There seems to be a lot of stuff tied up with sleep, things that occur without one even recalling it. There are some who sleepwalk, some who talk in their sleep and of course some who may even wet their bed. But have you heard about having sex while asleep and waking up without having a clue on the whole ordeal?

Well it seems this thing has been happening. Called Sexsomnia, this is said to be a form of parasomnia discovered in the 90s. Sexsomnia is said to be something that would occur after a few hours when a person is already in a deep state of slumber.

Apparently, the reason behind the failure of people to recall it is because the cortex that judges and makes decisions is switched off. But the back of the brain where we feel basic urges like hunger or arousal still works – as per London professor Matthew Walker.

So how do you avoid it? Here is Prof. Walker’s advice:

No noise or light in the bedroom, no caffeine after 4pm, no alcohol before bed and try to get enough sleep. Try therapy or antidepressants if stress is a factor.

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The dose of Intermezzo is 1.75 mg for women and 3.5 mg for men. The reason for the different doses is due to the slower clearance rate in women. The standard dose of Ambien for sleep is 5-10 mg each night.

The new sleeping pill should help out people who wake up in the middle of the night and have a hard time going back to sleep. It has already been evaluated via two clinical trials and was reportedly proven to be effective. However there are side effects and these include headaches, nausea and fatigue.

Be warned as well that Intermezzo should not be taken along with other medications. Further, it should not be combined with alcohol too.

In case you get the chance to come across it, be guided that you will need prescription to get one. And lastly, if ever you do try it out, do make sure you don’t grow dependent on it. One pill reportedly costs between $2 to $3, a bit expensive for people who may be planning to try it out.

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We know for a fact that a lot of Americans are suffering sleep apnea but perhaps not this much. Apparently, the big number is broken down for people who are aware they have it and the ones who don’t know they have it. Sadly, 10 million people do not know they have sleep apnea which is quite alarming.

Some get an idea when their mate starts snoring, but for the people who sleep alone, there is no telling if they are indeed suffering from sleep apnea. Dental considerations may help you out on this one. A common cause is traced to TMD or temporomandibular disorder. This is when the jaw is not properly aligned resulting in bad bites.

The American Association of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons lists numerous lifestyle changes that can help to curb snoring and subsequent sleep apnea. This includes losing weight, along with avoiding alcohol and caffeine, and eating large, heavy meals. The association also advises that people sleep on their side instead of on their back, and recommends not to take a sedative, which relaxes the muscles in the throat and increases snoring.

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Depending on how you feel about consuming alcohol and its relation to sleep disorders, a study shows that it doesn’t have any bearing at all. This was bared by the folks over at the University of Missouri in Columbia.

Additionally, the people who use alcohol to sleep may eventually find themselves as hazardous drinkers. While these findings do seem a bit broad since they were based on participants’ self reports of alcohol use and sleep issues, at least heavy drinkers can be warned and relieved, depending on what they feel about drinking and its relation to sleep.

Maybe additional claims and data can come out soon to convince the non-believers. Frankly, the claim is indeed broad since there is no data to show at least for now.

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Books are a great resources for some issues, sleep deprivation included. Hence, if you are looking for a good book to refer to then the “Six Steps to Sleep Now” from Sleep guru Peter Litchfield should be something useful to check out.

In addition to the six step program the book offers solutions and advice for subjects such as Waking up During the Night, Stress, Anxiety and Sleep, Sleeping the Night before a Big Occasion, Napping, Sleeping with a Partner, Smoking and Sleep, Alcohol and Sleep and Sleeping on an Aeroplane.

(Source) Shift Work Disorder

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We know that most people today are dying to shed that excess calorie in the worst way and of all the things like jogging or hitting the fitness centers, would you believe sleep has its own line of slimming down? Apparently that is what sleep experts are trying to preach these days. Just check out this sleep diet by sleep expert Michael Breus, Ph.D.

The “Sleep Diet” calls for a minimum of seven and a half hours of sleep every night. Experts said some people may need more than that. The other rules include not consuming any caffeine after 2:30 p.m. and avoiding alcohol within three hours of going to bed. The final guideline is to go to sleep at the same time every night and wake up at the same time every morning.

The complete results of the “Sleep Diet” experiment are profiled in the March edition of Glamour Magazine, and they are encouraging. The participants lost 6 to 15 pounds in 10 weeks without making deliberate changes in what they ate or how much they exercised.

Would you buy it? Well for one, you have nothing to lose. Just try it out for a while and see if there was indeed a difference. Do share the result with us.

(Source) ClickonDetroit

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Direct costs included $191.2 million for doctors’ visits, $36.6 million for transportation to and from these visits, $16.5 million for prescription drugs, $1.8 million for over-the-counter remedies, and a whopping $339.8 million for alcohol used as a sleep aid.

Eight percent of individuals in the study, average age almost 44 and 60 percent female, reported having used alcohol to fall asleep, including 28 percent of those with insomnia symptoms or syndrome.

(Source) Washington Post

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The Purple Stuff, a drink that is supposed to relax people and help them sleep better for those who suffer from insomnia and jetlag, can get a lot of reprieve with the consumption of one just one can. But the manner of advertising leaves a lot to be improved as it has been hit from using controversial terms and slogans nearing the lines of misleading consumers.

“Drank,” “purple stuff” and “lean” are street terms for the mixture of codeine syrup with soft drinks or alcohol, a concoction that is believed to have factored in the deaths of three local rap stars. “Sippin’ syrup” is believed to have originated in Houston, and it remains a common topic for Southern rappers.

(Source) Chron.com

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There have been reports in recent months where parents are discouraged from sleeping with their babies by their side. Apparently this has to do with the increasing number of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) to which the little tykes may have issues such as breathing and suffocation if not attended to properly.

However, a study in the UK revealed that there is nothing wrong with sleeping with your child as long as you consider the following constraints:

1. Intoxicated or Alcohol drinking parents
2. Parents who smoke or drugs
3. Larger sleeping space; Avoid the sofas or cramped sleeping areas

(Source) Telegraph.co.uk

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Snoring has to be the most irritating thing you would want to hear when you are sleeping. But if you feel like that, then perhaps the person in the same room would think of the same thing. However, there is more to snoring than just being an irritating sound. It could also lead to risks connected with your overall health.

With that in mind, it would be best to try and resolve snoring for health and social purposes. You can remedy social issues by perhaps sleeping in a separate room. But for health reasons, there should be a remedy that is not purely constrained towards taking medicine and pills.

Some remedies for snoring may include:

1. Sleep on your side. To avoid a new position, check out some pillows that can help you avoid changing that side view position.
2. Avoid alcohol or any form of medication
3. Trim down to your suggested weight
4. Avoid or Quit Smoking
5. Sleep with your head elevated. You can use pillows to help you sleep in that said position.

(Source) Corsavoo

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As far as enumerating which health risk factors are associated with sleeping less, you can place elevated blood pressures to be at the helm of it all. Logically, less sleep means higher abuse to our bodies and heading the pack of high risk body systems include the cardiovascular system to which blood pressures can lead to problems with the heart and other cardio organs as well.

There are a lot of things to consider as to why a person would stay up late or sleep less:

1. Work or Studies
2. Lifestyle choices
3. Hardships in sleeping
4. Presence of electronics or gadgets
5. Too much alcohol or vices

In all, these are common things that a person has to deal with. But if a person wants to lead a healthy life, sleep must be valued better. Among them include ensuring all these obstacles are not around as much as possible when you enter your bedroom to sleep soundly.

(Source) Canada.com

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It is quite obvious that the way we sleep can alter various mannerisms we do, including the manner to which we talk. Normally, we have slurred speech diction when we are drunk and often, people lacking sleep are mistaken to be drunkards. This is not really the case.

When we lack sleep, we are tired and once we are like that, pronouncing the right words in the way the people understand them to be, becomes hard to understand. But just to set the records straight, there is a distinct difference between a well-rested person and someone who drinks so much. Being tired is one thing but abusing your body due to alcohol is another.

Boyce and her team theorized that the differences between the speech of people lacking sleep and those who had a good night’s rest would be comparable to the differences between conversational and “clear” speakers.

“Clear” speech occurs when a person articulates or even over-emphasizes syllables, words and phrases — such as when addressing a formal gathering, talking to people who are hard of hearing or for whom the spoken language is not their native tongue.

A word like “police,” for example, might sound more like “blees” in conversational speech, but like “poe-lees” in clear speech.

(Source) Discovery Channel

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We all know that sleep deprived people would try anything to help them get the much needed respite and sleep. However, it also remains that they have to consider the safety of taking these sleeping aids. Side effects and potential health risks may be in play and rather than addressing the sleep problem issue, they may just find themselves battling worst case scenarios as far as their overall health is concerned.

There are drugs such as Ambien, Lunesta and Sonata that are available in the market for sleep assistance. But the question still remains on how they may affect the health of a insomnia-ridden individual.

“Even though these are non-narcotic according to TV ads, they can be addictive and a person can abuse them the same way they can abuse (other substances),” Schwartz said. “A few extra, especially mixed with alcohol, could kill you.”

(Source) Fox News

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With this video, sleep disorder patients can have a better overview on what to watch out for and what they can do to gain the necessary sleeping convenience that is important. Eating the proper food will certainly be the key towards being able to sleep properly and healthily.

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There are some practical ways to help you make sleeping above thousands of feet easy. For instance, you can avoid caffeinated drinks and also alcohol before you board your flight. Alcohol, in particular, has an adverse effect to you body while you are cramped inside the plane. Instead, just drink water. Lots and lots of it.

If you have to be careful with what you drink, then you also need to watch what you eat. Try bananas. They contain melatonin, which is a muscle relaxant. There’s a reason why they serve peanuts on flights. It’s packed with high-fiber to help your body relax. If you are a meat-eater, some meats may contain tryptophan which actually causes people to take naps after dinner.

The clothes and shoes you wear during travel may also be the reason why you are not getting the sleep you need. You could fuss and fidget over it, while you are at our seat so wear something comfortable, then.

You can also try music — soft and relaxing music. It helps your body adjust through the long flight.

Lastly, if you have planned the trip ahead of time, get the best seating reservation to get that peace and quiet you need for the next 18-hours or so.

via Courant 

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Check out this REM graph for referencing how REM sleep works.

This is just a simple graph of the typical sleep cycle.I know this data is readily available, but it’s really nice to have it in a large, clean, graph format. Having this information really helps you know specifically when you should wake up, based on how long it takes to fall asleep. It should be noted however, that this chart is based on subjects that were not under the effects of any sleep altering substances, like alcohol.

via dailydeluge

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