This American Life

361: Fear of Sleep

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Mike Birbiglia got used to strange things happening to him when he slept—until something happened that almost killed him. This and other reasons to fear sleep, including bedbugs, “The Shining,” and mild-mannered husbands who turn into maniacs while asleep.

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• Prologue: Host Ira Glass talks about his fear of sleep, and reports on other people who have very strong reasons of their own to fear bedtime. (8 minutes)
• Act One: Mike Birbiglia talks about the sleepwalking that nearly killed him. (13 minutes)
• Act Two: Producers Nancy Updike and Robyn Semien report on critters that can kill sleep: cockroaches and bedbugs. (11 minutes)
• Act Three: Joel Lovell explains why, as an 11-year-old, he trained himself not to fall asleep, and how that had some unintended consequences. (10 minutes)
• Act Four: Seth Lind explains how he ended up watching Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining when he was six years old, and how it led to two years where every night he had trouble falling asleep and nightmares. (7 minutes)
• Act Five: For some people, the fear of sleep is linked to the fear of death. We hear from some of them. (5 minutes)

Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

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