The Win Report

Polyphasic sleep - also known as *Uberman’s Sleep Schedule*, consists of six daily naps taken every four
hours instead of one long sleep every night (monophasic
sleep)

The naps can last from a minimum of 10 minutes up to 30
or 40 minutes. 25 minutes is considered optimal.

The polyphasic sleep concept is based upon the fact that
we have a 4 hour *ultradian* rhythm operating alongside
our normal 24 hour cycle. This ultradian rhythm means that
we go through a complete mini-cycle every 4 hours. Usually
at the following times: 4am, 8am, noon, 4pm, 8pm and
midnight. Have you ever experienced dip in energy at 4pm?

Those following the polyphasic sleep schedule usually sleep from 10-30 minutes every 4 hours . This goes on for the whole 24 hours. A modified version of this is also practiced, where 3
hours core sleep in the early morning is followed by 20
minute naps every 4 hours. Individuals can adapt
cycles to better suit their lifestyle.

Mammals living in dangerous environments practice the
polyphasic sleep schedule. Their survival may mean remaining
alert to danger throughout the day and night. Astronauts are
also taught it in case they need to deal with emergency
situations. The army also trains some troops in polyphasic
sleep.

The type of sleep experienced by polyphasic sleepers is
mostly comprised of stage 5 REM. Thus the earlier stages of
sleep are largely bypassed allowing the user a few more
hours of ‘awake time’ each 24 hours. This is a gradual
process though. At first the naps may not be largely NREM
which may explain the seven to ten day stage where
some polyphasic sleepers feel heavy, grumpy, spaced out and
can’t concentrate.

The Advantages of Polyphasic Sleep

Polyphasic sleep has been called the “sleep of genius”
Famous folk such as Leonardo da Vinci, Thomas Jefferson,
Napoleon. and Winston Churchill have used this schedule in
some form or another. Many who have trialled polyphasic
sleep have reported feeling extremely creative, although
this state may take some weeks to achieve.

The obvious advantage of course is the extra time gained
in each twenty four hour period. If you follow the classic
schedule, six naps of twenty five minutes each, you would be
averaging only two and a half hours sleep!

Once you get used to sleeping this way, you can slip into
the sleep state within a few minutes, compared to twenty
minutes or longer for monophasic sleep.

Writers, or anyone who needs creativity in their field,
find that sleeping this way allows them to be more creative.
This could be due to the occurrence of more alpha and theta
brainwaves, rather than beta, during their waking hours.

Disadvantages?

This type of sleep schedule is not recommended long term although there have been some that have kept it up for 6
months with no apparent ill effects. There has been no long
term research done to find out any negative effects on
health.

Although its been practiced through the centuries, it’s not known whether depressing the other non REM stages of sleep - especially the stages 3 and 4 of deep sleep, may have a
negative effect on long term emotional health.

Polyphasic sleep is impossible to integrate into a normal
working day.

Oh! And another thing.
Those who have tried it have reported an increase in
appetite which may lead to weight gain. You would probably
need to spend some of that extra time doing more exercise!

Conclusion

If you’re interested in trying polyphasic sleep, try it
for a while during your next holidays. It won’t do any
damage short term, except possibly make you feel tired and grumpy!

It is recommended that participants review their eating
habits and make sure they are on an optimum diet with all
the necessary food groups and maybe a vitamin and mineral
supplement.

Also recommended is to have a series of interesting
projects on hand to keep the mind stimulated and to prevent
accidental sleeping outside the schedule.

Visit our web-site below for a healthier way of
maximising the quality of our sleep in less time. Go to the
“Too much sleep” page.

Want to know how to have better sleep? Find out how. Check out http://www.insomnia-connection.com your resource for detailed information on better sleep and curing stress. The author, Wendy Owen, has had a lifetime interest in general and alternative health as well as being an ex insomniac!

Dopamine has long been known to be linked to positive experiences such as eating and sex. But it’s now known to be released when you’re in pain, so you may want to try increasing your supply of it-naturally.

Dopamine levels tend to rise when something good happens that exceeds your expectations. The neurotransmitter gives you a pervasive feeling of well-being, making everything seem right in the world.

But dopamine also is released when you’re in pain. That is, the same reward pathway that gives you pleasure during great sex or a great meal also releases dopamine when pain signals are received in the brain.

Dopamine and Endorphins

Dopamine and endorphins both seek to alleviate pain. But they have a complex relationship.

On one hand, when endorphins are released in response to pain, dopamine seems to be triggered to move into the frontal lobe of the brain, neutralizing the feeling of pain.

On the other hand, when dopamine levels are too high, they tend to reduce the amount of endorphins available for pain relief. That may be why antidepressants that are designed to reduce dopamine levels sometimes relieve chronic pain-they allow endorphin levels to stay higher than when excessive dopamine is present.

Attaining A Balance

The interactions between dopamine and endorphins illustrate how difficult it is to achieve optimal levels of brain chemistry while using drugs to target one neurotransmitter over another.

The subconscious, however, may be well placed to achieve the necessary balance for pain relief. Because it controls the involuntary functions of the body, it most likely has the knowledge necessary to guide the delicate tradeoffs between neurotransmitters that must occur.

The Role of Visualization

Through visualization statements it may be possible to focus your subconscious on balancing the impact of dopamine and endorphins on the pain process. This could be true for back pain or pain in the neck or other extremities, arthritis pain, fibromyalgia pain, or neuropathic pain (nerve pain).

Visualization statements represent the specific language that your subconscious wants you to read back to it to help ease your pain. They’re simple and are targeted directly at the main factors that could bring you relief.

You can obtain these statements by learning how to communicate directly with your own subconscious mind. The process is straightforward and can be done at home by working with a facilitator over the telephone. You you need no special skills and no previous experience in working with the subconscious.

The Balanced Use of Dopamine

It’s possible to ask the subconscious whether visualizing an increase of dopamine will be helpful in relieving pain. If at the same time it is also asked about endorphins and the other neurotransmitters involved in pain, it has the opportunity to provide balanced answers. This may be helpful in easing pain.

Ben Plumb is CEO and President of The Visualization Group, Inc. The company’s service is delivered by people like himself who personally suffered from years of chronic pain, and used the visualization method described in this article to obtain relief when nothing else worked. For more information, please visit http://www.thevisualizationgroup.com.

(c) 2005 The Visualization Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. The methodology and program disclosed in this article are Patent Pending.