When it comes to sleep, I'm not sure there a topic that frustrates more than waking up at night (sometimes referred to as sleep maintenance insomnia). The struggle to make it from bedtime to wake can be a long and tortuous journey for some.  In this episode we will:

• explore the history of sleep and nocturnal awakenings 
• define the prevalence of nocturnal awakenings in the adult population
• understand both the definition of arousal and its relationship to awakenings
• investigate the concept of sleep efficiency, how it relates to sleep expectation versus sleep need, and how this itself can lead to increased awakenings at night
• determine how the presence or absence of excessive sleepiness can help to understand the cause and seriousness of nocturnal awakenings
• learn the risk factors and predictors that often lead to nocturnal awakenings
• find out that an individual's determination of the cause of their awakenings can be unreliable
• discuss the role of sleep studies in determining if there are pathological causes for nocturnal awakenings
• explore the role of anxiety and worry in nocturnal awakenings
• summarize the numerous studies that have shown the role of exercise in reducing both frequency and duration of nocturnal awakenings

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Music by: Dr. Abhinav Singh (@sleep_vigilante), all rights reserved

More

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• Bluesky: @drchriswinter
• The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!