Loneliness is a persistent feeling of isolation. "Persistent" is the key to diagnose loneliness and depression opposed to the normal human condition of feeling lonely or sad. Click HERE for Loneliness and Other New Findings. … [Read more...]
Benzos, Sleep, Memory, Dementia
It's been two years since BMJ (formerly The British Medical Journal) published "Benzodiazepine use and risk of Alzheimer's disease: case-control study" (BMJ 2014; 349:g5205). The main conclusion was that using benzodiazepines ("ben-zoe-dye-AIZE-uh-peenz" or BZDs or benzos, which include Klonopin/clonazepam, Xanax/alprazolam, Valium/diazepam, Ativan/lorazepam, … [Read more...]
A Psychiatrist Asks Three Questions About Sleep
A Psychiatrist Asks 3 Questions About Sleep that can with sleep problems, insomnia, attention deficit disorder, ADHD, sleep and depression, addiction, and PTSD. Click HERE for more about these 3 questions... … [Read more...]
Dreams and the Big Bang
A thought experiment: sleeping states are rest states, default states in which the great ocean of brain machinery is repairing itself, humming and chugging along. Don't ask why do we sleep. Ask why and how we awaken; and then in this being-not-asleep, what function does conscious awareness serve? Consider the dream state and stages of sleep as analogous to the microwave … [Read more...]
Listening To Insomnia
One simple point about sleep difficulties, which we personalize as "Insomnia": Consider it as a signal, a message, something that deserves your attention. If you are not falling asleep or staying asleep (and we know sleep is a vital function), then your body is telling you something. (Note: As a physician, my first concern is whether some significant medical condition is … [Read more...]
You Can’t Get Away With It: Sleeplessness Hurts
"I don't need much sleep." "I pulled an all-nighter." "I can always catch up." We have the illusion that we control what happens in our brains, that we can forgo a sleeping state in favor of a waking one without penalty. No, not true. There is a price to pay- you may decide it is worth the price, but the billions of brain cells and their trillions of connections will have … [Read more...]
Sleep and Dementia: A Version of Pascal’s Wager
My guess is that poor sleep, over months and years, increases your risk of dementia, most commonly AD (Alzheimer's Disease). I think of a night of poor sleep as a blow to the head, and its effects are cumulative over a lifetime. Remember how boxers and football players accumulate tiny injuries and micro tears of brain tissue: dementia pugilistica and traumatic … [Read more...]
Keep Calm and Sleep: Your Personal Prime Performance Plan – Meeting Your Deadline
Whether facing a big test, sports competition, or a major life event, you need a personalized plan. You must address sleep, attention, and stress to meet your deadline. We help you with all three. What are you preparing for? A Big Test or Exam, such as: Bar exam, Finals, Dissertation Sports competition, such as: Race, Golf Tournament, Tennis Match, Team … [Read more...]
FAQ for Sleep Therapy Terminology
Don't lose sleep over all the technical terms associated with sleep therapy. To help you better understand "sleep" terminology we have a FAQ page with helpful and easy-to-understand definitions. Click Here to access. … [Read more...]
The Many Faces of Sleep: Awake Feeling Rested
All right, already....We are about to become accustomed or even bored by the stream of news and research reports. Yes, lack of sleep could be a causal factor in obesity, depression, suicide, hypertension, diabetes, cancers, immune system defects, addiction relapse, attention deficit problems, dementia, mitochondrial energy lapses, and much besides. My friends and patients are … [Read more...]