A Guide for Insomniacs

Hello Sleep: The Science and Art of Overcoming Insomnia Without Medications Jade Wu     (2023)

I’m breaking with the strong trend toward fiction in this blog to review this nonfiction title. I’ve read quite a few other books about sleep and insomnia, but I haven’t reviewed them here because they were either (a) unhelpful or (b) cruel.

I’ve also read countless online articles with recommendations for products or practices related to sleep. In response to these articles, I’ve installed a room-darkening shade, an air filter that doubles as a white noise machine, a highly-rated mattress, an expensive pillow, and an array of natural fiber blankets that can be layered on or peeled away. I’ve used eye masks, over-the-counter medications, and several types of ear plugs. I’ve practiced progressive relaxation, visualization, mindfulness meditation, and counting sheep. Some of these have helped my sleep marginally.  

Hello Sleep is a game changer. Dr Wu, who is a clinical psychologist and behavioral  sleep medicine specialist at Duke University, adopts a conversational tone as she explains how to establish a friendly—rather than an adversarial—relationship with sleep. I bounced around in her book before I then read it front to back, and I recommend reading it front to back, slowly and with attention.

Here are my key take-aways. Yours may be somewhat different, since Wu emphasizes individual differences in sleep.

  • Stop worrying that you are ruining your health because you have insomnia.

  • Distinguish tiredness from sleepiness. Sleep only when you are truly sleepy.

  • Establish set times for retiring and rising. Wu provides clear instructions for determining these times and for calculating your “sleep efficiency.”

  • If you wake in the night, get up and do something calm rather than tossing and turning. (Many other sleep books concur on this one.)

  • During the day, get some exercise and expose yourself to plenty of natural light.

  • Keep your brain from racing at night by spending time in the daytime to reflect on issues in your life. (I would add that handwritten lists help me avoid night-time ruminations.)

  • Don’t place too much trust in recommendations for merchandise that purports to help you sleep. Sure, it’s good to have a dark, cool room with good air circulation, but seeing sleep as your friend is more important.

Dr Wu also has chapters on prescription sleep medications and on medical conditions that can affect sleep.

If you are an insomniac, read this book. You can even read it at 3:00 am when you can’t sleep. Just ignore the lack of a comma in the title.   

Books in Brief, Part 2

I haul eight or ten books home from my local library every week. About half of those don’t get my attention past the first few pages. A couple of others may get a cursory scan through selected chapters. The remaining two or three books I read, relish, and review fully. Some of the books that don’t make the cut for a full review end up in a Books in Brief post. Read on!

Idaho     Emily Ruskovich     (2017)

The terror in this novel lurks deep within, and it is revealed ever so slowly. The novelist is highly skilled in describing the rugged landscapes of northern Idaho and in exploring the perspectives of multiple characters at multiple time points. In short, this is an excellent novel. But the crime that sets the plot in motion is so horrific that I simply had to stop reading about a third of the way through. If you don’t have problems with nightmares from scary books, you may like this one.

Here I Am     Jonathan Safran Foer     (2016)

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This novel is exasperatingly self-referential, long (571 pages), and long-winded. I can see the brilliance of much of the writing, but the author swaggers with his own importance too much. For example, Foer constructs many descriptive lists. When Michael Chabon employs this device, he illuminates his subject. When Foer does it, he suffocates his subject. There’s a lot of discussion of the politics of Israel, and I hoped that would redeem the story, but it didn’t. I gave up less than a quarter of the way through.

 

The Sleep Revolution     Arianna Huffington     (2016)

I’ve read a lot of books and blog posts on the subject of insomnia, and as I paged quickly through The Sleep Revolution I recognized all the standard assertions:  lives too fast-paced, blue screens too ubiquitous, dinner too late, snoring too loud, pills too dangerous. If you need to be convinced that you should seek more healing sleep, you might want to read this entire book. Otherwise, turn to chapter 9, “What To Do, What Not To Do.” Among the many sleep tips summarized in this chapter I found one I may try: extended bedtime meditation rituals. Huffington helpfully lists guided meditations for sleep in her Appendix B. Her Appendix D, on mattresses, doesn’t mention the best resource I’ve found: sleeplikethedead.com