Are You Sleep Deprived? An Interview With Dr. Janet Kennedy, NYC's Sleep Doctor

With everything we have going on in our lives – jobs, relationships, extracurricular activities, other commitments – it’s easy for many of us to let sleep fall by the wayside. Sometimes sleep feels like the one part of our day where we can steal some time from, when really it should be the last place we look to make cuts. Prolonged periods of poor sleep have pretty devastating health effects – especially when someone enters into a state of sleep deprivation. 

For this week’s blog post, I interviewed Janet Kennedy, PhD, otherwise known as the NYC Sleep Doctor, to learn more about sleep deprivation – including how to identify it and how to treat it. Dr. Kennedy is a licensed clinical psychologist specializing in treatment of insomnia and other behavioral sleep disturbances.

Here’s what she had to say about sleep deprivation, plus her best advice for the lackluster sleepers out there. 

Renata: What is sleep deprivation, and what are the most common causes?

Dr. Kennedy: Sleep deprivation occurs when a person does not get enough sleep for their body’s needs. Everyone has a different set point in terms of sleep needs, so I might be sleep deprived if I get less than 7 hours of sleep whereas someone else might be sleep deprived if they get less than 6 or 8. Sleep deprivation can be acute or chronic – the former is one night or a temporary period in which a person is not getting enough sleep. Chronic deprivation is when a person is virtually always in a state of sleep deprivation – and that’s when the real consequences start to show up. 

In terms of common causes – not valuing or making time for sleep, physiological sleep disorders like sleep apnea or restless leg syndrome, and psychological sleep disorders like insomnia are the top ones. These can all result from things like poor sleep hygiene, performance anxiety about sleep, and inconsistent sleep schedules.

So what are the key signs and symptoms that indicate someone is sleep deprived? How can we know if we’re at that point, or getting close to it?

Falling asleep unintentionally is the clearest sign that someone is sleep deprived. Other indications could be more subtle, such as weight gain, irritability, shortened attention span, memory problems, mood changes, performance impairments, frequent illnesses, or accidents.

Does sleep deprivation affect cognitive and physical health? What are the short-term and long-term effects?

The consequences of acute deprivation can include fatigue, discomfort, slowed reaction times and possibly slower cognition. For chronic deprivation, they are a bit more serious, including metabolic dysfunction (blood sugar dysregulation, diabetes and obesity), cardiovascular risk factors, memory disturbance and elevated risk for dementia, lowered immune function, decreased attention span, depressed mood, irritability, delayed reaction times, elevated blood pressure, and more.

How does sleep deprivation impact mental health, and what are the most effective strategies for mitigating these effects?

Sleep deprivation can exacerbate any pre-existing mental illness such as Major Depressive Disorder, Anxiety Disorders (OCD, Generalized Anxiety, PTSD), Bipolar Disorders, and Psychotic Disorders. But sleep deprivation can also impact mental health on a subclinical level, increasing irritability, anxiety and depressed mood and making us less resilient to stress. Anyone who is sleep deprived should speak with their doctor to rule out or treat any underlying medical issues and then they should see a mental health professional who can address the behavioral and emotional aspects of the problem with treatment such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy or Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.

How do lifestyle factors such as diet, exercise, and stress management influence our sleep quality?

Lifestyle factors can have a big impact on sleep quality! For instance, eating large meals close to bedtime can trigger reflux and digestion can compromise quality, but also highly restrictive diets—especially very low carbohydrate diets—can negatively impact sleep quality as well. That’s because blood sugar dysregulation affects sleep quality, usually leading to waking up during the night.

Exercise has a positive effect on sleep quality because it lowers stress and improves overall health. The endorphins that are released during exercise do improve sleep quality, however exercising too close to bedtime can cause trouble because the body needs time to return to homeostasis. Elevated body temperature – in this case caused by exercise – can delay sleep onset.

Stress management is a huge and underrated factor when it comes to sleep quality. Even if you can’t really control your stress level, you can work on sequestering from sleep. This means allowing time during the day to address issues, process your stressful thoughts and decompress. If your first chance to slow down is when you get into bed, you’ll be flooded by all the stressful thoughts that were kept at bay by your busyness all day. 

What are some immediate, actionable steps can someone take if they realize they are sleep deprived?

I always recommend that people struggling with sleep start keeping a sleep diary to track what’s really going on day to day and night to night. I also encourage others to protect their bedtime and wind-down time by setting an “I’m done” time for work and putting down handheld screens an hour before bed. Keeping a log will allow you to take stock of your sleep hygiene and figure out if anything can be easily adjusted. Also, getting up at the same time every day will help set your body clock on autopilot. You’ll start to get sleepy at the “right” time when you are consistent with your wake-up time. Finally, don’t be afraid to ask for help! Sleep doesn’t come naturally to everyone and that’s okay. What matters most is seeing the signs and doing something about it ASAP. Don’t underestimate the power of expert help.

I hope you enjoyed this interview with Dr. Janet Kennedy and that you feel empowered to improve your sleep through the easy and effective methods she’s outlined. 

If you’re interested in taking Dr. Kennedy’s course for better sleep – The Sleep Transformation – she’s offering a 25% off discount to all Pure Joy Wellness readers! Just use THIS LINK and the code PJW25. This course is packed with everything you need to sleep better and improve your health in the process. 

Xo,

Renata