RN&R Family Guide

FAMILY GUIDE R N & R W R I T E R S DAY D R E A M A B O U T WAYS S L E E P A F F E C T S FA M I L I E S

INSIDE : CHILL PILLS, PAGE 3 • WIDE AWAKE, PAGE 4 • COLLEGE KIDS, PAGE 8 CATNAPS, PAGE 11 • WHAT DREAMS MAY COME, PAGE 13 ROCK-A-BYE BABY, PAGE 15 A SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT TO RENO NEWS & RE VIEW • NOVEMBER 5, 2015

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FAMILY GUIDE | NOVEMBER 5, 2015

HELP US!

Please mention the SPCA to your server!

For the month of November, Rapscallion will generously donate 20% of your Food bill to the SPCA of Northern Nevada!

Chill pills W h i l e s u p p l em en t s a r e g a i n i n g p o p u l a r i t y a s s l eep a i d s , l i f es t y l e c h a n g es s h o u l d b e c o n s i d er ed f i r s t

BY TO DD SOUTH

Most

sleep experts indicate our bodies can’t produce. It must be ingested. those of us who have It is found in various plant and animal trouble getting to sleep—or getting enough proteins, most famously as the component quality sleep—are suffering from poor “sleep of Thanksgiving dinner that knocks you hygiene,” i.e., daily diet and activities that out. Although clinically proven to aid sleep, keep the sandman at bay. Lifestyle changes depression, and anxiety issues, there isn’t like limiting caffeine after noon, eating dinner enough L-tryptophan in turkey meat to create earlier and lighter, and setting a regular a soporific state on its own. Overeating on wind-down and bedtime are recommended this holiday is what causes us to crash on the to promote healthy couch and miss the end sleep, but most problem of the football game. sleepers find it difficult Of the wide variety to stick with such a of herbs said to promote ‘Natural’ dietary regimen. sleep, valerian and By some estimates, chamomile are the most supplements has Americans annually popular and have been spend more than $32 in use for centuries. billion on products Although some studies become the fastest promoted as the key to indicate a calming a good night’s sleep. effect from imbibing Prescription sedatives valerian extract, there growing segment of work for some but are at least as many that include the risk of refute those findings the sleep-aid market, and some even note potentially dangerous side effects. Over-theadverse effects. A mild counter remedies—such tea made by steeping despite a paucity of as sedative antihistathe dried flower heads mines—can certainly of the chamomile daisy knock you out but is said to relax the mind scientific evidence feature their own negaand encourage sleep. tive issues. Thus “natuResearch has shown ral” dietary supplements regarding their efficacy. several medically-useful have become the fastest compounds exist in growing segment of this plant, including the sleep-aid market, anti-anxiety properties despite a paucity of scientific evidence regardthat may help a stressed-out mind ease toward ing their efficacy. slumber.

Melatonin is the most popular alternative Though concentrated extracts of the kava sleep aid and has had more clinical scrutiny plant have been shown to ease anxiety and than most. Our body’s production of this assist with sleep, recent studies indicate a hormone is partly influenced by the level of link between habitual use and liver toxicity, light around us, increasing with nightfall and especially in those who also drink alcohol waning as morning breaks. Though much is on a regular basis. Lavender, catnip, hops, known about the function of this hormone in passionflower, lemon balm, and a host of other our wake/sleep cycle, the exact mechanics are plants and substances are sold as insomnia still cause for study and debate. It's used by remedies, but the evidence is mostly anecdotal those suffering from jet lag, seasonal affective or non-existent. disorder, and night workers having difficulty Essentially, unless you’re suffering from a sleeping during the day. Its most reported side medical condition that disrupts normal sleep, effects involve daytime grogginess and irritano supplement or medication can substitute bility, but it is generally considered safe. for the lifestyle adjustments required to With nearly as much scientific scrutiny, provide your mind and body with the rest L-tryptophan is an essential amino acid that they deserve. Ω

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Wide awake

Sleep psychologist Dr. Ruth Gentry says time in bed should be about sleeping.

M y j o u r n e y t o o v er c o M e c h r o n i c i n s o M n i a

BY JES S IcA SANtINA

2 a.m.

Photo/Ryan Smith

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It was like clockwork, how my brain just knew it was 2 a.m. even when my eyes had been closed. I seethed with anger—at the clock, at my brain, at my happily snoring husband beside me.

This night in mid-October 2013 was the fourth in a row in which I awoke at 2 a.m. and was unable to fall back asleep. When 5 a.m. rolled around, I finally gave up and went to watch TV on the couch. When my husband found me there two hours later, he asked, “No sleep?”

“Nope,” I said, and began crying. “I’m starting to be afraid I’ll never sleep again.”

I’ve always been a lousy sleeper. A sneeze or a light in the hallway could wake me. I remember being 8 or 9 and distressed to realize that even my parents were asleep, while I lay awake. But until now, a few days of troubled sleep would eventually give way to normal nights.

What if I really never did have a full night’s sleep again? Could I die from this? Was I losing my mind? How little sleep could a person subsist on before it was dangerous? How would I get through the next day? The following week?

Night No. 5 was the same. I felt as if I had been awake the entire time, though a few active, bizarre dreams told me I must have gotten an hour or two at least.

By morning, I was a wreck. I made an appointment to see my doctor. By the time I could see him, I’d gone a week like this.

“It’s stress,” he told me.

“But I’m not really under much stress,” I argued. “Plus, I can fall asleep most nights. I just can’t stay asleep. Could it be my hormones? Shouldn’t you test for something?”

“It’s stress. Get some therapy. Take these,” he said, handing me a prescription for zolpidem (the generic form of Ambien) and standing to leave.

The Sleep Review reported recently that insomnia ranks second, after cold, as the most prevalent health complaint in the world. About 30 percent of Americans struggle with insomnia; the majority are women.

Sleep is not a luxury, either. It’s a necessity, as important as water or food. No one knows why we need it, but we absolutely do. According to Robert Stickgold in his October 2015 cover story about sleep in Scientific American, reduced sleep can lead to weight gain, impaired memory and brain function, increased risk of diabetes and hypertension, increased rates of depression and anxiety, and lowered immune response. Yet it’s among the least understood functions of the human body.

“There are only about 85 [sleep medicine fellowships] in the country,” says Dr. Michael Lucia, a pulmonary and sleep medicine specialist whose clinic, Sierra Pulmonary and Sleep Institute, is one of the only sleep clinics in the area. “Not nearly enough for the demand or need.”

FAMILY GUIDE | NOVEMBER 5, 2015

Da zeD anD DroWsy Zolpidem and I became fast friends. On half a pill, I slept like a champion. But then my conscience, worried that I was becoming addicted, insisted that I try to sleep without it. When I did, sleeplessness inevitably returned.

Panic set in. How long could this continue? Would I be on sleep aids for the rest of my life? It seemed my body had forgotten how to sleep.

In a few months, I’d gained weight.

My irritable bowel syndrome played havoc with my insides. My skin was sallow and pimpled. My eyelids were permanently swollen and red, and my eyes constantly teary. Friends and family loaned me relaxation CDs and books about sleep, recommending that I try certain teas or supplements. Melatonin

and valerian and Advil PM and Benadryl and Sleepytime tea made no noticeable difference.

My ability to handle even minor challenges was diminishing, and the smallest offense—a stray cup, for example— threw me into a rage. One mid-January afternoon, when I found myself crying for no reason, I found a new primary care doctor to get to the bottom of this.

She saw me the next day—a lovely young doctor who was enormously sympathetic to my plight. She ordered a battery of tests, including a thyroid panel, celiac screening, hormone tests, and a test for vitamin D levels. She prescribed Zoloft for my depression and anxiety. And she referred me to Dr. Lucia’s sleep clinic.

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The brain game My appointment at Sierra Pulmonary and Sleep was weeks away. In the meantime, on the recommendation of my chiropractor, I made an appointment with Dr. Randall Gates, a chiropractic neurologist at Power Health Chiropractic.

“Functional neurologists look at stimulating parts of the brain that are not working correctly from a functional perspective, after we’ve eliminated other medical, neurological diagnoses,” Gates explains.

My two-hour consultation involved filling out approximately 10 pages’ worth of questions regarding my lifestyle and symptoms. Then, I was asked to perform a variety of tests to determine how the various parts of my brain responded to stimuli.

“You have signs of functional abnormalities in your fear centers,” Gates explains. “And that’s causing you to not be able to sleep … We saw in you a decrease in the frontal lobe’s ability to shut off your stress response.”

In other words, I was under so much stress that my brain was stuck in fightor-flight mode, with no shut-off switch.

This kept my adrenal glands working overtime. No wonder I couldn’t sleep.

Gates recommended that I study the work of Stanford biologist Dr. Robert Sapolsky, author of Why Zebras Don’t Get Ulcers and focus of the documentary film Stress: Portrait of a Killer.

As the book and film explain, your brain’s stress response involves two hormones: adrenaline and glucocorticoids. They are critical to survival in times of stress—the zebra running from the lion, for example. When the zebra escapes and the danger passes, the stress response shuts down.

“But in today’s society, people don’t have an off button,” Sapolsky says in the film. “We turn on the exact same stress response thinking about the ozone layer, taxes coming up, mortality, 30-year mortgages… We’re not doing it for a real, physiological reason, and we’re doing it nonstop.”

Could this be the case for me? Could prolonged stress—about my writing business, my financial troubles, my 4-year-old daughter, and (now) my lack of sleep— actually be breaking my stress-response mechanism and keeping me awake?

Dr. Gates recommended a treatment plan that involved a series of brain exercises, access to relaxation facilities, tests for adrenal and thyroid issues, supplements, and a rigorous diet. But as

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encouraged as I was, and as much sense as this was starting to make, the plan was costly and not covered by my insurance. I’d keep looking elsewhere.

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n aT u r a l r em ed i es I visited the Finley Center, a south Reno clinic for naturopathic medicine and acupuncture, to meet with Dr. Tara Finley, a Nevada-licensed oriental medicine doctor (OMD). In her work with patients, she will review labs and order new ones, and perform physical and nutrition exams. Her treatment plans typically involve nutritional programs, supplements and acupuncture. These, she explains, affect energy flow, which can have a significant physiological effect.

As part of my initial session, I received acupuncture. I’d always been afraid of acupuncture, but these needles were as fine as hairs. I never felt an actual needle prick. It was tremendously relaxing, like being covered with an electric blanket.

I felt tingly all afternoon. That night, I slept well.

Finley, too, suggested I take an adrenal stress test, for which I spit into a series of tubes and mailed them to a lab. When the results came back a few weeks later, they made sense—high adrenal function at night, when it was supposed to be tapering off, and low function in the morning, when my resources were depleted and I needed a boost of energy. Finley recommended an adrenal supplement.

After a few weeks of taking them, I didn’t notice much difference. I still had insomnia, and my insurance didn’t cover her services. I couldn’t afford to keep seeing her.

s l eep sT u dy My appointment was not with Dr. Lucia but with a physician assistant who asked me a series of questions about my insomnia: Had I been told that I snored?

Yes. Was I very tired in the morning, even if I’d slept? Yes. Did I ever wake up gasping for breath? No. Had anyone in my family ever been diagnosed with sleep apnea? Yes—my father, deviated septum.

My responses raised enough of an alert that she recommended a sleep study. Though I was convinced I didn’t have sleep apnea, I sort of hoped I did because it was a tangible, treatable Wide Awake continued on page 6

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FAMILY GUIDE | NOVEMBER 5, 2015

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Wide awake continued from page 5 thing, a reason for insomnia that doctors understood. Apnea patients could awake hundreds of times in the night, imperceptibly, when they stopped breathing. My adrenal stress test results meant nothing in the traditional medical community.

Adrenal fatigue was not a diagnosis, and there was really nothing to be done for it.

But apnea? That was a treatable problem.

A sleep study is a bizarre thing. I sat in a chair as a polite technician spent about 30 minutes gluing electrodes to my head, face and body. I was allowed to take a zolpidem, to overcome the lab insomnia I was sure to have, and I was fitted for a CPAP machine, should I have a breathing “episode” and require intervention that night.

I took my pill and slept restlessly.

I was awakened at 5 a.m. The study was over. I’d never needed a CPAP. Electrodes and wires were removed, and I was out the door by 5:30, covered in glue.

My results came in four weeks later.

I was low on vitamin D and needed a supplement. I had mild apnea when sleeping on my back—not severe enough for CPAP, but nightly Flonase was recommended. And I had what the PA explained was a “really weird sleep cycle.”

“Most people get about three or four cycles of REM sleep a night, and they’re usually a couple hours,” she told me.

“You had only two cycles, and one was only 15 minutes long.”

Yes! Finally! Someone else had seen it too! It wasn’t in my head! But what does one do about that?

“I’m not sure, unfortunately,” she told me, handing me some brochures on sleep hygiene and suggesting I keep a sleep diary. “I think you’re a candidate for long-term sleep-aid use.”

I n so m n Iac d Ia r I es So it was late March, and I still knew very little about why I was awake.

Except for vitamin D and the Flonase, things were status quo.

I focused on this sleep hygiene thing everyone kept talking about. I stopped looking at any screens in the bedroom at night, kept consistent sleep and wake-up times, got up early each morning to walk, stopped drinking caffeine after 11 a.m., limited wine to two glasses and maintained a cool, dark bedroom. I began placing a pillow over my eyes and ears when I slept—a sort of sensory deprivation.

I decided that minimizing my stress was the key to everything. I enrolled in a Sunday morning yoga class. We started a monthly budget to pay down debt. And I kept telling myself that it wasn’t as bad as I felt it was.

“All insomniacs underestimate their sleep,” Dr. Lucia says. “They say things like, ‘I didn’t sleep for two nights.’ That’s physiologically almost impossible. You are getting more sleep than you realize.”

The other problem, Lucia points out, is the misperception that we need eight hours of sleep each night. Some may only need seven or less. It’s about setting realistic goals.

It’s in my conversation with Dr. Lucia, in preparation for this article, when I learn about what the American Academy of Sleep Medicine now recommends for the treatment of insomnia: cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBTi).

CBTi is a structured program aimed at changing sleep habits and thinking that perpetuate sleep problems. It is a relatively new area of specialization, and Nevada only has one fellowship-trained and certified specialist in CBTi, Dr. Ruth Gentry, who set up shop in south Reno two years ago.

During the first session, Gentry will do a full sleep evaluation seeking medical causes (such as apnea) and behaviors that could be contributing to sleep problems. The following sessions address techniques for quieting the mind or reframing thoughts that could be delaying sleep. Gentry also typically recommends a “sleep efficiency schedule.”

“Nobody’s gonna die of insomnia.

If you have a few nights where you feel like you’ve only slept a few hours, you’re still functional.”

Dr . M ic h a e l luc i a Sleep SpecialiSt

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FAMILY GUIDE | NOVEMBER 5, 2015

“A lot of times people will do things they think are helpful for sleep but aren’t.

For example, they’ll spend 10 hours in bed hoping to sleep six of them. … Sleep efficiency therapy is reducing the time in bed and making that time what they actually need for sleep,” Gentry says.

“There’s a lot of mental force we put on sleep, and that just makes it worse, so the cognitive part is reframing the way people look at sleep in their thinking.”

She uses a Chinese finger trap to illustrate the problem—the more she pulls and forces her finger out, the tighter the trap. “The more you tell yourself, ‘I have to sleep!’ the more your body stresses out and you respond by not sleeping. Once you let go and see it’s not working, you’ll get out of the sleep trap. But you have to shift your approach to sleep.”

Typically CBTi can be completed within four sessions, and the effects are long lasting. And while she is not professionally able to make recommendations regarding medication, she emphasizes that she can work in accordance with a doctor, if patients desire, to taper those medications down over time.

“A lot of times, their sleep gets better with CBTi, and they build confidence, and when you’re confident, your sleep is better,” Gentry says.

CBTi from a certified practitioner isn’t cheap, but Gentry accepts most

An insomniac’s remedy is in her own hands, some physicians say.

insurance plans, and the Affordable Care Act’s provisions for mental health care mean that behavioral therapy is now accessible and usually covered.

Additionally, there are online CBTi programs and a self-help books that may be an effective, affordable way to start.

I plan to pursue CBTi, and in the

meantime I’m reminding myself that this too shall pass.

“Nobody’s going to die of insomnia,” Dr. Lucia says. “If you have a few nights where you feel like you’ve only slept a few hours, you’re still functional.”

And this is a first-world problem, a uniquely American one, says Lucia.

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vicious sleep cycle S t u d en t S lo S e S l eep o v er t h ei r a c a d em i c p r i o r i t i e S

BY ANNA HART

Over

time, sleeplessness has grown into a cultural marker of college campuses–so much so that around the University of Nevada, Reno campus, the idea of a students at the university getting eight hours of sleep garners one of two reactions: laughter or skepticism.

As a senior at UNR, I can understand the reasons for this. As the clock nears 3 a.m. on the morning of yet another Monday, I find myself midway through my 10th all-nighter in three weeks. I understand sleep deprivation intimately.

The crippling lethargy, heavy eyelids and existential angst that accompany the choice to forego yet another night of sleep are old friends.

And at some point in time, this Hollywood trope of the frazzled student fueled solely by caffeine, junk food, and a bit of bitterness became the standard for college students everywhere.

But why has a vital bodily function like sleep become so nonchalantly disregarded?

“It’s an accurate stereotype that college kids don’t sleep,” said Megan Jones, a sophomore at UNR. “But it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy. We pretty much control it, but we do nothing about it.

Sleep trickS eStabliSH a routine: In the chaos that composes the daily schedule of the average student, try to find regularity in your sleeping schedule. By waking up and going to sleep at the same times every day, your body and mind will become accustomed to winding down and starting up at certain times, making both your sleeping and waking hours more productive. compartmentalize your time: Although it is tedious, setting aside specific times to do certain activities allows our brains to more quickly switch gears from one mode to another. Instead

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FAMILY GUIDE | NOVEMBER 5, 2015

We have a full workload of homework, and normally have jobs. But then we still devote so much time to going out—and Netflix.”

Many other students at UNR attribute their lack of sleep to the university’s new policy of “15 to finish.” The regulation requires students to take on 15 credits, an average of five classes. This is instead of the previous standard of 12 credits, and, unless granted an exception, is the only way to maintain the status of a full-time student–a requirement for most scholarships and financial aid.

“Because of the 15 credit policy, in order for me to get my financial aid, I have to take more credits than I planned for,” says UNR student Savannah Abraham. “It’s been a much bigger work load than I’m used to. It’s definitely affected my sleep, and I find myself more stressed, but it’s the only way I can afford to go to school.”

Maggie Eirenschmalz, a grad student and a Core Humanities discussion leader, recognizes the problem on campus.

“Students are encouraged to take so many credits, and they might even dare to have hobbies,” she said. Then there’s the issue of actually getting good grades. So they pull all-nighters to write that paper,

Here are some tips to make your time in bed more effective:

of studying, napping, and spending free time sporadically throughout the day, set aside manageable chunks and be consistent with them.

Weed and booze don’t actually Help WitH Sleep: Sure, there’s nothing better than the sleepy stage of drunkenness.

However, while marijuana and alcohol might put you to sleep, they won’t actually keep you asleep, and after a few hours, they can wake up your body. (Also, marijuana is illegal. So, there’s that.) don’t overload yourSelf: At a school that demands students take 15 credits,

maintain a good GPA, as well as find time to participate in extracurricular activities, it’s easy to bite off more than you can chew. While some thrive under pressure, it is OK not to be one of those people. If taking nine credits a semester means that you can pay for school, get good grades, participate in clubs and feel well-rested and stress-free while achieving the end goal of a degree, don’t be afraid to stay at school an extra semester. Rome wasn’t built in a day and not everyone graduates in four years. There is no shame in a victory lap.

or to practice that presentation. I think it’s hard for students to find time to sleep, and I think a lot of them are overloaded.”

While the college environment might not emphasize it, sleep is paramount.

“Getting enough quality sleep plays a vital role in our physical and emotional health and wellbeing,” said Dr. Cheryl Hug-English, UNR Student Health Center medical director. “For students, particularly when their daily schedules aren’t consistent, a nightly eight hours of sleep is what keeps the brain able to function at high levels.”

The loss of sleep presents a number of physical consequences for students. According to Dr. Hug-English, when a student frequently loses sleep, it alters chemicals in their body, like hormones. Not only can this compromise an immune system and make the student more susceptible to illnesses, but it also affects the ability of their body to heal itself.

Some of the most detrimental outcomes of sleep loss for students are the mental effects. The irony is that while studying and schoolwork are often the most common reason students miss out on sleep, that sleep loss directly affects the efficacy of their studying, as the ability to concentrate on, process, and retain information weakens with sleep loss.

UNR student Kelsey Wilson sees no alternative.

“Studying is kind of a catch-22 for me,” Wilson said. “My school schedule means I only have time late at night to study, even though I know I need a full eight hours to perform well on tests. But if I don’t give up sleep to study more, I won’t even understand the material.”

There is an array of side effects of getting less sleep that affect an individual’s emotional health. Problems like a lack of motivation, irritability, mood swings, increased anxiety and even depression can arise.

“Anecdotally, most people have something like an invisible cushion of tolerance or flexibility that surrounds and protects us from the daily things that bother us,” said Dr. Cindy Marczynski, director of Counseling Services at UNR. “When someone becomes extra tired or stressed, that cushion flattens a little, meaning our protective layer isn’t as strong. Suddenly small things like your roommate snoring become disasters.”

One thing that students, professors, and health professionals at the university can agree on is that structuring time to include study, sleep and fun is the best way to succeed.

“Most of us put sleep on the back burner,” Abraham said. “But there needs to be a balance. It’s about learning to manage your time evenly between school to keep your grades up, sleep to keep you healthy, fun to keep you sane, and Netflix to keep you caught up.” Ω

Leave your bed for sLeeping: Make your bed a sacred space and keep television, homework, and Facebook out of it. One of the reasons people have such a hard time falling asleep is because our brains don’t associate bed with rest and relaxation. Instead, set aside places specifically for studying and surfing the internet, and only go to bed when you plan on relaxing in it.

Listen to your body: It’s a sad fact that even with following all of the tips listed, all-nighters will still happen. While having one every once in a while won’t kill you, make sure to listen to your body’s needs. It’s a matter of recognizing that maybe foregoing sleep on Thursday to finish your term paper means that you probably shouldn’t go out on Friday. Sleeping on weekends does not make you boring. Falling asleep when you’re out at the clubs does.

FAMILY GUIDE | NOVEMBER 5, 2015

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study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Researchers monitored a dozen people who stayed at a sleep lab at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital for two weeks, according to SFGate.com. Each participant spent five consecutive evenings reading a book for four hours under reflected light, and then spent five nights using an iPad for the same duration. All had mandatory bedtimes of 10 p.m. and had to wake up at 6 a.m.

The study subjects who used the e-readers had a significant shift in their melatonin levels in the evening, took 10 minutes longer to fall asleep, had nearly 12 minutes less rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and reported feeling more groggy the following morning.

lack of sleep could cause permaNeNt loss of some braiN cells

Reading Wuthering Heights on your cell phone is likely to keep you up at night.

Even if it’s Wuthering Heights.

Catnaps S h o r t ta k eS o n S l eep i n t h e m e w S . o k , n e w S .

Not gettiNg eNough rest greatly iNcreases risk of gettiNg sick Sleeping six hours or fewer a night makes you much more likely to get sick, a study out of UC San Francisco finds.

Researchers determined that, compared with people who get seven or more hours of sleep, those who don’t get good rest were four times more likely to catch a cold when exposed to the virus via nasal drops, according to SFGate. com. “It didn’t matter how old people were, their stress levels, their race, education or income,” said Aric Prather,

lead author of the study. “It didn’t matter if they were a smoker.”

Though there is a growing body of evidence connecting regular sleep to overall health and disease prevention, this study is believed to be the first to objectively measure sleep habits and link them to illness.

e-readers tied to poor sleep Using light-emitting tech devices, like smart phones, tablets and e-readers in bed before falling asleep can negatively affect quality of rest, suggests a small

Prolonged lack of sleep could be more serious than previously thought, a study involving mice suggests.

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine kept the mice on sleep patterns similar to those of night workers—three consecutive night shifts with only four to five hours of sleep in each 24-hour period— finding that the mice permanently lost 25 percent of brain cells in part of the brain stem, according to BBC News.

The study’s authors said that the next step in research would be looking at the brains of night-shift workers after death for signs of damage, and suggested medicine could be developed in the future to protect the brain from the side-effects of lost sleep. “[Mice] might be simple animals, but this suggests to us that we are going to have to look very carefully in humans,” said Sigrid Veasey of the Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology.

treatmeNt for sleep apNea improves sexual performaNce, iN additioN to other perks Men who suspect they suffer from sleep apnea but fear that an awkward-looking CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) machine might cramp their style in the bedroom should reconsider getting tested, according to U.S. News and World Report. Not only does treatment increase restfulness, lower blood pressure and improve overall health, but it also can increase your performance in the bedroom, according to a recent study conducted at Walter Reed Military National Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.

Researchers studied 92 men, average age 46, who began using CPAP machines after being diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea. After six

months of treatment, erectile dysfunction vanished in 41 percent of those who reported it. Others with diminished to normal libido also reported a boost in sexual performance.

The National Sleep Foundation estimates 18 million Americans suffer from sleep apnea, but 90 percent may not know it.

Nearly 9 millioN americaNs used prescriptioN sleep medicatioN iN the last moNth At least 8.6 million U.S. adults took some form of prescription sleep medication in the last 30 days, a new study concludes.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tracked 17,000 people aged 20 and over between 2005 and 2010, finding that roughly 4 percent of the country’s population took prescription sleep medication like Lunesta and Ambien within the previous month, according to NBC News.

Five percent of people in their 40s and 50s said they used sleep-aid medication, with that number rising to 7 percent among adults over 80 years old.

The study also found that 5 percent of women reported using sleep aids, compared to 3.1 percent of men—a number attributed to the strain women are under from trying to juggle the demands of work and family life.

research fiNds sleep medicatioN iNcreases risk of death aNd caNcer The use of popularly prescribed sleeping medications has been linked to an increased risk of death and cancer, a recent study finds.

The report, published in the online journal BMJ Open and authored by researchers at the Viterbi Family Sleep Center at Scripps Health in San Diego, found that people who rely on sleep aids like Ambien and Restoril are increasing their risk of death by more than four times, according to Medical News Today. Research also found an increase in cancer and death among people who used the eight most popular sleeping medications no more than 18 times a year.

The study examined data from nearly 40,000 patients, including 10,529 patients who received soporific prescriptions and 23,676 control subjects who did not. The findings are especially relevant as the sleeping-aid sector of the pharmaceutical industry grew by 23 percent between 2006 and 2010, and between 6 and 10 percent of Americans took a hypnotic drug as a sleep aid in 2010. Ω

FAMILY GUIDE | NOVEMBER 5, 2015

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join sky tavern ski program today!

Water Resource Plan

$130 season pass for kids • $90 season pass for support volunteers

Your Input is Needed

to register & for more info:

Truckee Meadows Water Authority (TMWA) is in the process of preparing a draft water resource plan. The purpose of the 2016-2035 Water Resource Plan is to review, update and/or revise TMWA’s 2010-2030 Water Resource Plan. As part of the update process, the following workshops and meetings are scheduled to collect comments and input from our customers before the final plan is presented to the TMWA Board of Directors:

Monday, November 9, 2015 5:30-7:00 p.m.

www.skytavern.com

2015 sky tavern

ski swap

November 13-14 siena Hotel

Spanish Springs Library at Lazy 5 Regional Park 7100 Pyramid Lake Highway, Spanish Springs

Monday, November 16 5:30-7:00 p.m.

For more information Info@skytavern.com 775-323-5125

Truckee Meadows Water Authority 1355 Capital Blvd., Reno

Tuesday, November 17 5:30-7:00 p.m.

Drop off gear to 11/12 or 11/ sell @ the Siena Ho13 12p-7p tel Enjoy the even 11/13 6p-9p t $5 single or $1 0 family 11/14 9a-3p $2 single or $5 family Free with Sky or college ID Tavern membership

all proceeds benefit sky tavern, the country’s oldest and largest non-profit junior ski program

O’Brien Middle School - 10500 Stead Blvd., Reno

Wednesday, November 18 5:30-7:00 p.m.

South Valleys Library – 15650 Wedge Pkwy, Reno

Wednesday, December 9 5:30-7:00 p.m.

McKinley Arts & Culture Center – 925 Riverside Dr., Reno You are invited to drop in to any open house listed above and talk one-on-one with TMWA staff members who will discuss the plan update and answer any questions you may have. All customer comments and input will be collected and presented to the TMWA Board of Directors at a future meeting. To download a copy of the draft Water Resource Plan Update visit tmwa.com/plan-copy

Truckee Meadows Water Authority is a not-for-profit water utility, overseen by elected officials from Reno, Sparks and Washoe County.

FAMILY GUIDE | NOVEMBER 5, 2015 12 Ad-Nov-RNR_v1.indd 1

Buy and sell ne gear and celebratw and used winter season with acti e a kick-off to the vities and vendo rs.

11/3/15 4:04 PM

Photo/Matthew Bieker

look for specific oddities in order to recognize a dream.

This method is one of several used by lucid dreamers who practice independently. The popular forum site Reddit. com contains a lucid dreaming community of over 140,000 members who gather to share tips on becoming lucid, and share stories of their own experiences.

For beginners, the Reddit community and many online sources stress the importance of keeping a detailed dream journal in order to recognize “dream signs”—or reoccurring themes that one can consciously associate with dreaming.

Gradually introducing consciousness into one’s dreams also requires the performance of frequent “reality checks” during wakefulness. Basically, a lucid dreamer must earnestly question the reality of his or her current situation by asking, “Am I dreaming right now?”

Examples of reality checks include closely examining the numbers on a watch or clock—numbers and other fine details are usually distorted in dreams—or drawing a small dot on the back of your hand and taking a moment to consider your surroundings every time you glance at it. Ideally, this practice will carry into your dream state helping you make the transition into lucidity.

These habits can be used in conjunction with pre-sleep autosuggestion, or what the Reddit community calls MILD (Mnemonically Induced Lucid Dream), which requires focusing your intentions in the moments before falling asleep and willing yourself to stay conscious as you transition into REM. Visualization techniques increase your chances of

by Mat th ew bi eker becoming lucid and also influence the setting and content of your dream. become flaccid and paralyzed. Literally Advances in sleep science and no movement whatsoever. The brain communal interest in lucid dreaming wakes up, and it goes into hyper drive. have produced material about practices All of your memories and thoughts come to avoid, lucid dreaming as a tool for into your sleeping unconscious, and you self-discovery, and even are dreaming, but treatment of certain you can’t act out your “Lucid dreaming psychological conditions dream.” such as PTSD. The earliest techniques or treatment “Lucid dreaming studies into lucid techniques or treatment dreaming reported have been used to have been used to that sleeping subjects dampen down PTSD were able to signal to dampen down PtSD anxiety states and elimiresearchers when they nate nightmares,” said had achieved lucidity anxiety states and Dr. Torch. “If you could by making a series of bring that state of fear pre-established eye eliminate nightmares.” into your consciousness movements during and accept it, and see it the REM phase, as a dream, but now take being otherwise Dr . William Torch conscious control over unable to make a Washoe sleep DisorDer CliniC it and realize that is not physical indicator. a real experience while Famous studyou’re awake, you could tame that fear.” ies by researchers Keith Hearn in The scientific community is only 1975, and Stephen LaBerge in 1980 just beginning to understand the power established this research technique, of dreams and their influence over which has been replicated in various our consciousness, but as thousands of studies ever since. In 2009, a team sleepers from the general public have from Frankfurt University was able to shown, anybody with diligence and a measure lucid dream activity in three place to close their eyes can explore undergraduate volunteers who had been mysteries, and wonders, of their own trained in a method called pre-sleep subconscious. Ω autosuggestion—or telling oneself to

What dreams may come L u c i d d r e a m i n g i s o n e m o r e f u n t h i n g yo u c a n d o i n b ed

FeW

experiences in life are as personal and yet universally relatable as dreaming. Whether they reflect our hopes, memories, fears—or make any sense at all—is largely for interpretation, but can undoubtedly have an affect on our waking lives. It’s easy to feel like we are simply along for the ride in most of our dreams, but practitioners of “Lucid Dreaming” are said to have total and consistent control over their dreamscapes, and do so with some basic scientific understanding and plenty of practice.

Loosely defined, a lucid dream is one wherein the dreamer is aware they are dreaming—something most people have probably randomly experienced.

Accounts of lucid dreaming have been recorded as far back as Aristotle’s, and “lucid dream” was coined as a term as early as 1913, but science has only recently been able to record instances of lucid dreaming in a clinical setting.

Advances in the 1970s using EEG (electroencephalogram) machines gave researchers the first glimpse into what physiological processes were happening as subjects fell asleep and began to dream—specifically, the relation between dreaming and the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) phase of sleep.

“There are different levels of wakefulness, drowsiness, and sleep,” said Dr.

William Torch, a practicing neurologist at Renown Hospital and founder of the Washoe Sleep Disorder Clinic.

Brainwaves emitted during wakefulness are categorized as “alpha” waves, and change in frequency as we descend into the four stages of sleep before REM. “When you go into stage 1 sleep, you start losing alpha, and you go into theta,” said Dr. Torch. “Stage 1 sleep is characterized by waking up at the slightest little noise. Stage 2, more theta and now a little delta coming in … Stage 3 comes along, and you’ve got a lot of delta with a little bit of theta, but absolutely no alpha.

In stage 4 you have these slow rolling waves, delta activity.”

After stage 4, the brain enters into the REM cycle, wherein brainwave activity curiously begins to once again resemble alpha waves—those of full consciousness. At the same time, the body enters into an important physical characteristic of dreaming: sleep paralysis.

“There’s a little switch in the brain that goes on and off,” said Dr. Torch.

“When you’re in stage 1, 2, 3, and 4, your body is moving, but there’s hardly any brain activity—maybe a little dreaming.

When you go into REM, the switch goes on or off depending on how you want to look at it. It turns off the muscles in your arms, legs, neck, tongue, and you

FaMiLy GUiDe | NOVeMber 5, 2015

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SEE YOUR BUSINESS THROUGH THE

EYES OF A CHILD

On December 17th, kids from the Boys & Girls Club of Truckee Meadows will become published writers and designers in the RN&R’s 18th Annual K I D S ’ n e w S & r e v I e w !

This is an opportunity for children to develop their writing and artistic abilities, as the issue contains stories and ads written and designed by the students themselves. 20% of ad sales go to the Boys & Girls Club of Truckee Meadows to help support their many programs and activities.

This award-winning supplement has received honors as “Best Special Issue” six times in the 2002, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 nevada Press Association’s Better newspaper Awards.

“ Absolutely delightful! An outstanding idea and very well executed.

The very best kind of project - good for the newspaper, good for the community and good for the agency. Kudos!”

- Judge’s comments, nPA better newsPAPer AwArds 2012

“ This is a special section that readers will look through repeatedly and enjoy every time.”

- Judge’s comments, nPA better newsPAPer AwArds 2014

The RN&R K I D S ’ I S S U e is the perfect way for you to reach potential customers and show support for the community.

The experience of being published is incredible for the kids and a creative promotional opportunity for your business.

Ad rATes (includes color): 1/4 page 1/2 page Full page

$395 $595 $995

Issue date: thursday, december 17, 2015 Advertising deadline: Friday, december 4, 2015

contact your Account executive at (775) 324-4440 14

FAMILY GUIDE | NOVEMBER 5, 2015

Rock-a-bye baby Use simple methods and roUtine to get lit tle ones to sleep

by Erin M EyEring

It’s

a shrill, ear-piercing cry at Instead, bring a toothbrush to keep minds midnight. It’s wide eyes after busy, teeth clean, and save a little time for three bedtime stories. It’s hearing your mom or dad while the child’s body relaxes. bedroom door creak open, followed by a After a bath, the rest of the nightly shy, “I can’t sleep.” routine can be tailored to the child’s age.

For children, it’s any excuse to get out Maybe the parent can read a story to the of bed. child; maybe the child can read a story to It’s no secret that getting babies and the parent. Some parents recommend a kids to sleep can be challenging. It’s not yoga-like body scan where the child can even a secret that the word “challenging” practice relaxing each individual part of might be an understatement. his or her body (first toes, then ankles, and It’s all about move up from there) trial and error, says until sleep comes Melissa Martinezeasily.

Chauvin, local yoga Something else teacher and mother of to consider for the 17-month-old son. not-yet-potty trained Keeping a routine The key, she’s little ones is using found, is a nightly nighttime diapers. is a great way to routine.

The extra absorption Keeping a routine may keep the son let kids know that is a great way to let or daughter asleep kids know that the longer. day is ending, and Another trick the day is ending, that it’s nearly time could be to use for bed. Like adults, essential oils as home and that it’s nearly if children know what remedy. Try using a to expect going into spritz of water mixed time for bed. a situation, they may with several drops of not fight the process lavender essential oil as much as they on a child’s pillow might have if they’re to release a calming uncertain of what’s to scent. A diffuser can come. also be used to release Martinez-Chauvin starts her evening the essential oil slowly into the room routine by serving her son, Jai, a wholeand create a soft background noise for some dinner at the table with the family. children. Lastly, when putting the kids to Because children can be picky, she recomsleep, remember that they can often sense mends serving different flavors of foods parents’ bad moods. Although it’s frustratyour children like, so they’re content ing, it will come. Building the foundation with a full belly at bedtime. For Jai, it’s a for good sleep is crucial, and maintaining variety of flavored rice, including coconut that routine will help both parents and little and almond. After dinner, it’s on to a ones in the long run. soothing bath.

“I notice a big difference in the Baths can be a great way to relax way he responds to my calm energy vs. children. Warm water, and the feeling of my annoyed go back to sleep energy,” weightlessness can feel soothing at any Martinez-Chauvin said. Ω age. For those giving your children a bath before bed, try to avoid playtime with toys.

Call (775) 328-6147 for free and confidential testing

FAMiLy gUiDE | nOVEMbEr 5, 2015

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