Getting a good night's sleep is important for our physical and emotional well-being, and the process of sleep continues to fascinate and perplex laypeople and medical professionals alike. Written from a place of empathy, in easily understandable language, The Nocturnal Brain: Nightmares, Neuroscience, and the Secret World of Sleep offers new insights and answers for the chronic and disruptive conditions keeping people up at night.
"The range of sleep disorders is vast," writes Guy Leschziner, a neurologist and sleep physician at Guy's Hospital in London. With compassion and caring, Leschziner shares his patients' stories. We meet Vincent, a teenager with delayed sleep phase syndrome (his internal body clock is set to the wrong time), and Jackie, age 70, whose non-REM parasomnia has resulted in her getting out of bed and actually driving her car--all while remaining asleep.
In The Nocturnal Brain, Leschziner gives an expert overview of rare and lesser-known conditions, such as narcolepsy, an "irresistible desire to sleep in inappropriate circumstances and places"; Kleine-Levin Syndrome, which affects mostly males; and REM sleep behavior disorder, which may be a precursor to Parkinson's disease.
Leschziner's medical expertise is evident, along with his determination to find answers for his patients and their families, provide them with relief and even admit to what he doesn't know. "I just believe that there are subtleties there that we have yet to fully appreciate, nuances that we have not yet uncovered." --Melissa Firman, writer and editor at melissafirman.com