Dr. Christopher J. Allen Explains Sleep Disorders, Snoring, Insomnia, Naps + More

Dr. Christopher J. Allen Explains Sleep Disorders, Snoring, Insomnia, Naps + More

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Way, what's up?

Speaker 2 (00:04):
His way up with angela Ye, and I'm here with
doctor Christopher J. Allen aka Sleep Doctor Chris.

Speaker 1 (00:09):
Thank you for joining me, Thank you for having me here.
I got to ask you.

Speaker 2 (00:12):
Because we were talking all things in Michigan behind the scenes.
You're from saganaw but you went to medical school at
Wayne State University.

Speaker 3 (00:19):
Wayne State University School of Medicine.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
And you also went to Howard though before that.

Speaker 3 (00:24):
Yep. So always yeah. You know, it's funny because I
have a lot of many second homes and Detroit will
always be my second home, but DC too, and so okay,
you know, shout out to you know hu.

Speaker 1 (00:34):
You know now you have a sleep doctor Chris song.

Speaker 3 (00:37):
Yes, I do, I do.

Speaker 1 (00:39):
Who did that song?

Speaker 3 (00:40):
You know? It's just funny. It's a story behind that
because I've been doing, like you know, been a sleep
doctor for about almost a decade now, and last two
years I decided to go on to social media and
just put my platform out there. I love talking about sleep,
I love telling people how to get quality sleep, and
I'm like, oh, you should just go out there and

(01:01):
do social media. And so I started this two years ago.
And so my birthday, which is June twenty seventh, so
it's coming up really and the gifts, y'all know, I
know my cash, no, no, but for my birthday, what
they did they went out and I don't know if
you know rapper Gmac Cash that's I.

Speaker 1 (01:21):
Knew it was Montgomery Bray it is.

Speaker 2 (01:25):
I actually met him a couple of times. I was
at Parlay.

Speaker 1 (01:28):
I think I saw him there.

Speaker 3 (01:30):
Oh yeah, and it's funny. Yeah, And so they reached
out to him and said, you know, our friend is
doing this, and so they gifted me that song and
I was able to do that. So first of all,
shout out to gmat Cash from got Fire song Cash. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:42):
I was like, this sounds like g mad Cash, but
I want to make sure our first No. Yeah, definitely,
doctor Chris it is, I.

Speaker 3 (01:47):
Know and everyone you know firs. It's funny because people
thought I was like, no, that is not me, like
my yeah, no, no, yeah. You know when people say like,
oh man, you wrote your own songs, like that is
not me.

Speaker 2 (01:58):
But let's talk about what it is that you do
for a living and the importance of that, because you know,
I used to do morning.

Speaker 1 (02:04):
Radio for.

Speaker 2 (02:06):
Sixteen, no eighteen years, right, I don't even know how long. Yeah,
eighteen years. I did morning radio right first as serious
then here at iHeart. It was really a blessing for me.
People always would ask me, like, what is the hardest part,
and I would always say waking up at that time
in the morning every day, waking up at four am
and having to be like on point, go to work

(02:26):
and then also do what I need to do in
the evening and get to sleep at a decent time.
I was a type of person if you wanted to
go to dinner at nine, I'm like, I can't make
it because I got to get some type of sleep.
But talk to us about the importance of sleep, because
we hear about it as it pertains to your weight,
as it pertains to your health. But you believe this
sleep is a cousin of death. But now people are like, no,

(02:47):
you gotta get some rest.

Speaker 3 (02:49):
No, definitely, And it sounds very cliche, but it's true.
Sleep is important. And you know, I always tell people
mister Saman wants his money, and how do you pay
them by sleeping? And even if you don't get the
recommended amount of sleep, it's like you having a sleep disorder.
And so if you're not getting that, you know. They
literally call it sleep debt for a reason. And so

(03:10):
what I do well, first I'm a pediatric neurologist, but
I'm also a sleep medicine doctor for kids and adults,
and so any sleep disorders I look at and I
make sure that they're getting their quality sleep. So it
can be anywhere from sleeping too much, not sleeping enough,
having an insomnia, having a sleep disorder called obstructive sleep apnea.

(03:30):
That's the things that I look at. And because the
hardest part about my job, I got to talk to
people about things that happen with them when they're unconscious.
And so with that being said, I talk to them,
I examine and give them a comprehensive exam and making
sure that they know about sleep. And that's another reason
why I also do social media too, because there's a

(03:51):
lot of stuff that's like second nature to me, but
a lot of people don't know.

Speaker 1 (03:54):
They don't know.

Speaker 3 (03:54):
Yeah, And it's funny because when I started doing, like
sleep Doctor Chris, the second we can my wife was
getting their hair done and the hairdresser was like looking
at her. It's like, look, I told my boyfriend, leave
me alone. You need that seven hours of sleep. So
so doc I was telling them I need that seven hours,
and so that made me realize that, you know, hey,

(04:16):
I affected that one person, and a lot of people
out there think that, Like when you are getting like
throughout the day, they start blaming themselves. They're like, well,
I'm lazy, I'm tired, I'm burnt out, and you can
just have a sleep disorder.

Speaker 1 (04:32):
How do you know if you have a sleep disorder?

Speaker 3 (04:35):
Well, well, when you see a sleep professional, we go
over a comprehensive exam to see if you do. But
it starts at home. You know. I always tell people
the bottom line, especially well for adults, you need anywhere
from seven to nine hours of sleep. And when I
say that, a lot of people start looking at themselves like,
oh no, I only get like five or six. First

(04:55):
you give yourself grace and then ask yourself, why am
I not getting that? You know, there's many reasons why
that can happen. But you if you're getting that recommended
amount of sleep and you're still waking up and you're
still tired, then that's when you should still that's just
just talk to your provider or sleep see a sleep professional.

Speaker 1 (05:13):
For that okay.

Speaker 2 (05:15):
And I always hear about the different types of sleep
that you get. You know, people talk a lot about
rim sleep, So can you break that down?

Speaker 1 (05:22):
Because I feel like.

Speaker 2 (05:25):
I don't ever wake up and remember my dreams, and
so I don't know if that's a bad sign.

Speaker 3 (05:30):
Well, no, it's not a bad sign because somebody do.

Speaker 1 (05:32):
I not dream, but I know they say everybody's dreams.

Speaker 3 (05:34):
Yeah, so everyone, well everyone does dream. And when you
talk about sleep, it's pretty much broken down into two areas. Well.
You have your light sleep and your deep sleep. And
you always hear people say, oh, that's deep sleep, and
it's broken down into stages, and so your light sleep
you have like your stage one and stage two. They
call it N one and N two right now, and

(05:55):
everyone knows about rem sleep. That's like the old name.
We call it stage R. Okay, and that's the I know,
but you know they get, you know, paid money to
change names. But everyone knows rum sleep. So I still
call it that, but still call it like stage art.
That's how you know you have a real doctor like this.
If a real sleep doctor says stage r's like, all right,
he's on his stuff. So you have your stage three,

(06:16):
which is deep sleep, and you have your room sleeper
stage R and those happen consistently throughout the night, and
so when you're getting your quality sleep, there's certain percentages
of that sleep that's happening. Now rem sleep or stage
are that's where they say that dreams are happening. And
realm are em stands for rapid eye movement. Literally on
your when you're sleeping, your eyes are rapidly moving, that's

(06:39):
what they call it. Really yeah, I know you hear realm.

Speaker 1 (06:43):
Oh yeah.

Speaker 3 (06:44):
And unfortunately that is normal, and it's also normal not
to remember your dreams.

Speaker 1 (06:49):
Okay, I was thinking, maybe I'm not getting to sleep.

Speaker 2 (06:52):
I need to.

Speaker 3 (06:52):
Well, the thing is is that sometimes like when you
wake up, you're like, oh, like it'll be later in
the day. It's like, wait a second, I was dreaming
about that. Now, with that being said, if you never
remember your dreams, it's always asking what's happening when you're sleeping.
And I always tell people talk to your bed partner
because the again the hardest part about my job. I
talk to people about things that happen with them when
they're unconscious. And so like if I'm in my office

(07:16):
and I'm seeing a patient and their bed partners there,
I'm talking to them. I'm like, all right, well, how
do they sleep? Do they snore? Yes? And so it's like, okay,
figuring that out because then what I'll do will do
a sleep study, which is a polysymnogram just this fanch
way saying sleep study where we see if they have
a sleep disorder and not just seeing because there's a

(07:37):
sleep disorder. And I always tell people this. You know,
snoring is not normal, and a lot of people think that,
Like you used to watch cartoons and they see people, Yeah,
do you see them sleeping? See those little zas or
you might look at someone's like, oh man, they're deeply
sleeping because they're snoring. But snoring's not normal?

Speaker 1 (07:56):
What about sometimes?

Speaker 3 (07:57):
Well the thing is is that all right, I'm going
to have you step into doctor Allen's office. You know
I always tell patients this. You know, when you fall asleep,
all the muscles in your body relax, your legs, your arms,
muscless in the back of your throat. So if that's
your mouth and it's the back of your throat when
you're awake, airways open. But when you fall asleep, muscles
relax and right in the back. It's small. So when
you're sleeping and breathing in this is the sound people here,

(08:22):
that's how snoring's happening. Because yeah, but the problem is,
and this is where it can come into a disorder
when your airway collapses and it relaxed more and then
there's no oxygen going to your heart, your lunger, your brain,
but they don't know what's happening back there. So your
heart's working harder, lung as they're breathing in deeper, your

(08:43):
brain's sending stress signals all over your body. Then all
of a sudden you wake up, well, not you, your body
sometimes you. Then you fall back asleep and happens over
and over again. That's obstructive sleep at me. So those
are one of this disorders. And to answer your question, now,
if you're snoring doesn't mean you have a sleep disorder, no,

(09:03):
But if you're snoring, then that makes me ask other
questions like, oh, are you going to bid the right
amount of time? Are you pausing and breathing? Are you
waking up and still feeling like you're not refreshed. Those
are those symptoms where you're like, okay, we need to
get a sleep study and see what's happening.

Speaker 1 (09:23):
So you had sleep apnea? Correct.

Speaker 3 (09:25):
I know it's funny. I always tell patients this, Like
I sound like a cheesy commercial when I say it.
I'm like, not only my your doctor, I have obstructed
sleep atnea. I've been treated for twenty one years. And
it's funny because I found out in med school. So
I was in class and my girlfriend at the time,

(09:46):
we're sitting in class and they're talking about sleep apnea.
She starts laughing at me. My friends start laughing at me.
It's like you know that you I'm like, no, it's
not and yeah, and like, and I knew I snore
because I remember being a my mom like turn over
to your side. So I knew I snored on trips,
like people didn't want to share a room with me.

(10:07):
And I know it is it was. It was bad,
ye like and so and it's funny because you think
from there, it's like, I need to see a doctor.
I didn't what happened. You know, I'm in med school.
You're not making any money. There's this flyer that says, like,
are you a young male and snores? I'm like, yeah,
and I saw that you can get money. So I

(10:29):
did that research, like I was one of their test subjects,
and through that you had to do a sleep study.
And I remember going to bed and waking up at
that lab and they're all looking over me and they're like, yeah,
you got it, and I'm like oh. And so they
were able to give me a SEPAP therapy, because that's
one of the hard parts about a sleep disorder like

(10:50):
obstructive sleep apnia. There's many ways to treat it. A
lot of people know about sea pop therapy and that
those letters stand for continuous positive airway pressure and that
last words, the most important part pressure. You know, you
wear a mask and you keep your airway open where
air goes in and out. And so that's what I
started with. And I remember trying it and I'm like

(11:11):
what is this.

Speaker 1 (11:13):
Yeah, you have to sleep with like a machine, a machine.

Speaker 2 (11:17):
I had a coworker that had sleep apnea and he
had to like have this machine and he hated that
he had.

Speaker 1 (11:22):
To do that.

Speaker 3 (11:24):
Yeah, And the hard part about it because everyone knows
about SEAPAP or like that that mask and even when
I see patient, it's like, Hi, my name is doctor.
I'm not wearing that SEAPAP. I'm like, hold on, there's
other ways. And so I always tell people knowledge is power.
If you know you have a sleep disorder, then what
you could do is you get treated. But there's other

(11:45):
ways to treat it. And with me, I was three
months in using SEAPAP. I didn't notice the difference until
I went on a trip and I didn't take my
SEATPAP with me and I felt horrible. I'm like, what's
going on. I'm like, it was like a sixth sense
moment at the end. When I start looking back, I'm like, Okay,
there is something to the seapath therapy. So I'm really
big on people doing that. And that's why I'm really

(12:06):
passionate in sleep medicine. Like I said, I'm a neurologist.
I love neurology, but sleep is my passion. And you know,
there's a lot of women out there that like they
blame themselves. They're like, you know, I'm tired because I'm
a mom and I have this or I'm working hard,
but you should like, if you're getting to recommend it
amunt of sleep and you still feel tired, things should

(12:27):
figure that out. And if you feel like you know,
apprehensive where you're like, ah, but I don't know if
I can do SEAPAP. I don't want to wear a mask.
There's other ways to treat it too, And that's the
big part.

Speaker 2 (12:38):
You know. Another thing that is an issue is people
who can't sleep right and people who are like, my
mind is racing, I have insomnia. I lay down and
I'm just up all night and then by the time
I finally fall asleep, it's time to get up. Yeah,
and so other than because sometimes people will take pills
for that to try to make sure they get some sleep.

Speaker 1 (12:58):
But what would you say to some that's like I
have so.

Speaker 2 (13:01):
Much stress, my mind is racing, or sometimes in not
I just can't even go to sleep.

Speaker 3 (13:05):
Yeah, I'm glad you asked that question, because you know,
one always you know, that's when you need to get
like a sleep professional involved. And I always tell them that, like,
my job is not for you to be on medication.
Whatever I'm gonna do, I'm gonna do what I can
to make sure that we don't have to put you
in any medication. Now, there's medications out there, and there's
things that people will take. It's like, well maybe I'll

(13:28):
take this and this, but I always tell people this.
You know, the bedroom, it's only for three things, and
they all start with the letter S. So if you're sick,
if you're sleeping, and we all know what that third.

Speaker 1 (13:40):
S is for, I don't know, can you tell us?

Speaker 3 (13:42):
And rhymes with the res. And so if you're not
doing any of those three things, you get out of bed.
And a lot of people stay in bed. And you
heard about bed rotten and there's this in bed, but
that can actually perpetuate making your sleep worse. So if
it's more than twenty minutes to get out of bed.
And usually when I tell my patients, if your mind

(14:04):
is racing and you have those thoughts going, going, going,
what I usually tell them, get a piece of paper
out and just write down what you're thinking. Not even journaling,
but you can journal and that's fine. But like words
like tired, husband, job, whatever it is, it's all related.
You take that piece of paper, you fold it, yes,

(14:26):
make sure you don't see that paper like what you're
talking about, and then you can put it under your
pillow or put it in your nightstand. That's telling your
body like, look, I know we're thinking about all of this,
but we're gonna save it for another day, and you
know that's the biggest thing. And so and consistency is key.
A lot of people feel like, well, I'm not going
to bed and I'm not going to bed. The most

(14:47):
important part about sleep consistency is the wake time. If
you wake up consistently at the same day, I mean
the same time, then that's going to help you fall
asleep at night. And if you're in some of those things,
because there's something that's called sleep hygen. That's when I
was like, the bids only for three things. Those that's
talking about sleep phigen and making sure. Now you know,

(15:08):
I said sleeping, I said being sick. I didn't say
looking at TV. I didn't say doom scrolling on your
phone And a lot of people do that. And the
sad part is is that you know a lot of people. Yeah,
I mean, and then the and I'm glad you brought
that up because the other part, give yourself grace because
you know, you always feel like you need to get
to this part. You can see where the goal is.

(15:30):
But then that's when you're like, Okay, I need to
do something about this. Because anyone that's listening, if you
had that problem, two things I've heard it before, I've
fixed it before, and so it can happen. And just
because it's happening before, it doesn't mean that you'll sleep
go this way. I've heard stories and I've had patience
where this is going on for like years, twenty five years,
and they're like, now they're sleeping much better when they

(15:52):
think they have insomnia. And it's unfortunate because sometimes people
think it's insomnia and it's not. It could be a
sleep so sort of like obstructive sleep apnea. There is
like a circadian rhythm disorder, meaning that your body is
in a different time zone, so you're naturally a night owl.
Like you know, you have a job where you got
to be up at seven o'clock, but your body wants

(16:12):
to go to bed at three o'clock in the morning.
Because that's how it's made. There's ways to fix that.

Speaker 1 (16:18):
You can.

Speaker 2 (16:18):
We said it, you can, okay, because I will say,
you know, get in that, like I told you before,
waking up early every day. I don't care what anybody says.
It has never People are like, oh, you get used
to it.

Speaker 3 (16:27):
Oh, well, the thing is you're never bought it, like
your body, you have something this me put my nerve
capat on. Now there's two processes that help you fall asleep.
There is like something that's called process s, meaning the
later you stay up, the tire you just get. And
then there's process see which deals about the circadian rhythm,
which is your body internal clock and with the sun.

(16:49):
And so if you're working at night or you have
to wake up super early, you're going against what your
body want. And so some people can get used to
it and some people can't, and you know, it gets
to the point where it's like shift work disorder. There's
like our night nurses and our night doctors that like
go to work at seven and leave at seven o'clock
in the morning and sleeping when the sun is out.
So there's ways to fix it.

Speaker 2 (17:10):
Though I've always heard that sleep and weight is related
to each other too. People say that if you're overweight
or you're having weight issues, get more sleep.

Speaker 3 (17:20):
Well, the thing is is that if you're if you're
not getting quality sleep, your body's in chaos. If you
have a sleep disorder, so for example, have obstructive sleep apnea,
and with that, if you're getting like, your body's going
chaos overnight where oxygen is going up and down, up
and down, you're biding crisis modest Guess what it's doing.
It's holding on the calories. And so that's why I

(17:41):
have people look into that. Now, say, if you have
a sleep disorder and you started getting your sleep afnea
treated with the seapap, will you automatically lose weight? Not necessarily,
because if that was the case, you'd be like, you know,
SEAPAP would be sponsoring the show.

Speaker 1 (17:53):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (17:54):
Yeah, But it's good to get quality sleep because that
helps facilitate weight loss. And then also so when you're
not getting the recommended amount of sleep, your body's going
in chaos where it's holding on to calories. And there's
this thing where you have in your brain where you
have this like cleaning system that happens at night where

(18:14):
your body's not only getting refreshed, it's getting rid of
all the toxic stuff away from us. So when you're
not getting that, it clears that away.

Speaker 2 (18:22):
What about cat naps, I've heard that those are really
good for you, are taking naps, like during the day.
I honestly don't ever nap during the day. But we
have a guy who comes in here and works, ma know,
and he could really literally sit in the seat and
just fall asleep while he's sitting there, right, and then
wake back up. But people will say that cat naps.
I've seen articles about how cat naps are good for you,

(18:43):
but then I've also seen the opposite.

Speaker 3 (18:45):
Well, it depends on what you're doing and how often
are you taking those naps. So for example, like if
you're not getting enough sleep, mister Sammon wants his money,
so he's going to try to fall asleep. But say,
if you are still getting that recommended amount of sleep,
like that anywhere from seven to nine I was asleep
and you're still tired, that means that could be something
happening at night, because night affects your daytime. Now, to

(19:06):
answer your question about napping, you know, napping's okay. You
don't want to nap too long because, as I was
saying earlier, you have those sleep cycles that you go through.
You never want to nap any longer than like and
when it gets over ninety minutes, then you went to sleep. Yeah,
it's an actual sleep cycle, so you want to have

(19:27):
it like you know you're if you get a quick
thirty minutes and like, that's a good cat nap that
can be helpful. But it's like, why you're taking those
cat naps. And if you know, and the guy you
were talking about, if he's like doing that, you know,
tell him four words, you know a guy, so I
can talk to him.

Speaker 1 (19:43):
I know, I'm going to have you talk to him.

Speaker 2 (19:45):
What about that feeling when you can't get out of
bed where you physically feel like you can't move?

Speaker 3 (19:50):
You know, it's funny, it's it's a it's something that
can be naturally happening, but if it's happening frequently, it
can be a pathway in too something else. And what
you brought up something's called paralysis, Like you wake up
and you're up and you're moving your eyes and you're
like what is going on and can't move your body
and then all of a sudden you can start moving.
And that can normally happen, and sometimes we have a

(20:11):
sleep disorder that can make it worse. There is another
sleep disorder that's called narcolepsy, and sometimes that can be
a sign of it. So, for example, if you have
someone that's excessively tired and no matter and they're getting
that recommended amount of sleep, that's why you want them
to see a sleep professional because they can have that,
they can have that be diagnosed. And a lot of people,

(20:32):
you know, I remember having a friend in college and
she was just tired all the time. And you know,
it's funny again sixtyinth moment you think back on it
and come to find out later she had anarcolepsy.

Speaker 1 (20:44):
Oh wow.

Speaker 3 (20:44):
And the thing is is that you know, you see
it in TV, but it's really you know, out there.
And this is for people that are listening, Like, if
you feel like you're just no matter what, like you
get good sleep and you still feel tired, because a
lot of people think that it might oh, this might
be depression, or this might be something else happening. It
could be a sleep disorder, and a lot of people

(21:05):
overlook that unfortunately.

Speaker 1 (21:07):
Okay, And lastly, temperature.

Speaker 2 (21:09):
I've heard that you're supposed to sleep with like ten
degrees lower than what's comfortable, and that's what gets you
a better sleep. Some people like to sleep, you know,
nice and toasty. I want to know what your thoughts on.
Doesn't make a difference what the temperature is when you
go to sleep.

Speaker 3 (21:23):
So you want a cool, dark room. With that being said,
if you're sleeping fine and it's like, look, I like
it high because my personally myself, I like it. I like, look,
if I'm at seventy one seventy two, I'm fine. But
normally you want to be anywhere from like sixty five
to sixty eight degrees. Okay, that's the recommended temperature to sleep. Now,

(21:47):
if you're not having any problems and you're sleeping warm,
then I tell people that if you're okay, I'm okay
now if they're having problems, and that's when I start
to look at it and.

Speaker 1 (21:55):
Ask, okay, all right, good, all these great? What do
you asking me?

Speaker 4 (21:59):
Dad?

Speaker 1 (22:00):
What does it mean when you wake up and you
feel like you are falling? Oh, you hit the ground.

Speaker 2 (22:06):
When you hit the ground and you wake up like
WHOA did I just fall? Or when you well, I
guess there's also that where you wake up and it
feels like.

Speaker 1 (22:13):
A teeth fell out.

Speaker 3 (22:15):
You know what's funny? Yes, that does happen. I've never
I've never experienced that, but even on social media a
lot of people ask me about that too.

Speaker 2 (22:23):
It's like, you know, what if loose and you're like,
what happened in my teeth? Is my tooth loose? And
it really feels like that.

Speaker 3 (22:30):
Yeah, there's there's a lot of people there that happens.
And so to answer that first question, when you're falling,
you know, sometimes when people are falling asleep and you're
like within that drowsy state to almost in your light sleep,
you can sometimes you get that arousal period where like
you have that feeling and like you're falling and you're
going right between it because everything, yes, okay, well when

(22:52):
I you know, it's funny they're talking like a talk
and you're like, what, that's a real thing too. So yeah,
so when when your yeah, when your body arousal, when
your body is waking up between that transition. Hey, you know,
it's funny. You made me think about that. When I
talk to my patients now, it's like, yeah, I was
just looking at your arousal. Yeah, I literally says to

(23:14):
earlier this week for a patient. Yeah, you know, I
was looking at your arousals during the sleep studies. Like
what wait what that answers that question for me now.
But when you're in that transition of wake and of
sleep and like you're waking back up and you feel
that like falling, that's what usually happens, Like you know,
with it and and so like that. That's that's normal,

(23:36):
even the whole like when your teeth is falling out.
It's just that, like when you're going from like I'm
drowsy now I'm asleep. There's somewhere things that happen when
it goes through that transition, just like when you're dreaming
and having those things happen as well.

Speaker 1 (23:50):
Now they have one other question about wedding to bed.

Speaker 3 (23:54):
Ah, Hey, it's normal. Look, I talked to patients about
that all the time. No shame here, This is a
judgment free zone.

Speaker 4 (24:01):
Yeah. Actually it's it's kind of like a weird scenario.
Like my alarm is set for six am every single day,
but I'll wake up naturally at like four forty seven
am on the dot, Like I'll roll over, look at
the clock, see it's four forty seven, be like weird,
and then roll back over and then wake up again
at six to my alarm. Does that like mean anything?

Speaker 3 (24:24):
You know? Sometimes the hard part is that your body
does have natural times where it can wake up in
the middle of the night, So that's not uncommon to happen,
and most of the time you don't know that it's happening.
Like when I look out a sleep study, you can
see those arousal moments, meaning that they're waking up and yes,

(24:45):
and so when that's just one of the moments where
you see that it's happening. Yeah, And the thing and
the thing is is that your body has like a
certain circadian rhythms, so there's a moment where it could
wake up. And like you said, but you're able to
fall back sleep. Now if it's like I'm waking up
at this time and I can't go back to sleep,
then that's where your body clock is. But sometimes you'll

(25:06):
have that it's just coincidentally. Your body just knows like
the same time there happens, and the thing with your
body is going to do the same thing at the
same time. That's the funny thing about the brain. It's
it's habitual, like.

Speaker 1 (25:19):
That is it okay to press news like three times
before you get up?

Speaker 3 (25:23):
So my thing on snooze is that you know you
should put it at the time where you want to
wake up on that because if you're pressing it like
so many times, it's like you're jump starting your body again.
It's like, oh we're back to sleep. Nope, wake up,
I'm back to sleep. And so I would say, look
at that clock. And I know I sound like a parrot,
but like seven to nine hours, like if you're forcing

(25:46):
yourself to wake up, your body's trying to tell you something.

Speaker 2 (25:49):
It's like I gotta press news three times. It is
like I said it in times, and I do eight
minute like intervals in between. But I do have to.

Speaker 1 (25:57):
Like set my alarm for like a half an hour
where I have to get up.

Speaker 3 (26:00):
Yeah. And the funny part about that is that when
you know, but you give yourself grace on that because
I do that. I did. I did that too, especially
during like med school. I'll have the alarm where like, okay,
it's time for you to wake up, and then alarm
is like okay, now you can sleep a little bit.
And then that final alarm is like, look, if you
don't wake up, this is gonna be some trouble.

Speaker 2 (26:22):
Well listen, Thank you so much, Sleep Doctor Chris for
all of this information.

Speaker 1 (26:27):
How can people find you?

Speaker 3 (26:28):
So I'm a couple of things. You know, I'm out
on Instagram, TikTok LinkedIn. If you put in sleep doctor Christ,
sleep Dr Chris like and follow, and then I have
my own practice in Saginaw, Michigan, which is called Quality
Sleep and Neurology. So if you go to Quality Sleepineurology
dot com, that's my practice. And then there's another click

(26:51):
to sleep doctor Chris on there.

Speaker 1 (26:53):
It's cuddling good while you're sleeping.

Speaker 3 (26:55):
Definitely okay.

Speaker 2 (27:00):
Home, Yeah, that's sad. Well, thank you so much. I
appreciate this conversation. It's going to help a lot of
people because I do feel like everybody has stories when
it comes to sleep.

Speaker 3 (27:13):
Most definitely thank you for having me.

Speaker 2 (27:15):
All right, bring the alarm on that it's way up.