Sleep for Success Dr. James Maas & Rebecca Robbins

“To sleep, perchance to dream… ay, there’s the rub….”
Hamlet, Shakespeare

Whether sleep’s a dreary portal to death as Hamlet believed or, as Freud claimed, a vivid Technicolor playground for our deepest unconscious desires – the fact is sleep has been mystified, misunderstood, or downright devalued.
But in their groundbreaking book, Sleep for Success, authors Dr. James Maas, distinguished Cornell University professor and sleep research pioneer, and Rebecca Robbins, co-founder, with Maas, of the Sleep for Success consulting firm, lay out their core argument:

“Most of us are moderately sleep-deprived; not just tired, but deprived of the very rest that is integral to health and competency in waking life.”

This comprehensive book discusses current psychological and medical research on what happens when we sleep – and when we don’t, including:
•    How much sleep the average adult requires – typically 8-9 hours;
•    How the amount of sleep you need varies, according to gender and stage in life – from infancy to adolescence to senior years.

The authors provide convincing evidence that not getting adequate sleep can lead to a variety of ailments from colds and flu to cancer, heart disease, depression, rage, and obesity.
Sleep disruptions caused by jet lag or shift work can result in serious accidents or even death:

“the probability of serious injury is 43 percent higher during night shift shifts than day shifts.”

On the other hand, a good night’s sleep can improve memory, health, and athletic performance.

Both informative and a great read, the book details the latest research findings on REM sleep (the deepest level of sleep when vivid dreams occur) which they say recurs regularly several times a night.
The book also includes the latest research on what dreams mean and catalogues a variety of sleep disorders, offering helpful tips on what to do about them.
Finally, Sleep for Success proves its argument – that sleep is not just sweet but absolutely necessary for good health and optimum functioning.