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4.29 AVERAGE
4.29 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
This book does talk about the different diseases and afflictions with sleepwalking and does discuss a case from the 1980s where a man murdered his parents while sleepwalking.
As far as I can tell, in order to write a review it was necessary to select a star rating. However, this is one of the first books I've read that my preference was to give zero stars; not because of the quality of the contents or writing, simply because it's not a book I would rank. Beyond any shadow of doubt, Matthew Walker makes the case for the importance, necessity, indeed, life-affirming reasons for sleep.
Walker is an enjoyable writer to read, deftly combining facts, figures and research studies with 'plain English.' He makes the science and research of sleep interesting and accessible. With that said, I did not - could not - finish his book. At some point it felt like I was being hit over the head with a hammer that kept striking at the same spot, and I wanted to scream: enough!
Before opening the book I was already a believer in the need for sleep, typically sleeping 8 hours a night, sometimes even 9. Through helpful graphs I saw how the brain cycles through NREM (not REM) and REM (rapid eye movement) sleep throughout the night. Walker likens NREM sleep as a time of reflection on the new information taken in during the day and REM sleep as a time of integration where that new information is linked to existing information. Also during NREM sleep the brain is bathed in cerebrospinal fluid, which essentially is like cleaning the filters on the air conditioner. This is an important nightly chore that, if not accomplished, can cause gunk (my non-scientific term) to build up in the brain, just like mold, dust and other debris can build up on a filter and cause it to perform poorly.
Athletes, students, and parents of both will find much of use in the early chapters of the book, as well as anyone who drives a car, runs a business, studies for tests…. Sleep matters. Insufficient sleep takes a toll no matter the activity.
Nonetheless, while it was definitely eye-opening to be exposed to the science and biology of what happens during sleep, it was equally down-heartening to read the chapters delineating the impact of insufficient and poor sleep on cancer, heart health, life span, Alzheimer's, and diabetes.
He lists Twelve Tips for Healthy Sleep in the Appendix, a reprint from the National Institute of Health's 2012 magazine, page 20. If you are interested in improving your sleep, these might be sufficient. However, if you want to get the full sense of why sleep matters or are simply not convinced of its importance, then I would absolutely recommend reading this book. What you learn might just make a difference in the quality of your life.
1. Stick to a sleep schedule.
2. Exercise, just not too late in the day.
3. Avoid caffeine and nicotine.
4. Avoid alcohol before bed.
5. Avoid large meals and beverages late at night.
6. Where possible, avoid medicines that delay or disrupt sleep.
7. No napping after 3:00 in the afternoon.
8. Relax before bed.
9. A hot bath before bed helps drop body temperature and promotes relaxation.
10. Set your bedroom up to be dark, cool, and free of gadgets.
11. During the day get sufficient exposure to sunlight.
12 Don't remain in bed if you are tossing and turning for 20 minutes and unable to fall asleep.
Walker is an enjoyable writer to read, deftly combining facts, figures and research studies with 'plain English.' He makes the science and research of sleep interesting and accessible. With that said, I did not - could not - finish his book. At some point it felt like I was being hit over the head with a hammer that kept striking at the same spot, and I wanted to scream: enough!
Before opening the book I was already a believer in the need for sleep, typically sleeping 8 hours a night, sometimes even 9. Through helpful graphs I saw how the brain cycles through NREM (not REM) and REM (rapid eye movement) sleep throughout the night. Walker likens NREM sleep as a time of reflection on the new information taken in during the day and REM sleep as a time of integration where that new information is linked to existing information. Also during NREM sleep the brain is bathed in cerebrospinal fluid, which essentially is like cleaning the filters on the air conditioner. This is an important nightly chore that, if not accomplished, can cause gunk (my non-scientific term) to build up in the brain, just like mold, dust and other debris can build up on a filter and cause it to perform poorly.
Athletes, students, and parents of both will find much of use in the early chapters of the book, as well as anyone who drives a car, runs a business, studies for tests…. Sleep matters. Insufficient sleep takes a toll no matter the activity.
Nonetheless, while it was definitely eye-opening to be exposed to the science and biology of what happens during sleep, it was equally down-heartening to read the chapters delineating the impact of insufficient and poor sleep on cancer, heart health, life span, Alzheimer's, and diabetes.
He lists Twelve Tips for Healthy Sleep in the Appendix, a reprint from the National Institute of Health's 2012 magazine, page 20. If you are interested in improving your sleep, these might be sufficient. However, if you want to get the full sense of why sleep matters or are simply not convinced of its importance, then I would absolutely recommend reading this book. What you learn might just make a difference in the quality of your life.
1. Stick to a sleep schedule.
2. Exercise, just not too late in the day.
3. Avoid caffeine and nicotine.
4. Avoid alcohol before bed.
5. Avoid large meals and beverages late at night.
6. Where possible, avoid medicines that delay or disrupt sleep.
7. No napping after 3:00 in the afternoon.
8. Relax before bed.
9. A hot bath before bed helps drop body temperature and promotes relaxation.
10. Set your bedroom up to be dark, cool, and free of gadgets.
11. During the day get sufficient exposure to sunlight.
12 Don't remain in bed if you are tossing and turning for 20 minutes and unable to fall asleep.
In terms of usefulness I wish I’ve read this book years ago.
However for me, parts of this boom were just a bit boring. Like some of the details on the experiments. I felt that did not add any value.
But other than that excellent stuff and should be highly recommended reading for anyone and everyone.
However for me, parts of this boom were just a bit boring. Like some of the details on the experiments. I felt that did not add any value.
But other than that excellent stuff and should be highly recommended reading for anyone and everyone.
Life-changing book, fantastic combination of hard science with anecdotes and real life studies showing real effects. I am so thankful to have read this and it has shown me how important sufficient and good-quality sleep is to my health and that of those around me.
Cannot recommend enough.
Cannot recommend enough.
informative
medium-paced
informative
medium-paced
This is probably the best nonfiction book I have ever read. It is so informative and has so much good data and research to back it up. Honestly, I literally could not recommend this more. Everyone should read this.
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
This book is revolutionarily against our modern world and it's relationship the the most foundational part of being human: Sleep. It so convincingly lays out all the reasons that our bodies and minds benefit from healthy sleep and are actively deteriorated by deficient (time and quality) sleep. This is a book of read by everyone would actually change the world into a more human (and less mechanized) place
Here are some questions this book answers
1) Why we sleep?
2) What are the stages of sleep?
3) How does sleep prevent chronic illness?
4) How does sleep help you process information and memories?
5) How different living beings sleep on the planet?
6) What neurotransmitter helps you fall asleep through the day?
7) What hormone is responsible for helping you fall asleep?
8) What is the impact of technology use on sleep?
9) What are the connections between sleep and learning?
10) How does sleep make you more productive at work?
There are four simple sections and you can read them in random order. They are a bit academic but also quite accessible. The author has spent twenty years of his life studying the subject. He summarizes several academic studies about sleep in this book. By the end of the book, I realized that sleep is the universal health care provider. We sleep for 1/3 rd of our life. Bad habits early in life compound over time and can lead to several ailments. Here are some tips to a good night's sleep
- Sleep at the same time and wake up at the same time
- Have a nightly sleep time ritual
- Avoid coffee and naps after 2 pm
- Maintain a cool temperature before you get to bed
- Avoid technology and bright lights in the house in the evenings
- Get lots of natural light and movement through the day
- Meditate for a few minutes to calm your mind before you sleep
- Have positive associations in your head about sleep and your place of rest
- Don't stay in bed for more than 25 minutes if you are not getting sleep
There are lots of great podcasts and lectures that I listened to while reading this book including
1) 6 part audio lecture series between Dr. Walker and Dr. Huberman on sleep - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OBCwiPPfEU
2) Dr. Walker Sleep TED Talk - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MuIMqhT8DM
1) Why we sleep?
2) What are the stages of sleep?
3) How does sleep prevent chronic illness?
4) How does sleep help you process information and memories?
5) How different living beings sleep on the planet?
6) What neurotransmitter helps you fall asleep through the day?
7) What hormone is responsible for helping you fall asleep?
8) What is the impact of technology use on sleep?
9) What are the connections between sleep and learning?
10) How does sleep make you more productive at work?
There are four simple sections and you can read them in random order. They are a bit academic but also quite accessible. The author has spent twenty years of his life studying the subject. He summarizes several academic studies about sleep in this book. By the end of the book, I realized that sleep is the universal health care provider. We sleep for 1/3 rd of our life. Bad habits early in life compound over time and can lead to several ailments. Here are some tips to a good night's sleep
- Sleep at the same time and wake up at the same time
- Have a nightly sleep time ritual
- Avoid coffee and naps after 2 pm
- Maintain a cool temperature before you get to bed
- Avoid technology and bright lights in the house in the evenings
- Get lots of natural light and movement through the day
- Meditate for a few minutes to calm your mind before you sleep
- Have positive associations in your head about sleep and your place of rest
- Don't stay in bed for more than 25 minutes if you are not getting sleep
There are lots of great podcasts and lectures that I listened to while reading this book including
1) 6 part audio lecture series between Dr. Walker and Dr. Huberman on sleep - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OBCwiPPfEU
2) Dr. Walker Sleep TED Talk - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MuIMqhT8DM