Snooze... or Lose!: 10 "No-War" Ways to Improve Your Teen's Sleep Habits - Hardcover

Whiteley, Carol; Emsellem, Dr. Helene A., M.D.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0309101891 ISBN 13: 9780309101899

Publisher: Joseph Henry Press, 2006

Synopsis

Walk into any first-period high school classroom and it's obvious: teenagers are exhausted. Sleep deprivation is an epidemic as widespread as obesityâ€"and just as damaging. Fortunately, science has answers and Dr. Helene Emsellem has solutions that all parents can use. Affecting the lives of more than 41 million adolescents in the United States alone, sleep deprivation is a chronic problem for kids today. We know this intuitively as we watch teenagers frantically juggle a hectic social calendar with the overwhelming demands of school, work, and chores. School performance around the country is sufferingâ€"but it's not just grades that are at risk. Sleep deprivation has been found to affect nearly every aspect of a teenager's life, from emotional stability and behavioral issues to physical well-being and the potential for drug and alcohol abuse. For years, we've blamed many of these adolescent characteristics on the natural maturing process or changing hormones. And while chemicals do surge through the body creating strong effects, sleepâ€"the right amount and the right kindâ€"has now been targeted for its prime importance in overall success and well-being.

Table of Contents

• Front Matter
• Introduction: Waking Up to the Need for Sleep
• Part I What's Up with Teens? 1 Why Teens Stay Up All Night and Sleep All Day
• 2 The Real Reason Teens Are Tired, Low Performing, Stressed, Overweight, and Incredibly Hard to Live With
• 3 Inside Sleep: What It Is, How It Works, Why Teens Need It
• 4 The Sleep-Learning Link: Why All-Nighters Don't Work
• 5 Trying to Sleep in a No-Sleep Teen Culture
• Part II How to Help Teens Feel and Be Their Best -- 6 Off the Charts: Measuring Teen Sleepiness
• 7 Tips from Teens: How Parents Can Talk with Their Teens About the Importance of Sleep
• 8 10 "No-War" Ways to Improve Your Teen's Sleep Habits for Optimum Health, Learning, and Living
• 9 Getting Off the Night Shift: Resetting Your Teen's Internal Clock
• Part III When to Seek Help from Professionals -- 10 What Are Sleep Disorders and How Should They Be Treated?
• 11 Handling Serious Problems That Can Accompany Lack of Sleep
• Part IV Family and Community Support -- 12 Supporting Your Teen
• 13 Making Changes in Your School and Community
• Part V Global Impacts -- 14 Sleep Deprivation Around the World
• Resources
• Acknowledgments
• Index

About this title

From the Author:

HIT THE SNOOZE BUTTON...

How did you become interested in sleep?

I have always been fascinated by the complexity of brain function and chose neurology as my primary medical specialty so that I could focus my interest on the brain and nervous system. Although we have mapped the human genome and have come to understand and treat many neurological diseases, there are simple, basic, unanswered questions about sleep. Scientists have only begun to tackle the mysteries of sleep and its rejuvenating properties and I am excited and challenged by the opportunity to be involved in this new frontier of discovery.

Do you fall asleep easily or are you a closet insomniac?

No, I am not a closet insomniac but I do need to pay careful attention to my own sleep hygiene – particularly allocating enough time for sleep. I really need 7 ½ hours in order to feel good and function optimally and have to keep a tight reign on my evening activities in order to have the opportunity to get the sleep I need. I am very sympathetic to my adolescent patients who just want to answer one more IM before turning off the computer!

What keeps you up at night?

The first challenge for me in the evening is to let go and concede that I have done all that I can for one day. I find it most disconcerting to take the worries of the day to bed with me—either in my thoughts or my level of body tension so I often enjoy a warm shower and stretching followed by a crossword or Soduko to ease the transition from the stressors of the day to sleep.

About the Author:

Helene A. Emsellem, M.D., is a nationally known sleep expert. She is the director of the Center for Sleep and Wake Disorders in Chevy Chase, MD., where she runs a six-bed sleep laboratory, an active sleep medicine clinical practice, and a clinical research trial program. Dr. Emsellem has appeared on Larry King Live and other national television programs and has been widely quoted in national magazine including Redbook, Glamour, U.S. News & World Report, Cosmopolitan, Scientific American, and others. She was recently named to the Washington, D.C., area’s Consumer’s Checklist of Top Doctors and Washingtonian Magazine’s Top Doctors guide.

About this edition

• Publisher: Joseph Henry Press
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0309101891
• ISBN 13: 9780309101899
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 256