Truth Be Told | Habits of highly effective sleepers

Too many times this past week I’ve woken up well-rested when I wasn’t supposed to be.

You know the feeling — there’s a little too much light outside, and you turn your head to the side to see those clock hands or digital numbers read out your death sentence. You’ve just overslept.

Some of you may get scared, others may be unphased and even go back to sleep. Personally, after I fill the room with an ensemble of swear words, I ask the tough questions. Why didn’t I hear an alarm? Why is it out to get me?

I don’t need to tell you the importance of sleep. But research done here at Penn points out that sleep is complicated and, if anything, we need to sleep smarter, not harder.

Regardless of how badly you think you dance, we all have natural circadian rhythms in our brains telling us when we should be awake or asleep, regardless of the cycle of light and darkness. Even though we try to trick our bodies into altering this cycle with caffeine and artificial light, our brains will eventually start singing their lullabies. Timing of sleep is just as important as the amount.

Sleep deprivation is something of a rite of passage in medical training, the sine qua non of a dedicated doctor. However, concrete evidence is shedding light on the risks involved with working at the expense of sleep.

In a study published in the journal SLEEP in 2004, medical residents averaging less than five hours of sleep per night were found to be more likely to have accidents and make diagnostic errors. Studies like this one have led to recommendations by the Institute of Medicine, which resulted in limiting work hours for residents, starting this July.

“There’s an evolution in culture overall about how to maintain 24-hour operations and do it in a way that’s safe and effective,” said David Dinges, chief of Sleep and Chronobiology in Penn’s Department of Psychiatry. Dinges was on the committee that made the recommendations, which included sections about moonlighting and protected sleep periods that reflect a better understanding of sleep as we know it today.

In a culture that so highly values productivity, time has become more precious than diamonds. But what good is all that extra time if you’re not in top form?

Speaking of a recent business trip, Dinges said, “On day one, everyone is excited, and no one has planned when they’re going to sleep or have a circadian wake up or how they’ll use naps — [but] I use that stuff. By day three or four, no one can stay awake, and I’m in control of the agenda.”

Dinges, who has done work related to sleep deprivation in space, has an impressive lab here at Penn that deals with mathematical models for sleep behaviors and devices that will detect deficits. These models are driven by the same principles that have helped him get his edge and that anyone can use in their lives.

Sleep. This piece of advice is probably the hardest of all.

Know what kind of sleeper you are. “That’s easy to do based on your habitual wake and sleep time when you’re left alone,” Dinges said. If you’re an early riser, for instance, you know to go to bed earlier.

Bank up on sleep before an all-nighter by napping. “There is no ideal nap time. The longer you nap the more benefit you get, but the worse the sleep inertia.”

Use caffeine as a drug. Contrary to popular belief, the less the coffee is roasted, the more caffeine it has. Morning blends are your best bet.

Create an ideal sleep environment. Cool, dark and quiet.

Multitask when you can and leave more time for sleep. Always recover sleep you don’t get.

Following these principles could help you to develop a deep personal relationship with the sandman. You might find there’s more to him than at first glance.

Mark Attiah is a first-year medical student from Dallas, Texas. His email address is attiah@theDP.com. Truth Be Told appears every other Thursday.

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