---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <punditster@...> wrote :
On 10/2/2014 8:36 AM, TurquoiseBee turquoiseb@... mailto:turquoiseb@... [FairfieldLife] wrote: > And someone should add that "witnessing sleep" may not mean shit. > "The EEG evidence supporting the reality of witnessing is that people having these experiences exhibit one of the EEG signatures of transcendental consciousness, which is theta/alpha (7-9 Hz) EEG relative power, along with the signature of deep sleep, which is delta EEG (1-4 Hz)." - David Orme-Johnsom > One of my science article clients runs a sleep clinic, so when writing articles about sleep disorders I've learned a few interesting things. Such as that there is a subset of patients who complain that they "Never fall asleep." Their subjective experience is that they never lose conscious awareness, so they're worried that they've got a sleep disorder, even though they display no symptoms of sleep deprivation. > Most of the time when these kinds of conditions are examined, the "insomniacs" simply can't tell the difference between wakefulness and sleeping. They may think they are just resting when in reality they are asleep - maybe they are taking mico-naps lasting just a few minutes. It is a very rare condition when sleep deprivation can't be explained by a medical science - such causes as fever, illness, genetic mutation or psychological disorder. > When hooked up to machines to monitor their physiology during sleep, these folks *are*, in fact, experiencing all of the classic cycles of sleep, along with their accompanying REM or lack of REM activity. It's just that they never lose their subjective awareness. In other words, a part of them is always awake, witnessing their subjective experience as they navigate the entire range of waking, dreaming, and deep sleep. > Acute or chronic insomnia is called Fatal Familial Insomnia (FFI). Total sleeplessness has yet to be explained by science, so you seem to be one of the science writers today that have new information about this disorder. A full report should be on PubMed by now,right? > In the decade my client's practice has been open, he has treated maybe a couple of dozen people who report this. > Total sleep deprivation is very rare and only about 100 cases have ever been the subject of a clinical study and only maybe two have never been explained by medical science. The quack you are working for should probably hire a lawyer to look into this, since according to your short report, there are more incidences of total sleeplessness at their clinic than in the whole of medical science worldwide. Go figure. > All of them are just normal people off the street. > The key word here is "fatal" in the condition known in science as FFI, and leads to death in almost all cases leads to panic attacks, hallucinations, delirium, confusion, weight loss, and then dementia and death. FFI has no known cure and involves progressively worsening conditions. Death usually occurs between 7 and 36 months from onset, according to what I've read. > Not one of them meditates. > Everyone meditates, Barry, every time they pause to think about something. Anyone who isn't able to think is unconscious and obviously sleeping. Go figure. Richard, Is there ANYTHING YOU DON'T KNOW? Here's a toughie: Am I about to go to sleep for an afternoon nap in anticipation of a late-night out? Or not. Curious Dan
