Sleep/EEG

Question 1

Do we all really need 8hours sleep?

Answer 1

NO! Some people need much more or much less!

A man is known to be awake for only a total of 1 hr a day!

Question 2

Does alcohol help you sleep?

Answer 2

Helps you got to sleep initially but then you go back upto higher levels,

Question 3

Can you ‘wake yourself’ if tired and tired?

Answer 3

No, the best thing to do is to pull over and sleep, you cannot trick the brain.

Question 4

What is insomnia?

Answer 4

difficulty falling asleep, waking up in the middle of the night, poor quality sleep. Affects >50% me students!!

Question 5

What percentage of people sleep walk

Answer 5

1-5%

Things like sleep walking, talking, sex (danger of rape charges),

Question 6

Why do we need to sleep?

Answer 6

• energy conservation?
• Body repair?
• Predator avoidance?
• Thermoregulation?
• Maximising adaptation to the environment

No one is 100% sure!

Question 7

How is it that godwits can fly for months on end?

Answer 7

They do unihemispheric sleeping!

Question 8

The sleep requirement of people (to wake up and feel refreshed/recharged) is varied but is mainly around _____ hrs

Answer 8

7-9hrs, although there is huge variation.

Question 9

If you try force yourself to sleep more then you need, what can you develop?

Answer 9

anxiety

Question 10

How does sleep requirement change with age?

Answer 10

It steadily drops with age, starts at 16-20hr as a neonate.

Question 11

How is it that we from awake to sleeping?

Answer 11

When you’re awake, your ‘wake system’ is firing. NA, histaminergic system is keeping you awake.

When we sleep the systems slowly turn off and a new ciruitry kicks in.

Insomniacs wake system is so strong it can override

Question 12

What are the two divisions of sleep?

Answer 12

1. Rapid Eye Movement sleep (REM)‘dreaming’
2. Non- Rapid Eye movement (NREM)

Stage 1-2: superficial ‘half-awake’ stage of sleep (this is where alcohol keeps you!)

Stage 3-4: The deep sleep that takes a few minutes to recover from, what we want

We go through fluctuations

Question 13

When do we get ‘dreams’

Answer 13

During the REM phase of sleep

Occurs ~5x a night, totalling about 2hours

We remember <5%

Question 14

What are the steps to diagnosing sleep disorders?

Answer 14

1. Sleep History: be curious, ask about everything! Sleep sex, walking, eating, talking, onset, quality, interruptions,
2. Sleep diary
3. Actigraphy
4. Polysomnogram

Question 15

What does a Polysomnogram test?

Answer 15

• Brain electrical activity (EEG)
• Eye, jaw and leg muscle movement
• AIrflow
• Resp. effort
• EKG
• O₂ saturation

**not for insomniacs!!

Question 16

What are the 3 major groups of sleep symptoms?

Answer 16

1. Insomnia
2. Excessive daytime sleepiness
3. Parasomnias

Question 17

What types of insomnia can you get and why?

Answer 17

Can be primary or secondary (due to drugs, psych issues, neuro issues)

• Circadian rhythm issues
• Jet lag
• Shift work sleep disorder
• Things like anxiety increases risk

Question 18

Who are excessive daytime sleepers?

Answer 18

• Difficulty maintaining desired wakefulness
• Falling asleep at inappropriate times
• Excessive amounts of sleep

EDS conditions: sleep apnoea, idiopathic hypersomnia, narcoleptic/sleep attacks, sleep deprivation

Question 19

What/who are parasomniacs

Answer 19

Those who do things in their sleep!

Walking, talking, eating, sex, screaming, Periodic Limb movement (PLMs), restless legs, bruxism (grinding teeth).

Can be dangerous to the patient and their partners.

Question 20

How do we treat??

Answer 20

Make sure you have the correct diagnosis

Multimodal approach: psycho, behavioural, bright light exposure, CPAP, meditation