[The Most Important Thing Most Americans Misunderstand About Insomnia — Plain English with Derek Thompson — Overcast](https://overcast.fm/+1LedmxQhE) tl;dr: Sleep is vital for health, and understanding our natural circadian rhythms can help improve productivity and well-being. Dr. Jade Wu, a sleep specialist, discusses the importance of sleep and offers insight into overcoming sleep problems through methods such as cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTI). Sleep habits differ across cultures and various stages of life, with industrialization changing how we sleep compared to pre-industrial societies. Each person has unique circadian rhythms, which can vary naturally, and these rhythms can be influenced by internal and external factors. Sleep deprivation and insomnia can have detrimental effects on physical and mental health, making it essential to prioritize sleep. Dr. Jade Wu helps people overcome sleep problems without using medication, such as CBTI, which teaches patients how to improve their sleep quality and avoid poor habits through data-driven insights and personalized exercises. The myth of high performers requiring only a few hours of sleep is largely untrue, as lack of sleep can negatively impact cognitive and physical performance. Finally, while sleep trackers can be helpful in understanding sleep patterns, it's crucial not to become too attached to the numbers, as this can lead to anxiety and potential insomnia. Notes: - Sleep is an important habit to develop for health and well-being - Different bodies seem to want to sleep in different ways - Pre-industrial societies had biphasic sleep or segmented sleep - After the Industrial Revolution, one-shot sleep became the norm, which potentially impacts our natural sleeping patterns - Hunter-gatherer tribes sleep similar to today's post-industrial workers - Different animal species have unique sleeping habits - Dr. Jade Wu is a behavioral sleep medicine specialist at Duke University School of Medicine who helps people to overcome their sleep problems without using medications - Sleep is important, but taking it too seriously can lead to anxiety disorders around sleep, which can increase the odds of insomnia. - Sleep deprivation and insomnia are often used interchangeably but are different things - Sleep deprivation is when there's not enough opportunity to sleep, while insomnia is when there's enough opportunity but something internal is keeping one awake - Sleep deprivation tends to have the most significant and obvious negative biological health effects while insomnia tends to have subtler biological health effects - Differences in sleeping patterns can be seen across various animal species - Dr. Jade Wu helps people overcome sleep problems without using medication - Anxiety around sleep can lead to insomnia, and this can be detrimental to one's physical and mental health. - Sleep deprivation and insomnia are different, with sleep deprivation having more obvious negative effects on health and insomnia having subtler effects - Sleeping patterns vary across different animal species - Dr. Jade Wu helps people overcome sleep problems without medication - Anxiety around sleep can lead to insomnia and have negative effects on physical and mental health - Working with your body's natural rhythms can help improve productivity and energy levels during certain times of the day - Circadian health is vital and our biological clocks impact when we feel sleepy or awake and how our body systems operate - Natural variation in circadian rhythms exists, with some people naturally being morning people and others being night owls - Melatonin plays a significant role in the regulation of sleep and our internal hormonal clock. - Those who tend to have earlier or later Melatonin curves can be classified as morning people or night owls respectively. - Our circadian rhythm changes throughout our lives due to natural changes and external factors such as having children or work obligations. It is elastic and can be changed. - Natural variation in circadian rhythms exists, with some people naturally being morning people and others being night owls - Melatonin plays a significant role in the regulation of sleep and our internal hormonal clock. - Those who tend to have earlier or later Melatonin curves can be classified as morning people or night owls respectively. - Our circadian rhythm changes throughout our lives due to natural changes and external factors such as having children or work obligations. It is elastic and can be changed. - Lack of sleep can be detrimental to health, causing cognitive and physical issues such as increased risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease. - The belief that some extreme high performers only require a few hours of sleep is largely a myth; they may be deluded about their performance when they sleep less. - Perinatal sleep can be challenging due to changes in hormones and schedule, but there are ways to make it suck less, such as being aware of increased caffeine sensitivity during pregnancy. - The speaker, a sleep researcher who has two children, changed her approach to sleep between her first and second child, prioritizing her circadian health the second time around. - The myth that extreme high performers only require a few hours of sleep is largely untrue - Perinatal sleep can be challenging, but there are ways to make it better, such as being aware of increased caffeine sensitivity during pregnancy - The speaker, a sleep researcher and mother, changed her approach to sleep between her first and second child, prioritizing her circadian health with the second child - CBTI is a non-medication therapy that improves a person's relationship with sleep by creating a personally-tailored plan - CBTI starts with keeping a sleep log for a week or two to identify patterns, including time to fall asleep, middle of the night awakenings, and how much time spent in bed - The therapy focuses on data-driven insights and personalized homework/practice-based exercises - The therapist may adjust the patient's schedule if they are going to bed too early or address internal and external stress symptoms - CBTI is time-limited and aims to provide the patient with practical skills they can use long after the therapy is over. - The therapy for insomnia is called cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTI) - CBTI aims to teach patients how to improve their sleep quality and avoid poor sleep habits - The therapist helps the patient develop a sleep log to identify patterns - The therapy is data-driven and involves personalized exercises - The therapist may adjust the patient's schedule - CBTI is time-limited and provides practical skills for long-term use - Sleep trackers can be helpful but don't get too attached to the numbers - The therapy aims to consolidate sleep time for better quality sleep. - CBTI teaches patients how to improve sleep quality and avoid poor sleep habits - A sleep log is developed to identify patterns, and therapy involves personalized exercises and schedule adjustments - CBTI provides practical skills for long-term use and aims to consolidate sleep time for better quality sleep - Sleep trackers can be helpful but don't get too attached to the numbers