Sleep changes help kids in school
An interesting study was recently conducted on 201 adolescent students in a Rhode Island high school. In brief, their finds supported what might be a matter of common sense: the kids all-around did better when they were able to get a bit more sleep. This was achieved by knocking the school’s start time a little later in the morning. A lot of the kids reported increased motivation and less fatigue. Makes sense though… doesn’t it. It seems in America we need a study to tell us what should really be a matter of common sense. That’s to say… a child who’s not sleep-deprived and falling asleep in class is actually going to do better in school. Go figure…
July 9, 2010 No Comments
An Insomnia Memoir

Patricia Morrisroe
But, what about the other side: the anecdotal. Although there are different opinions on this, I, for one, think anecdotal accounts have a deserved place in serious research. And, that’s part of what makes Wide Awake: a Memoir of Insomnia by Patricia Morrisroe a potentially interesting piece of work. Morrisroe describes herself as a lifelong insomniac, and she gives her painful account, apparently, of how “sleep broke [her] heart and then it tried to kill [her].” I came across an interesting interview with Ms. Morrisroe here.
June 28, 2010 No Comments
Is Lunesta’s Ad Dishonest?
Well, it would appear that federal regulators want Lunesta’s parent company Sepracor Inc. to chill with the Lunesta commercials, which they feel inaccurately portray the powers of Lunesta.
So, out of curiosity, let’s take a look at a Lunesta commercial.
I’d have to agree that the commercial is promising some pretty marvelous things from Lunesta. There are a list of warnings at the end, but maybe the pretty blond lady jumping around in the classroom distracts a bit from that.
June 28, 2010 No Comments
Can Insomnia Kill You?
The New York Times has an interesting article exploring whether insomnia can kill you. The short answer is no it cannot kill you. There is an extremely rare form of insomnia that can potentially be fatal, but it only affects 100 people in the world: so, chances are you are okay.
June 27, 2010 No Comments
Review of Zeo Personal Sleep Coach
by Katie Rollason
June 2010
Hi everyone. First let me say that this is not a paid review. The Zeo Company is not paying me any money to write this review. I am just a long time, chronic insomniac who has tried a lot of different ways to get my much-needed sleep, and Zeo is one of many things I’ve tried. The Zeo itself is a sleek, electronic device that is perhaps the size of a kid’s shoebox.
The ultimate purpose of the Zeo is that it analyzes your sleep (in a variety of ways) and you can use that information to better understand the nature of your insomnia. It will tell you how long it took you to fall asleep and how many times you woke up during the night. It will indicate how much time you spent in REM (rapid eye movement sleep), which is the deep, most beneficial sleeping period. It indicates how much time you spent in light sleep and deep sleep also.The ZEO utilizes a small, SD card, which I easily slip into my computer. This connects me to the Zeo website where the information is analyzed. The website interprets this information and acts as a coach: sending emails to me that give me specific recommendations of how I can sleep better. This is helpful even if you’re using a Rozerem prescription. In fact, the Zeo and Rozerem compliment each other really, really well.
You simply put on the headband, and the Zeo reads what state of sleep you’re in…what’s nice is it doubles as an alarm clock, and you can program it to not wake you up if you’re in a deep period of sleep. I find this feature to be extremely useful, and it’s been helping me maximize the benefits of my sleep.
How much does the Zeo Cost? Let’s face it…this is the question that a lot of people want answered. Well, the Zeo comes in two varieties… one is $199 and the other is $299. The main differences between the two packages are the length of the warranty and the more expensive one comes with a replacement headband.
All things considered…it seems smart and sensible that we should introduce the advantages of science in trying to beat our insomnia. The Zeo is a good tool for this purpose.
June 22, 2010 No Comments
Insomniacs Don’t Live As Long
We’ve talked a lot about the daily problems insomnia causes its victims. New information however suggests that insomniacs don’t live as long as non-insomniac people. Wow, if there were ever a reason to get a Rozerem prescription and start getting your proper rest…there it is! Take a look at the death statistics of those who suffer from chronic insomnia. This is really scary stuff.
June 22, 2010 No Comments
