You’re Probably Sleep Deprived — Here’s How to Know

By Dominique Michelle Astorino Nov 13, 2020

Depending on caffeine may seem like an obvious sign, but it bears emphasizing. “If you’re drinking more than one cup of coffee or Red Bull to get through the day, chances are, you’re sleep-deprived,” says Dr. Dimitriu. The other one? Yawning and dreaming of laying down on the couch in your office (ahem, living room) the whole day. How you feel in the afternoon specifically is a dead giveaway for the quality of last night’s shuteye, Dr. Dimitriu says.  While everyone gets a dip in energy in the afternoon, if you’re sleep-deprived, it’s like trying to run a marathon through wet cement wearing a lead backpack (after eating a jar of melatonin gummies).

Click HERE for the full article.

What to Say if Things Get Political at Thanksgiving Dinner

Mackenzie Dunn, Nov 10, 2020

“The goal is to be non-violent, and not try to convince everyone else of your opinion,” says board-certified psychiatrist Dr. Alex Dimitriu, M.D. “When someone is intense or passionate, they want to evoke the same response in you,” he says. Don’t fight back. Instead, Dr. Dimitriu says to move on and proactively present mindfulness, or an open, non-judgemental focus, to re-center yourself. “Realize that people will believe what they want to, as much as you do,” he says.

Click HERE for the full article.

“I’m not anxious, I just don’t sleep well” Part 2: The spectrum of anxiety—jumpy people

November 05, 2020. Dr. Dimitriu was published in Psychology Today in an article titled: “I’m not anxious, I just don’t sleep well”.

The Spectrum of Anxiety: Jumpy People

Anxiety comes in many different flavors, and it helps to think of it as a natural spectrum that can range from functional to mild to severe. Let’s start with the scariest first.

Panic attacks are in my opinion the most severe form — these are brief periods of “impending doom,” palpitations, and the kind of fear that makes you think to go to the ER.

Click HERE for the full article.

What Not Enough Sleep Does to Your Body, Say Doctors

By Emilia Paluszek, October 31, 2020

“Attention and focus are also impacted with poor sleep, and people will experience trouble learning and retaining new material, or being increasingly forgetful of previously learned material,” says Alex Dimitriu, MD.

Click HERE for the full article.

Your Complete Guide to Taking the Best Nap of Your Life

Written by Brittany Risher on October 29, 2020

Longer naps may also interfere with the quality of your nighttime sleep, adds Alex Dimitriu, MD, founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, who is double board certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine. “Some people can get into cycles of napping by day and sleeping poorly at night as a consequence,” he says.

Click HERE for the full article.

“I’m Too Anxious to Get Better” Part 1: Anxious people are terrible at helping themselves.

Oct 27, 2020. Dr. Dimitriu was published in Psychology Today in an article titled: “I’m Too Anxious to Get Better”

Living with anxiety is like driving a car without shock absorbers: Everything is a big deal, always hurried, easily overwhelmed, and rarely happy. Some people don’t understand that life doesn’t have to be that way. Here are some useful tips I’ve gathered over years of working as a psychiatrist:

“I feel terrible, but also really good sometimes. Wine helps!”

Anxious people are terrible at helping themselves. An interesting part of my work is seeing people with anxiety who don’t think they have anxiety. The thought of “needing help” makes anxious people more anxious. They are often determined to not show weakness (even to themselves) and to just to push forward with business as usual.

Click HERE for the full article.

How to Identify Your Feelings with a Wheel of Emotions — and Why You Should

By Dominique Michelle Astorino, October 27, 2020

“The wheel of emotions is a useful tool for people to start to better identify their feelings, rather than saying ‘I just don’t feel good,'” says Alex Dimitriu, M.D., double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine.

Click HERE for the full article.

Doctors Explain Why You Might Get Headaches at Night — and How to Prevent Them

October 23, 2020 by Lesley Chen

Tension headaches: You’ve likely had at least one tension headache in your life, as it is the most common form of headaches, although its exact causes aren’t clear. “Tension headaches are associated with stress and muscle tension and often are felt like a band-like pain in the back of the head,” Alex Dimitriu, MD, a double board-certified physician in psychiatry and sleep medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, told POPSUGAR.

Click HERE for the full article.

5 Myths About Social Anxiety Disorder, According to Mental Health Experts

By Lauren Smith, October 22, 2020

“When does some condition count enough to be a disorder? In the case of social anxiety, the intensity of the condition must be enough to cause life disturbance,” says Dr. Alex Dimitriu, MD, double board-certified in Psychiatry and Sleep Medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. In other words, are you avoiding a job interview? Limiting your social life? Missing out on events that you wish you could attend? Overrelying on alcohol to “survive” social events? These may all be ways that social anxiety disorder causes life disturbance. Many people forget or aren’t aware of this aspect of the condition, which fuels the myths about social anxiety disorder.

Click HERE for the full article

Here’s What That Sex Dream Really Means

By Dominique Michelle Astorino, October 19, 2020

“Dreams can always be affected by what is on your mind by day and before sleep,” agrees Alex Dimitriu, M.D., double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. “Without a doubt, having sexual feelings or thoughts about someone, or some fantasy can certainly come up in your dreams. The mind does work through feelings and rehearses for future events and encounters when you sleep — especially during REM (dream) sleep.”

Click HERE for the full article.

Perfectionism and Anxiety: When the Enemy of Good is Better

October 13, 2020. Dr. Dimitriu was published in Psychology Today in an article titled: “Perfectionism and Anxiety: When the Enemy of Good is Better”

Most people aim to do well at whatever they set out to accomplish – whether as parents, partners, professionals, students, volunteers, or friends. But there’s a group for whom doing well simply isn’t good enough. Perfectionists won’t stop until everything they touch is “flawless.” The definition of this may vary by person, but for perfectionists it means they relentlessly obsess over their efforts and results.

Click HERE for the full article.

7 Under-the-Radar Signs Stress Is Impacting Your Sleep

By Julia Malacoff, October 11, 2020

Enter: Stress hormones. “Stress hormones like cortisol, adrenaline and even dopamine can be elevated during periods of stress, and they can remain elevated for some time, even after the stressor is gone,” says Dr. Alex Dimitriu, a board-certified doctor in psychiatry and sleep medicine. So once you get riled up about something — work, family issues, a pandemic — it can be hard to physiologically “come down” from that stressed state.

Click HERE for the full article.

Waking Up With Anxiety at Night? Here’s What Experts Recommend

By Jessica Migala, Oct. 06, 2020

Drinking may have gone up in Covid-19 times, and alcohol isn’t good for your sleep, says Alex Dimitriu, MD, a dual board-certified doctor in psychiatry and sleep medicine in Menlo Park, California. Alcohol may send you to dreamland quickly, but it also disrupts sleep in the second half of the night. You may wake up in the middle of the night, giving space and opportunity for your mind to start to wander and worry.

Click HERE for the full article.

What Is Somniphobia? What to Do If You Have Sleep Anxiety

By Jessica Migala, Oct. 01, 2020

Plan a transition period between awake time and going to bed. “Your brain needs to slow down to shift gears, and too many people try to be super productive to the last minute,” says Alex Dimitriu, MD, a dual-board certified doctor in psychiatry and sleep medicine in Menlo Park, California. If worries tend to spiral before bed, Dr. Dimitriu recommends journaling. “It’s common to be flooded with thoughts at bedtime, but if you sit and work through them [rather than avoiding them by filling the space with scrolling on your phone], these thoughts tend to get better in 20 or 30 minutes,” he says.

Click HERE for the full article.

Can You Use Melatonin for Anxiety? Here’s What You Need to Know

By Lizette Borreli  Sep. 30, 2020

Alex Dimitriu, MD, double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, adds that melatonin has been shown to improve sleep quality, which may also help the brain better restore itself at night and be better equipped to handle daily stress and dips in mood.

Click HERE for the full article.

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