Skinny Songs Review

I love the idea of combining upbeat music with motivational lyrics to help people make lifestyle changes.

Skinny Songs aims to do just that with a collection of songs that Heidi Roizen put together, writing her own lyrics and collaborating with professional musicians and producers. Describing the songs as empowering, tracks include Objects in the Mirror Will Get Thinner Than They Now Appear, The Incredible Shrinking Women, You da’ Boss, I’m a Hottie Now, You Can’t Buy Thin and Skinny Jeans.

Unfortunately, the songs - which she describes as celebrating commitment, strength, and sex appeal - reinforce all the stereotypes that see people’s self-worth dependent on their jean size or their image in the mirror. I’m realistic enough to know that a lot of people feel better when they lose weight, and I applaud anyone who can come up with new tools to help people break old habits and motivate them to make lasting changes.

However, these lyrics just seemed plain silly. I’m sure they reflect the fears and fantasies of many women and more than a few men, but I’d rather not perpetuate them. Some of the songs are positive, but many have negative messages about being unattractive until you lose weight, and the importance of fitting into “skinny jeans”. I’m not convinced that everyone can realistically aim to be thin or skinny (or even desires to be skinny) nor do I think it's within everyone's means to wander into Saks to grab Gucci and Versace clothes.

At the end of the day, it’s about what works for you. Heidi swears this music helped improve her bottom line to the tune of 30 pounds (13.6 kg).

Here is a selection of lyrics. You can check out all the lyrics and listen to samples of the music at Skinny Songs and make your own decision.

I’m a Hottie Now

I spent years in misery
‘Cause everyone who looked at me
Was thinking evil thoughts about my thighs get back, into you somehow

The Incredible Shrinking Woman

You see I'm a superhero, with powers of epic might
I use wills of steel, at every meal, to control my every bite
And with my xray vision I can see without a doubt
There's a skinny girl inside me, I’ve just got to let her out

She’s the Incredible Shrinking Woman! Incredible Shrinking Woman!
Incredible Shrinking Woman! Incredible Shrinking Woman!

Calm yourself with Music

Music has long been used to heal, soothe and uplift. Lovers use music to set a romantic mood, movie producers use music to add drama and excitement to scenes and mothers croon lullabies to help their children relax and fall asleep. So, it’s no wonder researchers have investigated the healing power of music and found it to be helpful for pain management, stress relief, depression, anxiety and much much more.

A couple of days ago I received a review copy of the CD Relax: A Liquid Mind Experience which is billed as “over an hour of the most deeply relaxing music on the planet”. Those are pretty big boots to fill, so I gave it a whirl. The label warned me to use care when operating vehicles as the CD may cause drowsiness, but being a natural born rule breaker I popped it straight into the car player and set off.

Much to my surprise the music did have a slight soporific effect. That's pretty unusual for me. I'm a very poor candidate for hypnosis or other audio designed to sedate or help me fall asleep. While I often find music calming it's rare for it to have a sedating effect on me, so I give the CD kudos for achieving that.

Liquid Mind is the name used by Chuck Wild for his New Age music creations. The ‘Relax’ CD is one of several CDs aimed at helping people relax and improve their well-being. After a period of panic attacks and agoraphobia Chuck searched for music that would help him achieve feelings of serenity while being melodic and uplifting. When he was unable to find any, a counsellor suggested he compose his own and Liquid Mind was born.

Liquid Mind is a form of New Age music, although Chuck says he draws on influences from nature, such as the sound of the Ocean, as well as from classical composers such as Beethoven and Brahms.
According to Chuck

Liquid Mind albums seem to have an immediate "slowing down" effect on the listener, and may also help some people get to sleep, and relax deeply after a tension-filled day.

I received emails by the hundreds from grateful people using my music to go to sleep, to relax, to calm hyperactive children and adults, to heal from surgery

Chuck's Liquid Mind Music is proving popular. In November 2005, Chuck presented at the American Music Therapy Conference regarding the use of slow music in treating anxiety. Liquid Mind VII: Reflection won the Coalition of Visionary Resources Award for Best Meditation/Healing Music album of 2005.

The CD Relax: A Liquid Mind Experience is currently #1 on the Canadian iTunes New Age chart, and #4 on the US iTunes New Age chart. I'm more gobsmacked that there is a New Age iTunes chart, than I am at the success of Chuck's Liquid Music.

Verdict:
I’m on the fence with this one. The music is sedating, so if you’re looking for a way to calm down or a tool to aid in meditation Liquid Music could be for you. However, New Age music isn’t for me. Given the choice I prefer the sound of Tuis in the garden (click here to hear Tuis) or a CD of Mozart or Haydn. While I found the music sedating I also found it vaguely annoying. The music does what it’s supposed to, but if it isn’t to your taste, then like me you’ll probably only want to use it in short bursts. I could never imagine using it as background music as the creator suggests but I could envisage putting on a single track to give me something to focus on while sitting quietly for a few minutes.

The New "Third Base" and We're Not Talking Baseball...

As a therapist who has worked with adolescents, parents and families for 17 years, I was especially interested to read Logan Levkoff's new book on teen sexuality, Third Base Ain't What it Used to Be: What Your Kids Are Learning About Sex Today-and How to Teach Them to Become Sexually Healthy Adults. It's been my experience that most parents would rather hear their teen had a psychiatric or substance abuse diagnosis than deal with a sexual issue!

Since I'm a clinician and not an educator, I'm not familiar with the current literature on adolescent sexuality. But I do remember the dry material and no-nonsense (although often giggle-producing) graphic depictions of reproductive organs that were presented to me in health class in school. This book definitely does NOT fall in that category. The book is geared towards parents, with the tone and writing style helping to present the material in a very non-threatening way.

Credentials

Levkoff has been a sexuality educator for more than ten years. She lectures around the country and designs and implements sexuality programs for students of all ages. She has a Masters of Science degreee in Human Sexuality Education and is a doctoral candidate. She writes regularly for national magazines and has written Q&A columns for Ellegirl and Marie Claire.

I tended to give her more credibility because she is degreed in her area of expertise, unlike many so-called media "experts." But beyond her obvious knowledge-base on the topic and experience in the classroom, it is her philosophical approach that won me over. It is very evident from her book that she truly values her demographic - she really listens to and respects the children and adolescents she teaches and interviews! And it's apparent in their willingness to be so open and honest that they respect and trust her.

Philosophy

Levkoff's sites a federal program as a similar foundation for her educational philosophy, the SIECUS (Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States) Guidelines for Comprehensive Sexuality Education (2004). Several tenets listed seem to best exemplify her philosophy:

Sexuality is a natural and healthy part of living and all persons are sexual.

Sexuality includes physical, ethical, social, spiritual, psychological, and emotional dimensions.

Parents should be the primary sexuality educators of their children.

Families provide children's first education about sexuality and share their values about sexuality with their children.

If you agree that a person's sexuality is an inherent part of who they are and not just sexual organs or the act of "having sex," it makes discussion of the topic much clearer and less scary for parents and other adults. Levkoff also approaches sexuality with a developmental emphasis, starting with babies, which should underscore to parents that waiting until your child is a pre-teen is late in the game to begin their education.

Topics

The chapters cover the following topics: Anatomy and Puberty, Masturbation, Sexual Orientation, Sex: Oral, Anal, Vaginal and None at All, Sexual Health: What You Need to Know Now, Pregnancy, Techno-Sex: Pornography and the Media, Talking About Sex: Why It's So Tough. There are also helpful appendices and resources included. Admittedly, there wasn't any earth-shatteringly new material here. But one aspect that I found particularly helpful and very readable was in the kids' questions that she presents in almost every chapter of the book. It's clear that the students in her classes feel comfortable asking any questions without embarrassment or fear of criticism. There really are no "stupid" questions from her audience. Some examples:

• Do gay men want to be women? Do lesbians really want to be men?
• Do most people have threesomes?
• Why are girls called sluts if they like to be sexual, but boys get props from their friends?
• How long do people have sex for?

Highly Readable

I found this book to be highly readable and informative and wouldn't hesitate to recommend it parents, grandparents, teachers and any adults who spend time with adolescents and younger children.




Read Logan Levkoff's Blog

Recovery from self injury is a slow process

Over the last couple of weeks I have been reading Vanessa Vega’s memoir Comes the Darkness, Comes the Light: A Memoir of Cutting, Healing and Hope which is one of the best memoirs I have read. My all time favourite memoir is Elizabeth Wurtzel’s Prozac Nation, but this comes a close second.

Normally I whip through books very quickly, but this book makes you take a step back and think. It is at times horrifying to read. I had several ‘Oh my Gawd’ moments when I read about the injuries Vanessa inflicted on herself, and I shed a few tears along the way. While self-harm isn’t uncommon, the secretive nature of self-harmers and the social taboos around it mean that it is a topic that few people are willing to talk openly about and Vanessa’s book is a very open account of some truly horrifying moments.

In Vanessa’s story I found some parallels with other stories I have read about self-harm, in particular her comorbid eating disorder (anorexia) and the escalation of injury over time. However Vanessa’s story is also different in many ways. Vanessa’s self-harm started at an early age and continued for much longer than other stories I have read. Growing up in a household with an autocratic father and a people-pleasing mother Vanessa was actively discouraged from expressing any negative emotions. Sadness, anger and frustration were all banned and Vanessa was sent to her room to reflect on her thoughts.

It is clear from reading this book that Vanessa is someone who spends a lot of time in rumination. She is very sensitive and longed for validation and affirmation from her parents, her teachers and the world at large. For some children being sent to their room may have been an appropriate punishment but Vanessa revelled in the chance to be alone with her thoughts and while there she obsessed over the treatment she received and the injustice of not being permitted to express anger, when her father had a habit of doing that. It was as she later told her therapist convenient, that the rules applied to the children and not to the parents.

While in her room Vanessa would bang her head against the headboard of her bed with such ferocity that at times she felt she might pass out. She also developed the habit of using a cupboard in her room as a safe place where she could hide from trouble, and continued this habit into her adult life.

Her anorexia started at an early age. There is one particularly memorable time when she lay naked and shivering in her room with the window open because she had read that the cold would cause her to burn more calories.

Reading this review of the book you might think Vanessa is being self-indulgent or a bit of a cry baby, but as you read her story you never sense any self-pity. Instead her account of her childhood is so rich in description that you find yourself empathising with her, and understanding why she acted the way she did – including a cunning plan to get her brother into trouble that backfired in spectacular fashion.

Throughout the book it becomes clear that Vanessa’s father has had a profound impact on her life. From the high standards he demanded to his critical behaviour and deadly wit, a picture builds of a child who is psychologically abused. Some of the incidents that Vanessa describes in her book include:

• Upon hearing that Vanessa’s doctor thought she had anorexic tendencies, her father remarked that she was a third world wannabe
• He said she was so retarded the special Olympics wouldn’t take her
• His punishment regime took torture to a new high. Many kids will remember being beaten with a belt but Vanessa’s Dad took it one step further. The child was taken into his room and given a selection of his belts to choose for the punishment. The anticipation of what was coming and being forced to choose the method of punishment only added to the anguish
• Vanessa showed an early talent for writing winning writing contests while still at school. After feeling that nothing was ever good enough for her parents she at last felt that she had her moment to shine. After winning she was asked to rewrite the story in her best cursive so it could be housed in a university collection. In her third year of winning the contest she decided to invite her father to a writing conference.

I wanted my father to be there with me to share in something I had created. But to him, it wasn’t good enough.
“Let’s rework this, Vanessa.”
The story was already accepted. That’s the one I have to turn in.
“No one is going to know. I really think we can work together and make this stronger, okay? You want this to be the best, right?”
Silently, I died a little inside.
I already thought I was the best. I mean isn’t that what first place meant?

Who couldn't empathise with Vanessa's distress? What a soul-destroying experience to have your precious work undermined this way. Unfortunately, things didn’t improve as Vanessa grew older or after she left home. The self-harm escalated. She was peeling the nails off her toes to experience pain, she cut herself ritualistically on a daily basis and towards the end of the story she was resorting to beating her arms with hammers and other implements. I had several ‘Oh my Gawd’ moments reading the book and that was one of them. Another is when Vanessa finally decided to stop taking laxatives in her quest to be slim. After relying on laxatives for so long, her body was unable to process food. Her system was so backed up that she lost 20 pounds in a day!

This is a well written book that provides an insight into the mind of someone battling an eating disorder and self-injury. I was impressed with Vanessa’s willingness to bare her soul and describe her life and her journey to recovery. The book includes accounts of events in her childhood interspersed with stories from her individual and group therapy sessions. The book culminates with Vanessa confronting her father. After many years without contact Vanessa writes a letter to her father and finally meets him as an adult, a process that she described as healing.

My only disappointment is that I felt Comes the Darkness, Comes the Light: A Memoir of Cutting, Healing and Hope ended too soon and left unanswered questions. There was so much more I wanted to know. In the book Vanessa says that she found it hard to get the eating disorder under control at the same time as the self-harm. At the end we find out that she has gone from cutting four or more times a day, to once a twice a year – a tremendous achievement – however it’s not clear whether Vanessa has conquered her eating disorder.

I would also have liked follow up on her relationship with her mother and her brothers as it is evident from the story that much of what happened was a family issue. There is an oblique reference at the end to the effect that her father’s behaviour had on her brothers, and of course, that aroused my curiosity! I wanted to know if they were as deeply affected as she was, and I was interested to know what coping mechanisms they employed. I will be interviewing Vanessa in the next few days so I will put my questions to her and find out more about her recovery.

Happiness is an Illusion

What we think of as happiness is an illusion, at least according to Daniel Gilbert in his book, Stumbling on Happiness.

I read this tome thinking that a book with happiness in the title might provide some guidance on achieving happiness. In reality, this book is less about happiness than it is about how we think, how we perceive events and things, how we imagine our future and how we remember our past.

Stumbling on Happiness is a collection of interesting psychological facts and research with only a tenuous link to the science of happiness. The book offers some fascinating trivia about how we think, illustrated with witty anecdotes and scientific research on our metaphorical and physiological blind spots.

You will learn why being rich doesn’t make you happier and discover some of the elements of happiness.

When we have an experience – hearing a particular sonata, making love with a particular person, watching the sun set from a particular window or a particular room – on successive occasions, we quickly begin to adapt to it, and the experience yields less pleasure each time. Psychologists call this habituation, economists call it declining marginal utility, and the rest of us call it marriage.

Gilbert uses this principle of declining returns to explain why a lot of the things we expect to make us happy, don’t. People who have enough money to meet their basic needs for food, clothing and shelter, are only slightly less happy than multimillionaires.

However, most of the examples provided by Gilbert are only loosely related to happiness, and instead illustrate his point that our perceptions are often skewed. According to Gilbert, we have a poor grasp of reality, misremember the past and are frequently wrong in our predictions of the future. The bottom line? We are clueless when it comes to imagining what will make us happy, but we are happy about being deluded.

He comes up with some surprising statistics.

Despite what we read in the popular press, the only known symptom of “empty nest syndrome” is increased smiling.

Careful studies of how women feel as they go about their daily activities show that they are less happy when they’re taking care of their children than when eating, exercising, shopping, napping or watching television.

He believes that we convince ourselves that children bring happiness as a way of ensuring that we breed and stay around long enough to bring up the rug rats, rather than because the activity of childrearing is a source of joy.

The implication is that delusions and illusions are bad, and we should exist in reality. The counterargument to this is that if you believe you’re happy, then you are. After all, isn’t happiness a state of mind?

I don’t agree with all of Gilbert’s conclusions. For example, he suggests that people continue to choose romantic partners that are bad for them because they forget their negative characteristics and instead focus on the fond memories. I disagree. Forgetting the negative characteristics of past partners is only one possible explanation for seeking the same type of partner, over and over. It’s also possible that the individual has low self-esteem, is a poor judge of character, is attempting to avoid commitment or believes that they deserve exactly the partner they get.

Another flaw is that the book overlooks mental illness and emotional health issues. People with anxiety disorders and depression have negative cognitive distortions. Gilbert’s book focuses on positive cognitive distortions, ignoring an aspect of thinking that affects a large portion of the population at least some of the time.

Someone who has experienced a major trauma, may be haunted by this for the rest of their lives, experiencing nightmares, flashbacks and both physical and emotional signs of stress (PTSD). Gilbert glosses over this possibility, describing the resilience of humans and their ability to bounce back from tragedy, using examples such as Superman Chris Reeve. The reality is that some people are slow to recover, and a small number never recover from tragedy.


The solution
If we are lousy at imagining how we will feel in the future, how do we make decisions today that will make us happy tomorrow?

The only solution Gilbert puts forward is to find someone who is going through the exact situation we are anticipating and learn from their wisdom. Many of us learn from our parents, our teachers and other coaches who offer advice.

However, an equal number of us prefer the freedom to make our own choices and disregard perfectly good advice so we can find out for ourselves that the good looking man we met last month is a louse, that our sister will never change and that eating a jumbo pizza and an ice cream sundae always leaves us feeling bloated.


In the end the book raises more questions than it answers, but it is worth reading if you’re interested in psychology and want to learn more about the way we think.

Can limiting flavours stop overeating?

The premise of The Flavour Point Diet: Use Great Flavours to Control Your Appetite and Reduce your Weight – Permanently is that you can tame your appetite and quell cravings by selecting foods according to their taste or flavour.

The authors, husband and wife team, David and Catherine Katz describe the six taste categories as sweet, sour, savoury (umami), salty, bitter and astringent and devise their diets around these. In particular, they note that sweet and salty foods are most likely to stimulate the appetite. Also, according to the authors, calorie for calorie, protein is the most filling, and is therefore the best source of food.

Their formula? A balanced diet comprising:

• 55% complex carbohydrates
• 20% lean protein
• 25% healthy fats

With each day devoted to a particular flavour.

By using these flavours, you will feel satisfied sooner, and eat less. The authors speculate that fast food manufacturers add hidden flavours into their foods to stimulate overeating. Instead, they believe you need to minimise the flavours each day to reduce your appetite.

The book includes a six week eating plan and recipes, with each day focused around a flavour, such as tomato, capsicum, dill, orange and onion days. Naturally, I jumped ahead to the chocolate day, which is described as a ‘special indulgence day’. Any time after week two of the plan you are permitted one indulgence day each week. The chocolate day comprises:

• Breakfast: 1 banana chocolate chip soft wheat muffin, 1 hot cocoa drink
• Snack: 1 tbsp raisins, 1 tsp good quality chocolate chips (are there any other type?), 3 whole almonds
• Lunch: chocolate and banana grilled panini, skim milk
• Snack: strawberries dipped in dark chocolate (now we’re talking)
• Dinner: chicken with chocolate port wine sauce
• Dessert: 1 chocolate brownie

This diet takes a lot of planning. In theory it addresses emotional eating and cravings by ensuring that your appetite centres aren’t overstimulated by being bombarded with too many flavours. However, to implement it you need to stick precisely to this diet, which is why I wasn’t keen on it. If you want a prescriptive diet that tells you exactly what to eat and you’re not too fussy it could work well for you. But I suspect some days will be tossed out the window. For me spinach day would be the first to be ditched, followed rapidly by raisin/cranberry day.

I’m not fond of diets at the best of times, but if you’re going to make lifestyle changes, they should be changes you can live with for the rest of your life. I don’t see this as a diet that would be easy to stick with, but I noticed that the diet was reviewed very favourably at Amazon so clearly I am in the minority!

Book review: Living Well with Depression & Bipolar Disorder

John McNanamy is one of the growing number of expert patients who have written about their own health experiences and researched options for treatment.

In his book, Living Well with Depression and Bipolar Disorder, McNanamy details the different types of depression and mania and methods of diagnosis. This book combines his own personal experiences, his interactions with other patients with depression or bipolar, and summarises other literature on the subject of mental health diagnosis and treatment. He takes the time to explain the mechanisms underlying depression and mania, and comorbidity with anxiety, alcoholism and the like.

In Living Well, McManamy draws links between depression and other personality and lifestyle traits. For example, his own small website poll determined that a little over 80% of respondents with depression are introverted. He also discusses the different impact of depression and bipolar on young and old people, men and women.

He then moves on to different treatment options and discusses the pros and cons of medications, talk therapy, complementary treatments (e.g. light boxes, vitamins, minerals, amino acids and other supplements) and lifestyle changes, such as diet and exercise.

This is a great book if you want to understand the causes of depression and bipolar illness, or if you have questions about treatment options. Some people will find the information on antidepressants, antipsychotics and other medications an eye opener. In Living Well, McManamy explains how drug trials work and what the results mean. In short, he debunks the statistics commonly quoted by pharmaceutical companies when describing the effectiveness of medications.

This isn’t to say that meds don’t work, but the number of people that are helped by medications is overstated, and side-effects are minimised. This occurs because the results don’t include patients who don’t complete the trial period, due to unacceptable side-effects. According to McManamy antidepressants reduce depression by half in approximately half the patients. And some of those patients may have naturally improved over this time frame. It’s not entirely encouraging.

However, there are lots of helpful recommendations, including the need to keep taking your meds if they are helpful as this can reduce the risk of relapse. McManamy makes a compelling case for lifestyle changes, such as incorporating more omega 3 fatty acid rich fish, reducing sugar intake, managing sleep and incorporating regular exercise. He also overviews cognitive therapy and the importance of an holistic approach that incorporates changes to lifestyle and mindset to supplement medications.

The book doesn’t give you a prescription for recovery. If you’re looking for a step-by-step solution you may prefer The Chemistry of Joy. However, if you want to understand your illness and all the available options for recovery, then this book lets you choose from the menu of possible solutions.

Finding Meaning in Retirement

How Will the Boomer Generation Find Meaning in Retirement?

I recently read Sara Davidson's LEAP!: What Will We Do with the Rest of Our Lives?. The genesis of the book was an exploration of the author's own quest for meaning and substance in her work life as an aging Baby Boomer approaching retirement. The focus expanded to interviews with celebrity Boomers Carly Simon, Tom Hayden, supermodel Iman, Jane Fonda, Tracy Kidder and others. Davidson also interviewed teachers, business people and spiritual leaders.

I was prepared to find this book over-indulgent and self-involved as are so many books about Baby Boomers (and it's my demographic!). But this book was a worthwhile read. Davidson very effectively balances her own journey with the experiences of her interviewees. She explores relationships with aging parents and adult children, serious illness, death and dying, ageism, sexuality, mental health and many important issues facing this generation. I was especially struck by the level of intimacy shared in both her and her subjects' personal revelations.

At times while reading, however, it was hard to relate to people who are so well-off that they have no concept of the realities of serious financial concerns. These are not people who fear outliving their money. The easy access to comfort and security most of these subjects have is also not available to many people of the Boomer generation.

The spiritual aspects of Davidson's quest reminded me of a favorite book, Po Bronson's What Should I Do with My Life?: The True Story of People Who Answered the Ultimate Question. I highly recommend this book to people of any age who are exploring their work lives.

In both books, the creative process is an important theme. This spoke to me as a writer and artist. As a therapist, I find it helps patients heal when they begin to explore their creative selves.

Is Depression a Gift?

Depression is a gift. Or so says Lara Honos-Webb in her book Listening to Depression. Dr Lara Honos-Webb is a is a licensed clinical psychologist in private practice and the author of the book The Gift Of ADHD: How To Transform Your Child's Problems Into Strengths.

She has an interesting perspective on depression, but not one that many people are likely to embrace at the depths of their depression. After recovery there are some who find that depression has been an important turning point that has forced them to evaluate their lives, make tough decisions and learn new skills. Many motivational speaking careers have been built on precisely this precept - "I was once at rock bottom and this is how I clawed my way out of the black hole of depression, loss, alcoholism or life-threatening injury. "

Honos-Webb suggests many depressions are masked by

• compulsive overactivity
• drugs
• alcohol
• overeating

and recommends that you look at the emptiness, agitation or other symptoms and attempt to divine the deeper meaning.



This book would be useful for people who believe depression is a message and that listening to that message will help you heal. If you believe depression is a biochemical or lifestyle problem then this approach is unlikely to appeal to you.

Honos-Webb's book reflects the typical belief of psychotherapists. You are encouraged to fully feel the uncomfortable emotions, rather than attempting to distance yourself via distraction, denial or avoidance, and to analyse these feelings to find a new and more emotionally healthy path. The book contains exercises and questions to help you with this process.

Depression can be an opportunity for introspection and many people will obtain useful insights by examining their belief systems and identifying ways in which they have contributed to their depressed state. Unfortunately the problem with the concept of depression as a gift, is that it’s the gift that keeps on giving. Personally I’d be exchanging it for a hot bath and a massage.

The author suggests that psychotherapy is better tolerated than medications, such as antidepressants, has a lower rate of relapse and is more cost-effective. Research shows that the most effective treatment is a combination treatment which includes medications, therapy and lifestyle changes.

Honos-Webb is correct when she states that the rate of relapse in patients who quit taking medication is high. However when you're spending most of the day bawling your eyes out then it can be hard to focus on making changes in your mindsets and habits. Some people find that the meds take enough of an edge off for therapy to be effective and allow them to focus their attention on creating a more positive future. I wouldn't recommend this book for people who are experiencing major depression, except in combination with anti-depressants and lifestyle changes, however it could be helpful for people who are only mildly depressed.

A lifetime Insomniac gets help from the Sleep Doc

I reviewed Good Night: The Sleep Doctor's 4-Week Program to Better Sleep and Better Health by Dr Michael Breus at the start of my four week trial of his sleeping program. After a couple of weeks journaling my sleeping habits I’ve made an unwelcome discovery.

It turns out that some aspects of my self-care are lacking. For the first three nights I went to bed more than an hour after my planned bedtime and I was doing nothing specific to relax before climbing into bed. I’m now starting to get into some better habits and reaping the rewards.

Not everyone can afford to replace their mattresses every seven years. Are there ways to prolong the life of your mattress?

In truth not every mattress needs to be replaced every 7 years -- for example, Tempurpedic, other visco-foam surfaces, Select Comfort, or a latex mattress may last for up to 12 years or longer. However, I would encourage anyone with a traditional innerspring mattress to go ahead and bite the bullet and get another mattress.

The Stats would suggest that the weight of your mattress will double every 7 years from collecting dust mites, oil, and sweat from your body.

The best way to prolong the life as far as the sweat, oil and dust mites are concerned is to get an allergen proof cover for the mattress. You will want something that completely blocks out all allergens. Commercially these are called Mattress Encasings.

For example, does turning the mattress over and switching from end to end increase the life of the mattress?

Not really. It may level out the use, but remember you cannot flip a pillow top mattress because there is a pillow-top on only one side. Rotating it usually does not help because people usually sleep in the middle if they are sleeping without a partner, so you rotate it and stay in the same spot, or if you sleep with a bed partner you just end up sleeping in their “spot”.

Are those NASA inspired foam toppers that you see on infomercials a way of making your bed like new?

Yes and no. It depends upon what you are trying to do. If there is a sag in the middle of your mattress, your topper will sag as much as the mattress. If you have back problems and your bed is too firm, then a visco foam can be more supportive. It may also make a mattress easier to sleep on, if you are uncomfortable.

Can you really learn a foreign language, get rich or quit smoking while you’re sleeping? (i.e. subliminal affirmations etc)

There is no data to suggest that these claims would be true. However, the brain does process information while sleeping.

What are the most common mistakes you see with people who have sleep problems?

The number one problem I see is that insomniacs and people who have problems sleeping get in bed too early and stay in bed too long. All this does is increase people’s anxiety that they are not sleeping.

The second largest problem is caffeine. Most people never realize that caffeine has a half life of up to 12 hours, so the Diet Coke you had at noon could be what is keeping you awake at midnight.

Light. Light is the single greatest influence on the internal biological clock that tells us when you should fall asleep and when you should wake up. Most people continue to get light exposure up until the moment they shut their eyes. I have people set the mood for sleep with lower lighting.

Finally, the last “biggie” is the lack of a regular sleeping schedule. The body likes structure, so it needs it every night. If it is used to going to bed at a certain time then it will continue to get sleepy at that time.

Any tips for helping your children/babies sleep?

This is not my best area, however I can tell you that the only thing that got my son to stay in his bed were bribes of Hot Wheels cars each morning.

Is there any substitute for sleep?Proponents of meditation and flotation tanks make claims that these devices reduce your need for sleep. Is that true?

There is no data to suggest that either of these or any techniques can replace sleep. Every living creature that moves has a period of inactivity. The issue is we still do not know why.

Do you believe that dream interpretation books are of any use?

Again there is no data to support any of these interpretations. You or I can interpret a dream and we would both be right and both be wrong.

Tell us about your own sleep habits. Have you had insomnia?

I have been fortunate enough to have never experienced prolonged insomnia. During times of high stress I can have a sleepless night or two.

What exactly do you do for Crowne Hotels?

My work for Crowne Plaza was twofold. I helped develop the Sleep Advantage Program (this is a sleep awareness and hygiene program that is currently in 60,000 rooms across the Americas) and I was the spokesperson for this program as well.

Getting help

At what stage should people seek help?
It is easiest to go to my website, Sound Sleep Solutions, and take the in-depth adult analysis. The results are great to print out and give to your doctor.

What information should people take to their doc if they are concerned about their sleep and think they need serious help?

I like it when people can be as specific as possible. I suggest taking a log of their sleep habits over the course of a week and give me time to bed, time in bed, time to fall asleep, number of awakenings, caffeine intake, naps, wake time and feelings of being refreshed. With this type of information I can really get to the bottom of the problems right away.

Dr Mike aka The Sleep Doctor is the author of Good Night: The Sleep Doctor's 4-Week Program to Better Sleep and Better Health and a relaxation CD

He is also offering a FREE download of a Body Relaxation Audio Track to all those who sign up to receive his Beauty Sleep Newsletter. I guess that means I'll be signing up again to get the freebie!

A Good Night's Sleep

After more than 25 years of insomnia I've read my share of books on sleep and this is by far the best. Good Night: The Sleep Doctor's 4-Week Program to Better Sleep and Better Health by Dr Michael Breus is more than a fix for insomnia. The book also emphasises the importance of sleep to health, beauty, your sex life and your mood. A study using the Day Reconstruction Method found that

an extra hour of sleep had more on an impact on how participants felt throughout the day than earning more money.

I only have to think how I’m feeling today to acknowledge the truth of that statement. Last night my dogs barked at 1am and again at 1:30am and 2:30am. The result? This morning I am unaccountably irritable and clumsy. I don’t seem to be able to concentrate and find myself dropping things and getting frustrated at the smallest things. Unfortunately this isn’t a one-off problem. I’ve had years of poor quality sleep and have been really looking forward to putting into practise Dr Mike’s recommendations for a good night’s kip.

The book starts with a comprehensive guide to sleep hygiene which includes everything from choosing the best mattress, to sound proofing your room, developing good bedtime habits and understanding your own issues. I had already put in place a number of changes to help me with my sleep. I shut the bedroom door to keep four legged critters from disturbing my sleep.

I try to go to bed at the same time each night. Did you notice the word try? Unfortunately I keep trying to fit in extra things at night and find my bedtime running past my planned time. That’s where Dr Mike’s power-down hour comes in. He suggests devoting an hour each night to relaxing activities that won’t stimulate your mind and body as well as the little things that have to be done each night; letting the pets out to go to the toilet, brushing your teeth or tidying away your meal.

The book is full of handy quizzes that help you identify problem areas and provides comprehensive solutions for you to address these issues and get a good night's sleep. After 25 years of reading everything I can lay my hands on I thought I had a pretty good handle on sleep but Dr Mike introduces a lot of facts and information that were new to me. It had never occurred to me that sleep cycles might change according to menstruation. In my case I feel that my sleep is uniformly bad, but I will be keeping a diary over the next 28 days in the hope of uncovering new patterns to my insomnia.

If you're impatient (like I was) to jump into the four week program you can start that immediately but I would strongly recommend reading the preceding chapters so you can eliminate problems from light, noise, pets, uncomfortable pillows and the like.

Good Night covers all the basics of getting a good night sleep, including recommendations on snacks to help you get to sleep (unfortunately a nightcap of your favourite brandy is not on the list of sleep recommendations) and ideas for decorating your room to minimise distractions..

The book distinguishes between disordered sleeping and sleep disorders covering off the common sleep disorders and how they are diagnosed. I have experienced both initial insomnia (trouble falling asleep) as well as disturbed and poor quality sleep including frequent waking during the night (middle insomnia). These fall into the category of disordered sleeping.

The pros and cons of various remedies including sleeping pills and alternative remedies are also covered. This book is primarily aimed at non-pharmacological sleep solutions that you can manage in your own home.

For anyone interested in weight loss or wanting to look younger or remove those black circles under the eyes, Good Night tells you why sleep might be interfering with your energy, appetite and appearance as well as providing guidelines to look and feel younger healthier and slimmer. What could be better?

Resources
If you’re having trouble sleeping I recommend you check out the following resources

Sound Sleep Solutions
has a questionnaire to help you identify sleep problems. In addition there are action plans to address problems with insomnia, narcolepsy, restless legs or sleep apnoea as well as articles and tips on sleep.

Sleep Discovery Center
Follows the journey of a sleep deprived journalist through his consultations with sleep specialists and a sleep study – entertaining and informative.