New episodes come out every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers.
---
If you’re trying to improve your sleep, thinking about doing so right before you get into bed might not be the best approach.
Dr. Sara Mednick, is a cognitive neuroscientist at the University of California, Irvine, and the author of the new book The Power of the Downstate. This episode is part of our month-long “Mental Health Reboot” series to mark Mental Health Awareness Month.
According to her research, Dr. Mednick says that we need to take a more holistic approach to getting better sleep, and that sleep is just one of the ways that our bodies rest and restore.
In this conversation, we talk about:
- The nuances of napping
- Dr. Mednick’s definition of the “downstate”
- Whether there are practices that can compensate for poor sleep
- Why heart rate variability is an important measurement of health
- Why sex is so helpful for sleep
- And when to take melatonin to best effect
Full Shownotes: https://www.tenpercent.com/podcast-episode/sara-mednick-445
