Description
Book SynopsisDespite multiple alarm clocks and powerful stimulants, an Atlanta lawyer could sleep for thirty or even fifty hours at a stretch. Quinn Eastman tells her story—and the broader story of her diagnosis, idiopathic hypersomnia.
Trade ReviewThis book is a fascinating and important tour-de-force taking us deep into the world of sleepiness like never before. Quinn Eastman weaves together powerful storytelling and cutting-edge science into an engaging and enlightening read that gives voice to many people's often invisible and overlooked struggles against a mysterious undertow of sleep. -- Julie Flygare, chief executive officer, Project Sleep, and author of
Wide Awake and DreamingEastman takes us on a fascinating journey through the hinterland of sleep and its disorders. A gripping exploration of the confusing and sometimes controversial world of the sleeping brain. -- Guy Leschziner, author of
The Man Who Tasted Words and
The Nocturnal BrainWhen it comes to sleep in our culture, we focus almost entirely on individuals who 'can't sleep'... a malady that by most accounts borders on the scientifically impossible. We share endless tips and tricks for falling asleep fast, staying asleep, and pray that one will work its magic and allow us to fall asleep quickly and stay asleep like those that we look upon as "good sleepers." But is our view of what constitutes a great sleeper and a troubled sleeper skewed? Is this the wish we want the genie to grant? In
The Woman Who Couldn't Wake Up, readers get a profile of the other side of sleep medicine that is seldom discussed—excessive sleepiness, and how it is the truly sinister force when it comes to sleep medicine. Quinn Eastman takes you inside this murky world of misdiagnoses, misperceptions, and potentially life-changing experimental therapies. -- W. Chris Winter, author of
The Rested Child and
The Sleep SolutionEveryone tells us how important sleep is to health. But what happens when no amount of sleep is enough? Quinn Eastman offers a captivating exploration of idiopathic hypersomnia, a poorly understood, but all-too-devastating, disease. With the flair of a detective novel, each page unravels the tireless efforts to develop a treatment for those who can’t wake up. -- Joanna Kempner, Rutgers University, author of
Not TonightIn this book Eastman (a technical editor at Emory Univ. School of Medicine) has succeeded in writing a solid history of an ambiguous topic. This is a surprisingly easy read given the sheer amount of detailed information packed into 250 pages of text. * Choice Reviews, American Library Association (ALA) *
Table of ContentsIntroduction
1. Anna Sleeps a Lot, and We Don’t Know Why
2. The Doctors and GABA
3. The Antidote
4. Rye Versus MSLT
5. Behind the Curtain
6. The Essence of Sleepiness
7. My Favorite Mistake
8. The Atlanta Sleepers Club
9. The Story of Flumazenil
10. Weird Drugs
11. The Heart of the Brain
12. Immobilized by Happiness
13. Frustrating and Mostly Fruitless
14. Everything Off Label
15. Knock Yourself Out
16. Biomarkers of Sleepiness—and IH
17. The FDA Opens a Door
Acknowledgments
Notes
Index
