Sleep Unplugged with Dr. Chris Winter

Picking the right mattress and pillow is important. Choosing the right material that goes over your mattress is equally essential. Bedding materials come in many forms and they can make a difference in your sleep experience. In this episode we will: Look at the research about bedding and disease modification Understand the temperature-regulating properties of various fabrics Explore cotton as a be...

It's hard to find insomnia without a healthy dose of fear or anxiety. Few individuals make an appointment to see a sleep specialist only to let them know that the situation is no big deal and frankly enjoyable.  Fear not only plays a huge role in the development and worsening of insomnia, it also offers an insight into a potential solution. In this episode we will: Review the incidence of anx...

The research on sleep and cell phone use is negative and there is an overwhelming amount of it. The negative impacts on sleep affect all age groups and demographics. While the impact on mood, memory, and attention is clearly sizable, the impact on sleep exists independently from these effects.  In this episode we will: Examine the effects of cell phone use in three populations: adults, college-age...

While brain fog has been described in many contexts, its incidence has soared since Covid. While the existence  of brain fog is clearly real, its lack of clear definition and delineation from similar disorders does inject diagnostic and therapeutic confusion into the clinical setting. In this episode we will: Offer elements central to the definition of brain fog Touch upon the demographics and inc...

If catathrenia (Episode 30) is the parasomnia that bothers everyone except the sleeper, exploding head syndrome (EHS) is the parasomnia the only bothers the sleeper, and very much so at that. Imaging being awakened by a sound so loud and dreadful that you awaken certain that you are about to die. In this episode we will: Define exploding head syndrome Review the key characteristics of the parasomn...

In 2023, the Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy released an 82-page advisory entitled, "Our Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation" and it details the health consequences of social isolation and lack of social support. In the report, sleep was specifically highlighted as an aspect of health affected by social isolation. This highlights an important connection and potentially and avenue of in...

Happy new year! It's 2024 and with a new year comes resolutions to join a gym and get into shape. The podcast has explored exercise and sleep relationships before, but is there a benefit to lifting weights? In this episode we will: Touch on current gym use statistics Revisit the impact sleep has on weight training, recovery, and athletic gains Detail the impact on specific strength training e...

Another year calendar year of the Sleep Unplugged podcast has come to a close. With the escalation in podcast popularity soaring, the 2023 Sleepy Awards seem all the more important and exciting.  It's fun to sing the praises of these special sleep colleagues as 2023 comes to a close. Join me as we celebrate some of the brightest stars within the field of sleep. The 2023 Sleepy Award winners a...

Throughout the podcast, we have shone a light on obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, but the lesser known (and less common central sleep apnea) has gotten little attention. In this episode, we will:  Define central sleep apnea  Differentiate central apnea from obstructive Understand the mechanisms that create central apnea Describe how obstructive and central apneas differ both physiologically as we...

Sleep trackers are everywhere and depending on the voice you are listening to, they are either the secret to hacking your sleep or worthless pieces of plastic on your wrist. The world of consumer sleep trackers is vast and confusing. In this episode we will: Discuss the basics of monitoring sleep Understand the role of surrogates in the measurement of sleep Examine the history of research actigrap...

Apple TV (not Max as stated in my episode) has a new show about two friends with Insomnia called Still Up. It is another example of the media portraying sleep disorders, but how accurate is the depiction, More to the point, is it a helpful perspective or does it simply perpetuate harmful ideas and stereotypes? In this episode we will: Consider the role media plays in illustrating, explaining, and...

Within the world of sleep disorders, there is often confusion surrounding disorders that feature nocturnal food consumption. These disorders share many similarities, but their distinctions are worth understanding. In this episode we will: Describe the disorders of nocturnal eating Characterize the incidence of these conditions List the comorbid diagnoses often seen with these disorders including e...

The Sleep Unplugged podcast is here to ease your holiday shopping stress with some of my favorite sleep product companies. In this episode, we will explore a host of sleep-themed gift ideas and product recommendations. many with unique discount codes for their purchases. In this episode, we will feature the following products: Ayo circadian lighting Beadgear pillows and linens Bearaby weighted bla...

It can be hard to wake up. For some people, it is almost impossible. Sleep inertia is the medical term of an inability to awaken in the morning. In this episode we will: Define sleep inertia Describe how sleep inertia interacts with our homeostatic and circadian drives Understand the occupational hazards of sleep inertia Postulate what function sleep inertia might serve Review the symptoms of slee...

A relatively new frontier of medicine is the exploration of the gut microbiome and its relationship to our body's functioning, health, and susceptibility to disease. The gut-brain axis represents a relatively strong relationship between the gut microbiome and our body's ability to function properly, and it has been proposed that this relationship influences sleep and risk for insomnia. I...

Saunas and cold-water tanks are everywhere in their personal fitness and recover space. These modalities have also been linked to improving sleep parameters, but is there any science behind the claims? In this episode, we will: Examine the use of sauna therapy and cold-water immersion (CWI) in elite athletics, and the relative adoption rate for both Discuss the literature linking sauna/heat therap...

One of the most common questions I am asked about sleep is, "What are the adverse health consequences of inadequate sleep?"  While I am quick to answer something related to cardiovascular or cognitive health, physical injury is not one that comes to mind immediately, but new evidence suggests it should. In this episode, we will: Discuss sleep mechanisms that might relate to increased inj...

Perhaps the most common sleep disorder in the world is sleep talking. It most likely affects at least half of all individuals at some point in their life. With the condition being this common, there are still many misunderstandings about sleep talking. In this episode we will: Define sleep talking as a parasomnia Review the incidence of sleep talking, the hereditary nature, and how it changes over...

The perinatal sleep experience is often talked about in less than glowing terms. It's often a situation that is cannot be helped, it simply must be endured.  In this episode, we will: Look at the common changes that occur during the pregnancy period, trimester by trimester Review the incidence of sleep disturbances in all pregnant individuals Contrast the incidence of sleep disturbances in wo...

Insomnia is a common sleep disorder that we have discussed frequently on this podcast. It's also a disorder that can have its origins in other sleep and medical disorders.  Many disorders can masquerade as simple insomnia, and knowing the true underlying cause can be the difference between solving a medical mystery and suffering needlessly. In this episode, we will: Differentiate between prim...

The promise of youth eternal is ubiquitous, and is often related to some new sleep intervention. When it comes to dialing back the years, what is fact and what is fiction? In this episode we will: List the sleep variables most commonly manipulated to improve health and longevity Understand the relationship between the sleep, testosterone, and cortisol and its impact on insulin and endocrinological...

We have touched upon REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD) in many episodes of the podcast, but it's never been the star. An individual acting out their dreams can be distressing, and understanding the disorder has many layers. In this episode we will: Describe the features of RBD and what it clinically looks like List the characteristics of the disorder and how it fits into the parasomnia family...

It's that time of the year again...football season. With the excitement building as rivalries renew both at the collegiate and professional level, it seems an appropriate time to look at the sleep through the lens of the sport of American football. In this episode we will: Preface the episode by considering the first athletic trainer in history, James Robinson of Harvard Explore some of the e...

It's hard to have a full conversation about insomnia without bringing up the topic of anxiety, the most common psychiatric diagnosis in the world.  Treating insomnia often means addressing anxiety. In this episode, we will: Introduce the concept and history of anxiety and sleep List the factors that along with anxiety, often influence sleep Think about the underlying mechanisms that relate sl...

The link between sleep and memory has been a compelling area of research for many years. New theories about the specific relationship between sleep and memory have recently emerged that reveal much about the roles that sleep plays in this process. In this episode we will: Touch upon the history of sleep and memory studies Review the discovery of the glymphatic system and how it is not only involve...