems like insomnia have either anxiety or depression as a major problem contributing to their sleep. Next is the environment. Many people do not sleep in a space that really allows for great sleep. Most bedrooms are too noisy, lighted, and cluttered. I talked about this a little recently on The Insomnia Blog.


1third: Why is sleep so important to an individual's health and well being?

Dr. Breus: Another great question that we really do not have a good answer for. We know that all living creatures have some period of inactivity in their day, but we really do not know why. We know that people heal better when they sleep better. We also know that every single organ system is affected by sleep. Everything from immunosupression (the ability to fight off disease) to treatment for cancer is affected by sleep.

1third: How do people know they have a sleep problem? What are the signs that indicate that they should see a doctor?

Dr. Breus: One great thing to try is my In-Depth quiz on the website at www.yoursleepcoach.com. It is an educational quiz designed to let people know exactly how many signs and symptoms of a diagnosable sleep disorder they may have. You can print the results and take them to your doctor if you want. The next step is to check in with your body. If you wake in the morning not feeling refreshed and ready to meet the day, then you may not have a sleep disorder... but you may have what I call "disordered sleep".

1third: Do most insomniacs seek help or do they tend to seek coffee and over-the-counter aids instead of professional help?

Dr. Breus: Most do both. Usually those with insomnia will try an OTC or coffee for a certain period of time, and when that ultimately fails they will talk to their health care professional. This person sometimes will be well educated enough to work with them in different areas, but more times than not will give them a prescription. After a few months of this is when I usually get the call that this patient is not doing too well with sleep and is there something I can do to help.

Friday, February 23

Bed Jumping




I just got back from my first real adult Mardi Gras. We had such an awesome time that I forgot to jump on the hotel bed and take a picture. Bed jumping looks like so much fun. Maybe next time this can be the highlight of some horribly boring trip.

Wednesday, February 21

Our Insomnia



Check out this viedo on insomnia.

Via TheIncomniaBlog

Thursday, February 15

Counting Sheep

Check out this new way of boring yourself to sleep.

Monday, February 12

Good news for slackers: naps can help the heart



Daytime snooze cuts risk of fatal heart attack by 37 percent, study finds


This story is a part of MSNBC's coverage of stress so once you read it be sure to schedule a nap.

Relax is in good health

A few days ago I posted my discovery of Relax magazine and presumed incorrectly that the magazine went out of business. I am glad to report that this not the case. Relax is doing very good and the publisher should be commended for the foresight and courage the magazine demonstrates. It is no small feat to publish a high-end magazine with no investors and still have enough to give back. Please take a moment to check out the 2006 issues online here.

Sunday, February 11

try doing this before you go to sleep

It worked for Nancy so it should work for you too.

Cute Sleepy Animals

Why are they so darn cute?



Saturday, February 10

Goodby "Good Morning America"

We all know that the internet has been taking traditional TV audiences and shrinking the profitablility of TV. Here is another story about this trend that may change the way we wake-up to media. This week the LA Times had a story on the way this trend is effecting morning shows, whose demographic is made up of mothers.

It's difficult to trace the exact cause of the drop. It comes after two popular morning hosts, Katie Couric and Charles Gibson, left their shows to be evening news anchors. At the same time, the advent of "mommy blogs," the growing popularity of online news sites and the ever-more-frantic press of daily life appear to have led many women to forgo the morning ritual of watching TV.

Relax Magazine



I just discovered Relax, a home and lifstyle magazine based on the idea of slowing down. Here is a little bit of why it exists:

Our mission is to help readers to find balance as they juggle careers, families and home life. We offer content and valuable resources that will inspire our readers to slow down and focus on what really adds meaning to their lives.


Friday, February 9

Sleep is a skill

I was pleasently surprised to come across this Child-Works, a sleep consulting firm. Here is a little bit about its sleep philosphy:
This philosophy is based on the notion that learning to sleep is a skill, just like talking, sitting up and walking. Sleeping well is a family issue and we believe that the child is not the soul focus of the sleep problems.
They have a lot of links, articles and books they recomend for parents that are trying to teach that life long skill of going to bed.

Why a sleep blog?

The fact that most people spend 1/3 of their lives asleep is worth meditating on.
Not only meditating on, but its also worth writing about and talking about, which is why this blog exists.

When you take time to examine and explore this 1/3 third of life the rest of life will be better for it.

Here I’m not just talking about sleep, as you might have noticed by now. Sleep cannot be easily disconnected from the world around it and the environment that allows it or disallows it. Therefore, I don’t want to separate sleep from the night, from alertness, or from wellness. They are connected in meaningful ways and that relationship deserves to be deeply understood. Likewise I think an appreciation for sleep is inline with an appreciation for slowness, relaxation, dreams, creativity, death, stillness, inaction, peace, physiology, and circadian rhythms.

I like to think of words of Gandhi “"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever." These are truly wise words to live by. In thinking of sleep, as I so often do, I can’t help but wonder if it is worth thinking of sleep as an inevitability that we should be prepared for each day, and dreams as a lesson we learn, and unusually forget, each night. Is that too much value to give sleep? Is it too much meaning for this 1/3 of life. Perhaps it is.

Thursday, February 8

Top Ten Most Annoying Alarm Clocks


This Sonic Alarm is number two on the list of ten annoying alarm clocks.
The Sonic Alarm will wake pretty well anything up. Simply pull the pin, yell an emphatic “fire in the hole” and lob the grenade into the sleeper’s room. After ten seconds a very annoying and piercingly loud noise (there are three volume settings) will blast out from the alarm. That’s not all however, what makes this especially great is that to stop the alarm the sleeper has to find you so you can put the pin back in.

Wednesday, February 7

Some things you didn't know about sleep




These are some points that were interesting in Discovery's article "20 Things You Didn't Know About Sleep":

6. In 2004 Americans filled more than 35 million prescriptions for sleeping pills.The number of adults aged 20 to 44 taking pills to help them fall asleep has doubled in the last four years.

7. More than 100,000 car crashes in the United States each year result from drowsiness. Drivers talking on cell phones increase the rate by 6 percent, so don't call someone if you get tired.

11. Let's sleep on it first: In a gesture of integration with the European Union, Spain has launched a campaign to eliminate the tradition of siestas, or afternoon naps.

12. Thanks in part to their afternoon naps, Spaniards sleep an average of 40 minutes less per night than other Europeans. Spain also has the highest rate of workplace accidents in the EU and the third lowest productivity rate.

16. Dreaming is connected to bursts of electrical activity that blow through the brain stem every 90 minutes during REM sleep. Over a lifetime, an average person spends more than six years dreaming, clocking more than 136,000 in all.

17. But nobody knows why we dream.

Lights = Warmth?


I wonder how much warmth all these lights create? Could it ? . . . No of course not. But, well if lights = warmth then this could mean that light pollution is playing a role in global warming, however small and unsexy it my be?

I am familiar with the concept of light pollution, in which the city lights make seeing difficult for people like air traffic controllers. But I didn't know that some people suspect that this type of mass electrification can be deadly. I also didn't know, until today, that Seattle has been able to put a halt on the net emissions caused by powering its city's lights.

Intrigued, I did some brief research and it looks like my theory doesn't quite stand up. The main effects of light pollution are:

Energy Waste
Interference with astronomical observations
(Negative) Effects on human health and psychology
Disruption of Ecosystems

That being the case, even if the lights don't directly contribute to global warming, I am nevertheless alarmed by the harmful phenomena and the relative obscurity of it. One organization that is working to raise awareness of these issues is the National Dark Sky Week.

Tuesday, February 6

Clock Shirt

I am kind of surprised this is not an American product since so many Americans are convinced that time=money.

These unisex clock shirts can be bought through an Australian company. If you go to the Latest Buy web page you'll end up taking an outdated stroll down memory lane.
You remember Flavor Flav from the rap group Public Enemy, right? He was the "zany, kooky and straight-up wacky" one who wore big clocks around his neck (and top hats) to prove he could always "tell people what time it was"?

It was funky, fun and completely functional...and though Flavor's time may have come and gone, his contribution to the clock-watching community lives on in spirit – which brings us to the f-f-freshest arrival on the timepiece scene - the Digital Clock T-shirt - which is a kind of space-age homage to the man who made "yeaaaah, BOY!" one of our favourite catchphrases.

I guess all I can say is "yeaaaah BOY!"? Yeah right.

via Lastest Buy and GearLive

Exhausted Japanese business men

via Magical Urbanism

Friday, February 2

What a sofa bed

This is so cool and so european. Check out how this sofa
can become this bed.


Living with Narcolepsy



This week Newsweek's website published the story of a narcoleptic's journey to diagnosis. Before the diagnosis sleepiness had become a normal aspect of Sarah Shonyo's everyday life.

Her friends were very supportive although they don't pass up the obvious opportunity for cheap laughs.
My two best friends immediately e-mailed me a cartoon depicting a job applicant sleeping in an interview and the employer saying, “It says here you have narcolepsy. What’s that?” and then assured me that they would be more than willing to hold my ponytail at dinner to keep my forehead from hitting the table. Another friend told me about a policeman from his hometown who had narcolepsy. After his condition became known, he was referred to by the locals as “Officer Fally-Downy.”

At this point Sarah never fell down as or loss muscle control as a result of narcolepsy. To my knowledge about half of narcoleptics don't develop sever cataplexy. Eventually however Sarah did developed cataplexy.

Its kind of warming to see her friends making light of the situation because laughter is a powerful medicine, but I can only hope that laughter doesn't trigger Sarah's cataplexy. Such irony would not be laughable.