Your Brain On... Insomnia

It's 3 AM and your brain won't shut off. About 1 in 10 adults meets the clinical definition of chronic insomnia, and most never get treated. Instead, they scroll through an endless aisle of magnesium gummies, melatonin, and $300 trackers that don't address the real problem.

We brought in a neurologist and a psychologist who never spoke to each other and landed on almost the exact same conclusions.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• How the brain's glymphatic cleaning system works during sleep and why chronic insomnia is a brain health problem
• Why melatonin is a darkness signal, not a sleeping pill, and how nocturnal animals prove the point
• A sleep neurologist's honest 1-to-10 ratings of every sleep aid you've heard of: magnesium (2/10), CBT-I (10/10), alcohol (-10/10), and 12 more
• What orthosomnia is and why your sleep tracker might be making your insomnia worse
• Why perimenopause and menopause create what one expert calls "a perfect storm" for sleep disruption, and why doctors keep missing sleep apnea in women
• How CBT-I works: sleep restriction, stimulus control, and why your therapist will tell you to spend less time in bed, not more
• The data showing CBT-I may outperform hormone therapy for menopausal insomnia
• ACT therapy for insomnia: a different approach for people who get more anxious from CBT-I
• Blue light, naps, the 8-hour rule, catching up on weekends: what holds up and what doesn't
• Five steps to start tonight, and why you should pick just two

Dr. Sujay Kansagra is a pediatric neurologist and sleep medicine specialist at Duke University, director of Duke's Pediatric Neurology Sleep Medicine Program, and author of "My Child Won't Sleep."
Follow Dr. Kansagra: @thatsleepdoc

Dr. Shelby Harris is a clinical psychologist and behavioral sleep medicine specialist. She treats insomnia in women during perimenopause and menopause and is the author of "The Women's Guide to Overcoming Insomnia."
Website: drshelbyharris.com
Follow Dr. Harris: @SleepDocShelby

Hosted by Drs. Ayesha & Dean Sherzai
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