Sleep 8 System

Episode #4 of The Sleep Tips Podcast - Progressive Relaxation

shaunjimi — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 16:48:56 +0000

Progressive Relaxation

In this episode, we pull out all the stops and go through a full breathing and progressive relaxation exercises. We’re not talking about new-age stuff here, but a simple, straight-forward relaxation process that is rooted in psychology and works well.

This is a great episode to keep around and use later for when you have trouble relaxing your mind before sleep!

Also, If you haven’t had a chance to grab a copy of your free sleep program, please do give it a try! It uses the same method that Jimi delivers in this show plus some other sleep inducing methods. Check it out here.

Follow us and Comment

As always, you can follow us at http://twitter.com/SleepTips or drop a comment on this post. We’d love to hear from you!

Sleep well and pleasant dreams!

Episode #3 of The Sleep Tips Podcast

shaunjimi — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:21:07 +0000

Useful Sleep Tips

In this episode, we go through several helpful sleep tips. Not everything works for everyone, but you’ll certainly find something here that will work for you.

Books mentioned in this episode…

We mentioned a few books that help you manage your stresses, worries, tasks and other things that are “top of mind”. Some people prefer a journal and some people prefer a system, so we can recommend these depending what works best for you!

Follow us and Comment

As always, you can follow us at http://twitter.com/SleepTips or drop a comment on this post. We’d love to hear from you!

Sleep well and pleasant dreams!

Episode #2 of the Sleep Tips Podcast

shaunjimi — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 21:16:26 +0000

Sleep Myths (And a little mythbusting!)

In this episode, we go through 8 common sleep myths and talk about the reality of things. In addition to the ones discussed on the show, we’d also love to hear about your sleep myths. Drop us a line in a comment below and we’ll discuss them!

Follow us on Twitter…

If you’re a twitter user, you can find us at http://twitter.com/SleepTips. We are very active there, so feel free to drop us a line. We’ll be updating regularly about new shows, research and other interesting things to help you sleep better.

Sleep well and pleasant dreams!

Episode #1 of the Sleep Tips Podcast

shaunjimi — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 02:21:14 +0000

Welcome to the inaugural episode of the Sleep Tips podcast! In this episode, we introduce ourselves and talk about some of the issues facing people looking to seek help for their sleep problems.

Some of the research for this episode comes from a really great book by Gayle Greene called “Insomniac”. Check it out at Amazon!

More information:

Episode 2 is recorded and will be up in just a few days. If you’d like to be notified of new episode as well as receive a free copy of one of our audio sleep programs, just register in the box on the top of the side bar to the right.

Thanks for listening. Feel free to drop a comment or ask a question below. Pleasant Dreams!

Podcast in Production

shaunjimi — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 23:41:44 +0000

Behind the scenes, we’ve been producing a podcast that we think you’re really going to love.

The show is focused on what causes sleep issues and how you can work through them to consistently sleep well each night. It’s interesting, entertaining and gives you some great tips for sleeping better.

So get ready for something new… This may be the first show in history designed to put its audience to sleep!

The Dangers of Prescription Sleep Aids: Is it Worth the Risk?

shaunjimi — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 14:58:50 +0000

Recent studies indicate that 1/3 of the American population suffers from sleep related issues. The instances of temporary and chronic insomnia are also very high in the U.K., most of Europe and Japan. Our society is experiencing an epidemic of sleep deprivation. The research regarding the problem lacks funding. Much is still not known about how the brain works and exactly what happens when we move from a wakeful state to restful sleep. Our days are spent with demanding work schedules and caffeine crutches to get us through. The energy drink business is now a multi-billion, yes billion, dollar business and is doubling year after year.

Where does this leave us? Many sleep deprived folks are turning to prescription sleep aids. Is this a good decision? What are the side effects of plunging into the world of sleeping pills?

The current trend by physicians is to prescribe a nonbenzodiazepine. Direct-to-consumer advertising of drugs, approved in 1997, is pushing patients to request medications. There are several brand names on the market and I’m sure you’ve seen the commercials and flipped through a magazine with multiple ads touting the benefits of these drugs to answer the need for a “satisfying 7-8 hours” of sleep.

Read the Fine Print

Before you decide to take the magic “pill”, you may want to read the fine print on the ad. Just pick up a copy of some general magazine. I found a copy of Reader’s Digest that was full of multiple advertisements featuring the lunar moth and all his friends. There are all sorts of laws that a pharmaceutical company must follow when advertising their product. You should read the details of the ad with a critical eye and not get swayed by the pretty pictures of sleeping people. The ads usually have that enticing photo on page one, then there are at least 1 or 2 pages of fine print following the ad. Don’t skip this part. This is where the real entertainment can be found!

Are You Eating in Your Sleep?

Here’s some text directly from the first page of one ad (it must be vitally important if it’s on the first page; remember the lawyers guide most of the requirements). The warning reads: “Call your doctor right away if after taking (Brand Name) you walk, drive, eat or engage in other activities while asleep.” Are you kidding me? There’s no way they would have to put this in the ad unless it has happened with multiple patients. What if this was you? Check out the internet by searching for any of these strange behaviors regarding sleep aids. You’ll be shocked at what comes up. Other side effects that have been reported are amnesia (not just forgetting something, but real amnesia), impaired motor skills, paranoia, aggressive behavior, confusion, strange behavior (what does that mean?), agitation, hallucinations, worsening of depression, and suicidal thoughts. I wouldn’t want to experience one of these, much less a few of them at the same time!

Don’t Start Taking Sleep Aids or You Might not be Able to Stop.

What about addiction? That’s the big fear that most people have about the drug route. You should be scared. The “nonbenzo” drugs came about because of the highly addictive nature of the “benzo” group that preceded it. When you talk about prescription medications with an addictive factor, you must be aware of the withdrawal associated with them. Any narcotic will come with the lovely withdrawal symptoms that occur when you try and stop taking them. The “half-life” of a drug is how long the drug stays in your system after taking it. The longer the half-life, the less severe the withdrawal. The new drugs have a half-life of 2-4 hours. What does this mean? First, they don’t even stay in your system the entire night. You may have to get up and take another pill to keep sleeping!? And, with a half-life so short the withdrawals start before you get up!

What do the drug companies say about the withdrawal in the fine print of their own ads? Here you go: “Dependence is the need to continue taking a medicine because stopping it is unpleasant. All people taking sleep medicines have some risk of becoming dependent on the medicine. Withdrawal symptoms may occur when sleep medicines are stopped suddenly after being used daily for a long time. In some cases, these symptoms can occur even if the medicine has been used for only a week or two. In mild cases, withdrawal symptoms may include unpleasant feelings. In more severe cases, abdominal and muscle cramps, vomiting, sweating, shakiness, and rarely, seizures may occur. Another problem that may occur when sleep medicines are stopped is known as ‘rebound insomnia.’ This means that a person may have more trouble sleeping the first few nights after the medicine is stopped than before starting the medicine.”

Make Up Your Own Mind

So, consider yourself warned. Please evaluate all of the side effects of going down the prescription sleep aid route and know that even if you start taking them, there’s no guarantee that stopping will be easy. You may even end up worse than you were when you started.

We designed the Sleep 8 System specifically to help you develop the ability to fall asleep and stay asleep without the dependence on sleep medications.

Please listen to our podcast on the causes of sleep issues and insomnia for more tips. We promise not to put you to sleep… right away, that is!

Sleep Deprivation and Driving: Some Solutions for Long Haul Truckers

shaunjimi — Fri, 16 Jan 2009 00:39:17 +0000

Long haul truckers fall asleep at the wheel. A lot. If you’re a long haul trucker, you have almost certainly experienced this, even if it’s not something you’d go around talking about to everyone you meet. Sleep deprivation on the road is a huge personal and public safety problem today. In fact, the effects of sleep deprivation are the same impaired judgment and slowed reaction times as those of a drunk driver (up to the equivalent of a 0.5% Blood Alcohol Content!).

Forgetting your own safety for a moment, traffic accidents caused by sleep deprivation number in the millions every year. There are tens of thousands of deaths related to effects of sleep deprivation or outright falling asleep at the wheel. Those are general road safety statistics related to sleep problems, but it’s even worse for truck drivers as a specific demographic. Reports vary, but somewhere between 20 to 40% of all trucking accidents are caused by sleep-related fatigue. Read that again… 20-40% of all accidents.

So, what causes sleep problems for long haul truckers? Obviously, very long hours make it difficult to catch sleep, but there’s a lot more to it than that. Chronic insomnia and other sleep issues can multiply the effects and the frustration of sleep deprivation for truckers.

Are you controlling your caffeine intake when you’re on the road?

This doesn’t mean cutting out caffeine and other stimulants, but understanding how it works in your own body and making sure you’re using it where appropriate. We’ll be covering caffeine and how it works on the body in an upcoming article.

How much sleep did you have the night before a long night driving?

Building up a “sleep debt”, or putting off sleep night after night, can lead to serious fatigue while driving.

Can you fall asleep when you have the chance?

Insomnia, or being just unable to fall asleep when you should, is a frustrating problem experienced by everyone. Sometimes it can last for weeks or months on end. Many people turn to chemical answers to what is often really something going on in your mind.

Is your mind in the right place?

Stress and mental state have as much to do with falling asleep as the time of day and how tired you feel. We recommend finding something that can work for you to help you relax your mind quickly and effectively, such as the audio trainer modules included in our sleep 8 system.

What can you do about it?

Finally, while it may be easier to pop No-Doz and Ambien to try to regulate your sleep, but our brains were just not made to operate that way. Addressing the root causes of short-term and chronic insomnia will help you to regulate your own sleep, even where you can’t enjoy the benefit of a full 8 hours. Having more control over your own ability to fall asleep quickly and consistently will give you the tools you need to prevent sleep deprivation on the road and stay awake on your own terms. We designed the Sleep 8 System specifically to help you develop this ability in yourself.

Please listen to our podcast on the causes of sleep issues and insomnia for more tips. You can even listen on the road. We promise not to put you to sleep… right away, that is!