Dreamland

Sleep has only become a problem for me in the past few years. Prior to turning 40, I seem to remember only pleasant things about sleep. Somewhere around 40, though, sleep turned into my enemy. 

I've never resorted to sleeping pills but I have used Benadryl plenty of times as a sleeping pill (with good success). For some people it's difficulty falling asleep, but for me it's always been a problem with staying asleep. I fall asleep pretty quickly and easily, but then I immediately have a dream, and then usually I wake up -- with a total sleep time of maybe 20 minutes. You're not supposed to nap at night. Naps are for the daytime! I seem to nap at night, now. Lots of little naps that I'm forced to call a night's sleep.

In my never-ending quest for a better night's sleep, I try to read up on all the latest sleep news. I came across this book, Dreamland, by David Randall and of course bought it immediately. I found it interesting and helpful, unlike most things I read about sleep.

One of the main problems with 'sleep problems,' I think, is that we all experience different problems. This is a problem. Some people have difficulty falling asleep, the author has problems with sleep-walking, some people have aches and pains that make sleeping impossible, and my problem is staying asleep. Each sleep-associated issue seems to require its own course of action. 

The one complaint I have about the book is that it's organized more like a general read for the masses than like a self-help book for those dealing with sleep problems. He has to know that those suffering with sleep problems are the most logical audience for his information, yet it's written so that it will be interesting to Joe the mechanic. 

As an example of the problem the format causes: I wanted to tell someone about how teenagers sleep, that I had learned in the book, but there's no section on "teenagers." Instead, the information is buried someplace obscure, or fragments are placed in different chapters. You can't just look it up as a reference.

I attempted to keep notes as I went along, so that I could relay the information in a more user-friendly way. I'm not sure if I succeeded, but it's the best I could do.

1) First sleep/second sleep

Once someone goes to sleep, it is normal to have a period of wakefulness somewhere in the middle of the sleep cycle. Back in the time before artificial light, this hour or two would be used for sex, going to the bathroom, or letter-writing/study by candlelight. Sleep is naturally split into roughly two equal portions every night, with a break between the two. Hence "first sleep" and "second sleep." Therefore, having a period of wakefulness during the night is natural.

2) Separate beds/rooms

There shouldn't be a negative social stigma against sleeping separately. Getting a good night's sleep is important, and sleeping separately is a good way to help toward that endeavor. More and more home builders are now being asked to build dual master bedrooms. Men are usually against the idea. Ha!

3) Relaxation to clear your head

The number one reason for insomnia is worry. Worry about the past, the future, the present, worrying about not being able to sleep, and then worrying about worrying. If the brain can't let go of the worry and fears, it's next to impossible to sleep. 

Sleeping pills are generally not helpful. Studies have shown that they do little to improve either quality or quantity of sleep. (The placebo effect helps just as much.) Some sleeping pills don't affect sleep at all, but alter the brain's ability to form short-term memories, so that you wake up thinking you had a good night's sleep when in fact you slept just as poorly as always.

Yoga, meditation, relaxation exercises… Do something to help your brain let go of its worries at night. Routines are also very helpful. Follow the same routine every night, with maybe a bath, decaf tea, reading, then bed at the same time every night. It doesn't matter what you do as long as you do the same thing every night at the same time. (This goes for children as well. Be consistent.)

4) Regular, moderate exercise

You don't need to exercise a lot; there is no set amount that's required. The only thing proven is that you need to do it regularly (once a week will not help your sleep, even if you run a marathon that day), and that you need to accept that what you're doing and the amount you're doing it is good enough. If you worry about not exercising enough or not doing the right exercise, the worry is counterproductive to your sleep. Studies show that everyone sleeps just fine as long as they believe that the amount of exercise they're doing is adequate for their health, even if the amount of exercise and type is completely different among all of them. 

Lack of worry -- peace -- is the common denominator of people who sleep well.

5) Daily exposure to sunlight

With our bodies exposed to so much artificial light, our natural rhythms have become confused. Try to get up with the sunrise (keep blinds open so the sun will come in in the morning), and turn off all lights (including TV, iPod, computer, etc.) about a half hour before going to bed. Exposure to too much artificial light is the number two cause of insomnia issues (right behind worry).

Those are the 5 tips I gleaned from reading the book, but I may have missed some. He does mention that sleep apnea is a common culprit for sleep problems -- and it doesn't just affect the obese. A night in a sleep lab would be wise for those who suspect this problem.

Now, let's get back to the teenagers. There is a lot of talk lately about how poorly Americans compare with other cultures when it comes to science and math. Chinese children are generally forced to give up any semblance of life in order to focus on school. They don't have dance lessons, football lessons, or just spend time hanging out at the mall. Their time is spent studying, and they may have tutors to help them study after school and on weekends as well. Their scores are a result of damn-hard work. And, possibly? more sleep. 

Studies show that it's during sleep that new information is processed and stored. If you don't get enough sleep, it's unlikely that you'll easily be able to pick up and learn anything. Teenagers aren't usually able to fall asleep until 11 or midnight, no matter how hard they try.  The body's natural rhythm for teenagers is to go to bed late and get up late, for adults it's to go to bed a few hours after sunset and get up a little after sunrise, and for older adults it's to go to bed early and wake up early. (The evolutionary reason is so that in every family group there is usually always someone awake at one time or another.)

The point being that American teenagers get maybe five or six hours of sleep a night, when their bodies need probably double that. And there's no such thing as a nap in American schools once you're out of preschool.

American school systems set up our children to fail by forcing them to start school when they're still asleep. Our son's high school started at 7:05. He rode the bus to school, and those same busses also bus elementary school children -- meaning that high school students are bussed first so the busses can then get to the elementary school children. The bottom line was that our son had to get up at 5:30 every morning. It's no wonder our teenagers are grumpy, moody, and sleepy.

Like Dreamland suggests, if we can get our schools to begin even just an hour later, we give our children a better chance at academic and social success.