Dr. Shelby Harris, Sleep Specialist, Discusses Bedtime Rules And Major Don’ts
Dowell
Dr. Shelby Harris, a sleep specialist and clinical psychologist, has spoken on numerous news networks about sleep and written many articles on the subject. She is now sharing her vast knowledge with Sleepopolis to celebrate National Sleep Awareness Week (3/10-3/16).
Dr. Harris is a board-certified specialist in Behavioral Sleep Medicine, which treats sleep disorders through the treatment of psychological, behavioral, and physiological factors. He can talk to you about the best and worst sleep treatments, as well as what to do if you want to catch quality Zzzs.
Enjoy our exclusive interview!
What point in your education did sleep interest you?
Brown University was my undergraduate school. I took the popular intro to sleeping course. It was amazing. It was a solid year for me between graduate school and undergraduate. As a research assistant, I was involved in a study in which an antidepressant was prescribed to early recovery from alcohol dependence. It was believed that many people who have been through rehab relapse because they use alcohol to sleep. It was very helpful for many to treat their insomnia right from the beginning.
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Insomnia is one of the primary treatments for sleep specialists. It is so effective, why?
CBT-I, a non-drug treatment for chronic insomnia, is based on the idea that chronic insomnia lasts four weeks or more and is sustained by behavioral and physical factors that are little or no different from acute insomnia which only lasts one to two days.
The treatment includes learning healthy sleeping habits, managing stress and removing sleep-incompatible behavior. Light exposure can also be used to reset the body’s sleep-wake cycle. Each person’s situation is different, so on average 4-12 sessions will be required. We also discuss strategies to prevent relapse.
Are you a believer that medication can be used to treat insomnia?
Yes. However, I strongly believe that CBT-I can be started as soon as possible by most people. They will learn to accept some difficult nights in the beginning. This will prevent relapses and medication abuse.
Dr. Shelby Harris Psy.D., C.BSM
Your guided meditations have been created for a meditation app that helps listeners to sleep. Are these techniques effective for people with sleep disorders or those who have milder issues?
In the app, I emphasize that meditations are a way to set the stage for sleep and should not be used as sedatives. To help calm the mind and focus the brain, I recommend that people meditate and practice mindfulness.
What are your thoughts on the most recent breakthroughs in understanding sleep?
I have been enjoying the mindfulness work in CBT for Insomnia that Jason Ongs has introduced to it.The research on sleep monitoring and fitness devices is also very interesting to me.They can often adversely impact the sleep of patients with insomnia due to their tendency to focus too much on data. This has been something I’ve observed clinically for some time, and it’s nice to see it in medical journals.
Recently, I discovered that sleep hygiene is often ineffective for serious sleep disorders such as chronic insomnia. Which is better?
Although sleep hygiene is important, it is not sufficient. CBT-I can be enhanced by adding other components such as changing your sleep/wake timing to consolidate sleeping, being aware of what you do in bed and contemplating mindfulness training or cognitive therapy.
What would you like to know about sleep?
Many people are so concerned with how much sleep they get each night. Quality can be just as important and sometimes even more so. I would prefer someone to get 6.5 hours of good, solid sleep every night and feel great during the day than 8 hours of sleepless nights. It’s not always about the amount.
We are grateful to Dr. Harris that she spoke with Sleepopolis. Dr. Harris can be found on her website, Twitter and theMeditation Studios App. You can also preorder her book The Womens’ Guide to Overcoming Incomnia: Get a Restful Nights Sleep without Using Medication.
