Insomniac
by Gayle Greene
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Book Reviews of Insomniac
Book Review: Meaningful sleep deficit
Summary: 5 Stars
Greene embarked on the trail of sleep, having sought it in vain in her own life. If you've ever had an insomniac friend or co-worker, you need to read this book. You'll see yourself in the repeated pseudohelpful comments she has received. Greene didn't stop with friends,relations, and the internet sites for the sleepless, she looked for answers in every conceivable realm. One of the most amusing of her chapters shows her approaching sleep scientists at a national meeting and being rebuffed once they realized she was a lay person. Greene listened to talks and read papers anyway, and came away with a profound understanding of what the biologists do not know. In Insomniac, she made an eloquent argument for Insomniacs Unlimited to form and ACT UP! Evidently "it's all in your head" has been far too convenient a diagnosis, and Greene believes a serious search for a molecular mechanism would be timely and productive. I predict most readers will agree. She does not blind you with science, but includes a soupcon of clearly explained brain function from time to time, with clear quagmire warnings. Her description of living with insomnia will make you cry. Well worth reading!Book Review: Important book but too long, even for an insomniac
Summary: 3 Stars
This book made important points in clear, enjoyable, passionate prose. Greene discusses possible physical causes of insomnia, the financial disincentives for scientists and pharmaceutical companies to develop new remedies, and the need for insomniacs to organize into a patients' interest group. Likewise, her personal stories and discussions with other insomniacs underscore how often insomniacs are blamed rather than helped by health care professionals.
Nevertheless, the book goes on at such length about these points that it develops an overwrought tone. Moreover, because it focuses so much on Greene's problem, sleep maintenance rather than sleep onset, this other form of insomnia gets little discussion or consideration.
As a fellow sufferer, though, the best thing this book has done for me is
lead me to accept my condition. In fact, after reading this book, I think I don't suffer nearly as much from my sleepless nights as others do, so henceforth I will look at my tossing and turning time as a gift, and slink out of bed and into an armchair with more books!
Book Review: LOVED THIS BOOK !!!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I REALLY ENJOYED THIS BOOK . IT WAS VERY WELL WRITTEN AND EASY TO FOLLOW. I HAVE SUFFERED FROM INSOMNIA FOR SO LONG AND COULD REALLY RELATE TO GAIL. THIS BOOK IS NOT LIKE SOME OF THE SELF HELP BOOKS OUT THERE ABOUT INSOMNIA, THAT TELL YOU HOW TO CURE YOUR INSOMNIA AND NEVER WORK . GAIL GETS TO THE REAL STORY THAT NO ONE LOOKS AT ... INSOMNIA IS NOT SOMETHING YOU ARE DOING OR NOT DOING .. IT IS NOT SOMETHING THAT CAN GET FIXED BY A PILL. IT IS A REAL CONDITION AND NO ONE IS LOOKING TO FIND THE REAL CAUSE OR A REAL CURE. THEY ARE JUST LOOKING AT WAYS TO MASK THE PROBLEM WITH PILLS OR THE DOCTORS THINK IT IS PHYSCOLOGICAL INSTEAD OF PHYSIOLOGICAL. I REALLY BELIEVE IT IS A DISEASE... SOMETHING MISSING OR NOT WORKING CORRECTLY IN THE BODY. I FEEL IF THEY DID SOME REAL RESEARCH INTO IT THEY WOULD FIND THE PROBLEM. WE NEED TO GATHER DATA. AND WITH THE INTERNET WE CAN COLLECT DATA MUCH EASIER . INSOMNIACS AROUND THE WORLD NEED TO BAN TOGETHER AND TRY TO RAISE AWARENESS AND MONEY FOR REAL RESEARCH. IT CAN BE DONE. BUT READ THIS BOOK I REALLY LIKED IT . VERY EYE OPENING .Book Review: Fantastically Helpful Book
Summary: 5 Stars
What did I like best about this book? It did not blame me for my insomnia. It did not patronize me for one minute. It did not tell me that I had obviously not tried to solve my sleep problems, or not tried hard enough. This is a book that works for people having their first insomnia problems and for those of us who have struggled for years. Gayle Green has undertaken a very thorough study of the science and business of sleep as they stand today, given a review of the history of insomnia, and presented many avenues for future research and experimentation. I now have more hope than I have had in years that I might improve my sleep. Heck, just knowing that there are other people out there going through the same experience I am gives a great deal of comfort. This book confirms the logical conclusion that insomnia is a complex, multi-faceted problem that needs a great deal more attention than it now receives. I can only thank her for having written it. Anyone who has trouble sleeping-- or knows someone who does-- should read this book.Book Review: Insomnia: Whose problem is it, finally?
Summary: 5 Stars
There is something heroic -- as well as wonderfully clear, deeply informative -- in this critical tale of determination to understand an elusive, often discredited, condition about which so many people, from family, friends and lovers to world-renowned scientists, have their victim-blaming doubts. It is not finally insomniacs who emerge from Greene's book as having a problem. It is worlds set up on the premise, a premise that turns around and becomes a requirement, that we all behave as if we are far more alike than, thank goodness, we are. I learned a great deal from this book about the sleep and sleeplessness that so shape our lives and yet are so rarely openly discussed; about relevant sciences, medical and social; and, crucially, about survival skills. Greene's honed get-on-with-it skills include a wonderfully wry humor, you should know, along with an acute political sensibility that neither lessens nor drowns in the personal.