Lektion 1
What Sleep Is
We start by examining a typical sleep cycle chart. You can go ahead and google this if you wish to have a visual, or just follow along with the recording. Here I address the deep sleep stage (non-REM) and dream sleep stage (REM) and their associated brainwave states.
Lektion 2
Sleep Time and Sleep Opportunity
Here I discuss what I view to be one of the most important misconceptions about sleep: that we need eight hours in order to feel rejuvenated. Instead, We correlate ultradian cycles with optimal sleep time.
Lektion 3
Caffeine
Here I discuss everyone's favorite psychoactive stimulant (myself included). The half-life of caffeine is 6-8 hours depending on one's genetics. understanding this and is crucial.
Lektion 4
Alcohol
Here I discuss the effects of alcohol on our sleep, how detoxing aldehydes interferes with sleep, and how our sleep cycles are affected.
Lektion 5
Cortisol and Melatonin
Here I discuss the dance between the hormone of light and the hormone of darkness. The interplay between cortisol and melatonin is often what determines the quality of our sleep.
Lektion 6
Blue light vs. Red light
Here I discuss the effects of light on our circadian rhythms and hormone levels. We dive deeper into circadian mismatches and their effect on our sleep cycles.
Lektion 7
Mitigation
Here I discuss the numerous ways we can mitigate the effects of blue light from our screens in the evening. I'd be a hypocrite if i said "Do not look at any screens in the evening before bed", because lets face it, most of us are social beings, and these days using devices are the way we socially interact with those near and far.
Lektion 8
The iPad Experiment
Here I discuss an experiment conducted on participants reading ebooks on iPads before bed, to understand the effects on sleep as compared to participants reading paper-back books before bed. The results are astounding.
Lektion 9
Morning Serotonin
Here we discuss how Melatonin is made and the effects of natural sunlight viewing in the morning on sleep in the evening. Serotonin is a hormone which is synthesized when natural light enters the eyes in the morning, and it is a precursor for melatonin which is secreted in the presence of darkness.
Lektion 10
The Circadian Clock
Here I discuss resetting our circadian clock and getting back in alignment with our natural circadian rhythms by exposing our retinas to the different colors and the different frequencies of natural light at different times of day.
Lektion 11
10pm to 2am and HGH
Here I discuss the optimal time to be fast asleep. I address ancient wisdom and look at the latest research regarding hormone release, particularly Human Growth Hormone and the vital role it plays in our health and longevity.
Lektion 12
What exactly is good quality sleep?
Here I correlate the body's repair and regeneration processes with the time that we go to sleep because of the hormones that are released during the window of 10pm and 2am.
Lektion 13
Testosterone
Here I discuss the definition of 'bad sleep' or sleep deprivation and its detrimental effects on testosterone, a powerful hormone directly influencing our biological age.
Lektion 14
Body Composition
Here I discuss the effects of sleep deprivation on body composition. It turns out that body fat percentage is heavily influenced by how well or how badly we sleep.
Lektion 15
Natural Killer Cells
Here I discuss the effects of good quality sleep, or lack thereof, on our body's immune system.
Lektion 16
Insulin
Here I discuss what the hormone insulin is, and how the quality of our sleep affects it.
Lektion 17
Leptin and Ghrelin
These are two hormones that seem to work hand in hand. Leptin is the body's satiety hormone, it makes us feel satiated or full. Ghrelin is the body's hunger hormone, it's what is released when we're craving food or we need a replenishment of energy.
Lektion 18
Memory and Learning
Here I discuss the effects of sleep deprivation on a part of the brain called the 'Hippocampus' which is associated with our ability to learn new information as well as our ability to remember or recall what we have learned.
Lektion 19
Dementia
Here I discuss 'brainwashing', or rather 'washing the brain', the necessary process of cleaning out the toxic byproducts of a day of brain activity to prevent neurodegeneration.
Lektion 20
Emotional Intelligence
Here I discuss how the quality of our sleep is directly related to our EQ or our emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is our ability to be aware of and regulate our own emotions.
Lektion 21
The Most Powerful Antioxidant
Here I discuss what an antioxidant is, as well as the most powerful one that our body makes: Melatonin.
Lektion 22
Absolute Darkness
Here I discuss the benefits of sleeping in a room that is so dark that you cannot even see your hand when placed in front of your face.
Lektion 23
EMF
Here I discuss the light that the eye cannot see but that the body can sense and how this category of light has an impact on our sleep.
Lektion 24
Morning Exercise
Here I discuss the impact of physical exercise (undertaken at different times of day) on sleep.
Lektion 25
Magnesium
Here I discuss supplementing Magnesium to replenish blood-levels and improve sleep quality.
Lektion 26
Temperature
Here I discuss vasodilation, vasoconstriction and the effects of cold on reducing our body temperature at bedtime.
Lektion 27
Meditation
Here I discuss the correlation between having a meditation practice and the quality of one's sleep.
Lektion 28
Eating and Sleeping
Here I discuss the correlation between the time that we eat out last meal, the digestion process, and the effects on our sleep.
Lektion 29
Sleep Position
Here I discuss the correlation between sleep posture and quality of sleep.
Lektion 30
Naps
Here I discuss a few things to consider when taking an afternoon nap.
Lektion 31
NSDR
Here I discuss Non-sleep Deep Rest protocols.
Lektion 32
Conclusion
As you can tell from this course, sleep is one of my passions and I believe that it is the bucket that fills all of the other buckets that have an influence over the quality of our life. I hope that you've gotten enough from this course so that you can slowly improve the quality of your sleep over time.