Here’s a quick video I produced for TEDMED this year. I figure the easiest way to explain one of our largest unrecognized public health crises is to just take a look at my own sleep deprived life. I also slip into a rant about the culture of sleep machismo in everyday life. Enjoy!
Welcome to the new normal!
But all is not lost.
To get better sleep and welcome back your creative dreaming mind, keep an eye out for my new ebook Dream Like a Boss (Book 1): Sleep Better, Dream More, and Wake Up to What Matters Most.
Pre-order coming July 1! UPDATE: August 20.
The ebook will be an exclusive bonus for a new dream recording app called SHADOW. I’m acting as a dream advisor for SHADOW, and we are rolling out a Kickstarter campaign in July to build the dreamers’ community and engineer the database.
Sign up for updates by clicking the image below.
PS I’m getting better sleep this month. And I got a haircut, Mom.
Yep, been there, done that … sleep is important. Many years ago, I was a full time professional with two young kids being supermom, experiencing what I thought was existential despair at not being able to do it all.
Then I got really sick, and in the process of coming back from that, learned the despair was a consequence of simple physical exhaustion. Tough lesson, good to remember.
Good to remember: teething doesn’t last!
Sleep deprivation/fragmentation as you describe is also a technique found in Brainswashing 101. If someone is trying to control you or your opinion, that’s exactly the frame of mind they want you in.
Welcome to my world, Ryan! I have been living with insomnia and sleep fragmentation for years. Yes, it slowly destroys your mind. Yes, it makes you angry and irritable all the time. At least you have a good reason for yours; my problem is a complete mystery which none of my doctors have really been able to help me with. I too am sick and tired of the attitude toward sleep that our culture has. Even our doctors don’t seem to take sleep deprivation seriously. There seems to be an underlying attitude of, “Just deal with it.” Anyway, congrats on your baby and I’m sure you’ll be back to regular sleep soon. Find me in one of your lucid dreams and tell me it’s okay to sleep.
Great stuff, Ryan!