Thread: Have a question about sleep science? Ask me...

alert!

I have a completely off the subject question for the polysomnologist. I was googling the field trying to figure out what I needed to do in order to become one. Being that I am completely exhausted, I can't seem to find anything helpful. I was hoping you might be able to tell me what is required? I assume you need schooling? If so, do community colleges have courses for this, or are there specific schools? Also, if there is a way to private message through here and if it is not too intrusive would you be able to tell me about how much they make? Also, are health benefits generally given? I know this is sooo way off base of anything being talked about here and I am sorry for that! If you can help me I would be so grateful!

If not, I completely understand. Thanks for taking the time to read this!
wow, I just actually looked at the dates of these posts! I hope someone actually reads this!

Hello jonesn, nice to see somebody who's really involved with sleep IRL

Could you please tell me whether a comparative study exists between the state of normal sleep and lucid dreaming, brain-wise? I'm really interested in whether some brain parts that were inactive become activated when we become aware that we're asleep, or whether there are no changes brain-wise at all.

Originally Posted by Kaelyn

Dogs have 3 types of rhodopsin, the pigment in cone-cells. Humans have four. So dogs probably can see colour, although differently than humans. Some type of birds actually have five types of rhodopsin, I wonder how they experience the world.

Yeh I've read this, they can see infrared apparently. Their vision must be basically all red right now with all our wireless technology lol

Oh yeh I wanna know, is it probable that schizophrenia is caused by not being able to deal with all of one's problems during normal dreaming while asleep, so it crosses over in to real life?

Also you said NREM is the restful sleep, yet I've heard in numerous other places that it is REM which is restful and replenishing. I've heard NREM also in other places, so which one is it!? Is there any studies showing which one it is?

when your laying in bed trying to fall asleep should you let your mind wander, think of one thing specific (counting sleep lol), or what?

Originally Posted by jonesn

From what I've seen in the lab and first hand (I can fall asleep in seconds, no joke), is that a low latency of sleep (time it take to drift off) is accountable most directly to keeping the same sleep schedule day after day and getting enough sleep each night. This is so important because your body should be your best sleep aid due to the circadian rhythm that produces melatonin to cause your sleep drive to start. If you miss that critical 2-3 hour "window" when sleep drive is most effective then you may experience some difficulty with sleep onset once you do decide to go to sleep.

First off, many thanks to jonesn for giving your time and effort in bestowing us all with the scientific viewpoint - much appreciated.

In my own experience of falling to sleep, I usually take 20mins+ (and regularly beyond this) and this has been the case for as long as I can remember. Likewise, my sleep pattern has been always been relatively regular. Due to work and family, my sleep pattern for the last 3 years or so has been 2200-0540 - almost invariably.

So I do follow a very regular sleep pattern and yet I'd I have a relatively high latency of sleep?

Conversely, my wife has always had a somewhat more irregular sleep pattern and yet she has always been able to fall asleep in seconds.

So surely there must be other factors other then sleep pattern that can affect sleep latency?

Hi Jonesn,

I understand that REM sleep is effectively suppressed by the use of antidepressants. I am currently on a 20 mg per day dose of the SSRI Lexapro and have been for a while. Are there any proven or suspected methods of increasing REM sleep to your knowledge? I am not talking about the supplements that are believed to enhance dream vividness and recall, although they may create the illusion that I am experiencing more dreams, I couldn't be content with that. I want to know of any real ways to up REM sleep before I become depressed without my beloved dreams, rendering the medication awfully counterproductive.

Thanks!

Hi Rowan,

The polysomnologist has not posted anything in this forum since November of 2007, so might not catch your question.

I just tried googling on "sleep research + careers" and 84,400,000 entries popped up. Must be ways to narrow it down a tad. So maybe you just need to try different phraseology, or that name (polysomnologist) isn't all that common. Maybe try "sleep technician"?

I always get confused when people pull up really old threads!

Originally Posted by Kaelyn

Some type of birds actually have five types of rhodopsin, I wonder how they experience the world.

I have heard that instead of infrared they see many more colors than we can imagine, and they see the world much more colorfully than we can. I have thought of trying to see like that in a lucid dream. I wonder if that is possible. It would at least be cool to see your mind's take on this.


Also I have a question. I have cross-country in the morning. Sometimes I end up sleeping for 6 hours, running for 1 hour, and then I fall asleep again for 1-2 hours. I usually experience very long vivid dreams when I fall asleep again which implies that I was on REM5 instead of REM1 even though I woke up for an hour in between. How long do you have to be awake before the REM cycle resets? Thanks

oh I didn't realize how old this thread is. I might end up posting my question as a new thread at some point.

What would you recommend to fall asleep with.

Melatonin or Valerian Root, or anything else on the safe side without pounding chemicals into my liver.

The guy has disappeared from the thread

Originally Posted by solstice

What would you recommend to fall asleep with.

Melatonin or Valerian Root, or anything else on the safe side without pounding chemicals into my liver.

Yes, melatonin and Valerian Root are both good sleep aids, also Lavender is wonderfully relaxing. You can use it in various forms, like Lavender tea from the dried flowers, putting the dried flowers in dream pillows or pouches to tuck inside your pillow, making a spray mist of lavender essential oil and distilled water (or buying it ready made) and misting it on your pillow and even on yourself. You can rub some essential oil into your temples. I love my Lavender. I have lavender soap, and lavender bath scrub, and lavender lotion. I burn lavender essential oil on a plain white unscented candle during meditation, or put it my aromatherapy diffuser. I posted a list of dream herbs here... many of those are also good sleep aids.

Originally Posted by Metaphyz1k

Hi Jonesn,

I understand that REM sleep is effectively suppressed by the use of antidepressants. I am currently on a 20 mg per day dose of the SSRI Lexapro and have been for a while. Are there any proven or suspected methods of increasing REM sleep to your knowledge? I am not talking about the supplements that are believed to enhance dream vividness and recall, although they may create the illusion that I am experiencing more dreams, I couldn't be content with that. I want to know of any real ways to up REM sleep before I become depressed without my beloved dreams, rendering the medication awfully counterproductive.

Thanks!

This is weird. They are supposed to make your dreams way more crazy. I know they did for mine. I had insane crazy dreams for a while and then I had dreams where I'd just be sitting there for the entire time with 1 friend on a bench at school. Doing absolutely nothing but looking around. Very surreal. I stopped taking them coz they are seriously fucked up drugs, but those dream experiences were interesting. I think after time it does lessen REM periods, but you can always take tryptophan + melatonin or something.