June/1998
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50 WAYS TO SLEEP BETTER Neil B. Kavey (Publications International, Ltd., 1995, 80 pages, paperback, $4.99)
Reviewed by Lynne Lamberg
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This book delivers what the title promises, with 1-2 pages of
practical advice per suggestion. The author, who directs the sleep
disorders center at Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New
York, NY, comes across with the mien of a good-natured family
doctor.
A psychiatrist, Kavey acknowledges that we are all, well,
human. We like to stay up late, sleep late, and eat or drink things we
shouldn't near bedtime. We often procrastinate on doing
unpleasant tasks, only to find that worrying makes us toss and turn.
Without preaching, Kavey suggests ways to change such habits.
He reports that in young children, fears of the dark,
abandonment, and even death become most pronounced at
bedtime, and asserts that for parents this time "is a perfect
opportunity to dispel these fears and communicate feelings of love."
The book is divided into 5 sections. In the first, managing
sleep disorders, Kavey suggests you look for the connection
between mood and sleep, see a physician for too many nighttime
bathroom trips, lift your head to ease heartburn, and don't rely on
over-the-counter cures. In the section called preparing for sleep day
and night, he suggests that you find peace and calm in the hour
before bed, don't go to bed angry, and don't try too hard to sleep.
In the section on scheduling sleep, he advises: beware of
freelance writer's syndrome (keeping erratic hours), don't deprive
yourself of sleep, set your VCR, and nap sparingly. The next
section, controlling the sleep environment, tells readers to use the
bed for sleep and sex only, check out the neighborhood before you
move, humidify the home, and pay attention to the room
temperature.
The last section, helping children sleep better, advises
parents to set limits for children, give toddlers a transitional object (a
blanket or stuffed animal that conveys physical warmth and
closeness), take restless kids for a ride, and use a night light. The
book includes an index.
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