By Sarah Bradley,  Jan. 20, 2022

While any SSRI or SNRI can cause discontinuation syndrome, the SNRI Effexor (venlafaxine) can be one of the trickiest to wean off, says psychiatrist and sleep medicine specialist Alex Dimitriu, MD, founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. “Venlafaxine is an excellent medication, but missed doses can give people ‘brain zaps’ and quick feelings of vertigo, which I’ve called ‘vestibular jitters,’” Dr. Dimitriu explains. “These go away, fortunately, but it can make it hard to stop venlafaxine in particular.” 

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Lauren Vinopal, Jan 15, 2022

On the latter count, doctors such as Alex Dimitriu, who specializes in psychiatry and sleep medicine, tend to recommend melatonin supplements even before something like Benadryl because the antihistamine “can disrupt sleep architecture by decreasing REM sleep,” he explains. By contrast, melatonin is a hormone produced in the brain that naturally increases about two hours before bedtime in order to relax us for sleep. Normally, the pineal gland produces enough melatonin, but there’s evidence that stress and anxiety inhibit this process, which short-term supplementation can balance out. 

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by Elizabeth Yuko, DEC 20, 2021

And Dr. Alex Dimitriu, a psychiatrist, tells SheKnows that what makes a person toxic is when they intrude on the lives of those around them, noting that “while it may be OK to be a reclusive curmudgeon or an isolated, anxious person, toxicity emerges when these people’s moods try to spread to those around them.”

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by Morgan Mandriota on December 14, 2021

“Schizophrenia, like most things in psychiatry, adheres to a stress-diathesis model,” explains Dr. Alex Dimitriu, founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine in California. “What this means is that some people have a predisposition for psychosis, which can be triggered by a life stressor. “At minimum, schizophrenia is related to an excessive amount of dopamine in certain parts of the brain,” he adds. “And anything that gets dopamine levels up — too much coffee, lack of sleep, stress, and especially a trauma — can push people to become symptomatic, especially those who have a genetic predisposition.”

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By Sarah Fielding December 07, 2021

The following day, a multiple sleep latency test (MSLT) monitors people as they take naps. It records how long a person takes to fall asleep and when they enter REM sleep, says Alex Dimitriu, MD, double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. Doctors can also use hypocretin-1 levels to help confirm narcolepsy by “measuring levels of hypocretin or orexin in the cerebrospinal fluid. This is often done using a spinal tap,” Dr. Dimitriu tells Health. Hypocretin levels of less than 110 picrograms per milliliter “are often diagnostic of” narcolepsy type 1, he adds.

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By Lauren Krouse, Nov 19, 2021

“Anyone that consistently gets less than six hours of sleep per night or experiences significant next-day symptoms of fatigue, low mood, or sleepiness, should consider speaking with a doctor,” says Dr. Dimitriu. 

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Written by Heather Grey on November 17, 2021

“Anyone with insomnia should start with good sleep hygiene, regular bed and wake times, technology off 1 hour before sleep, and a cool dark bedroom,” Dr. Alex Dimitriu, a psychiatrist, sleep medicine specialist, and the founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine in California told MNT. “When insomnia persists despite efforts to improve sleep hygiene, it may be worth considering a sleep aid along with ongoing behavioral interventions.”

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