Dreams Interpreted: Parkinson’s, Vitamin Deficiency, and Your Overall Health

By Vance Voetberg, June 29 2023

According to the Academy of Sleep and Wellness, 60 to 75 percent of adults experience recurring dreams. Recurring dreams can often be attributed to “the mind working through current stress, processing a past event, or preparing for a future event,” Dr. Alex Dimitriu, a psychiatrist specializing in sleep health, told The Epoch Times. “Freud called this ‘day residue’ or the tendency to dream at night, as a continuation of thoughts or concerns from the daytime,” he added. Therefore, when we experience repetitive dreams, it could indicate that the mind is attempting to compartmentalize stress and trauma, allowing for processing and resolution.

Click HERE for the full article.

Jaden Smith says psychedelics made him more empathetic. Here’s what the experts say.

By Hannah Yasharoff, June 26, 2023

Dr. Alex Dimitriu specializes in psychiatry and sleep medicine but does not use psychedelic treatments with his patients because the treatments are illegal in most U.S. states, he said. But he believes they have merit. “When people are stuck or suffering, well-guided change can be beneficial, and psychedelics are agents that encourage such transformative experiences,” he previously told USA TODAY.

Click HERE for the full article.

What Causes a Sense of Impending Doom?

By Lynne Eldridge, MD, June 29, 2023

This sense of impending doom is often fueled by the fact that the mind is a “meaning-making machine” that seeks patterns and attributes meaning to what we are experiencing, explains Alex Dimitriu, MD, double board-certified in Psychiatry and Sleep Medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. This can be useful in many cases but can also lead to mistakes and incorrect predictions. When people predict the wrong outcome, it can create what Dr. Dimitriu refers to as an emotional ‘hallucination,’ or delusion, a strongly held false belief. 

Click HERE for the full article.

The Big Connection Between Asthma and Sleep Apnea

By Elizabeth Millard, June 23, 2023

Asthma and sleep apnea are chronic conditions that can result in significant health concerns…so what happens when you have both of them? It’s a predicament that many people with asthma have to navigate, according to Alex Dimitriu, M.D., a sleep medicine specialist and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine in California.

Click HERE for the full article.

Teen anxiety remains on the rise. Increasing therapy support could help

By Claire Wolters , June 20, 2023

Alex Dimitriu, MD, psychiatrist and sleep medicine specialist and Founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, says that, “numerous factors have coincided to contribute to increased teen anxiety”—prior to the pandemic—including the introduction of smartphones and widespread use of social media around 2012.

Click HERE for the full article.

Take some stress out of your trip with these comfy, supportive travel pillows — from $12

By Jack Byram, June 16, 2023

Travel pillows come in a variety of shapes, but they’re all designed to accommodate your upright position when traveling, according to Dr. Alex Dimitriu, founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry and Sleep Medicine. Specifically, “the goal of any travel pillow is to stabilize the head. As in most cases, when the seat does not recline far enough, people’s heads will tend to drop forward,” he explains.

Click HERE for the full article.

How to Know If You’re the Toxic One in Your Relationship

By Brianne Hogan, June 16, 2023

“Toxic is quite a strong word, and reality may be more nuanced or gray in some cases,” says Alex Dimitriu, MD, who is double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine. “However, it serves as a powerful reminder of what can go wrong and what to watch out for. ‘Manipulative,’ ‘selfish,’ ‘narcissistic,’ and ‘lacking empathy’ are other words that could describe a similar experience.”

Click HERE for the full article.

How to sleep better this summer

By Morgan Mandriota, June 16, 2023

Alex Dimitriu, MD, is double board certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and the founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. Below, he shares expert tips on how to sleep better year-round, especially this summer.

Q:          Everybody has different habits and preferences. What are the ideal, evidence-backed temperature and lighting settings for optimal sleep health?

A: Sleep loves a cave, so think cool, dark, and quiet. A drop in body temperature at night helps increase deep sleep, so set the thermostat low.

Click HERE for the full article.

Orthosomnia: The Dark Side Of Sleep Trackers And Data Obsession

By Klaudia Balogh, June 14, 2023

Alex Dimitriu, MD, a dual board-certified psychiatrist and sleep medicine specialist, told Healthnews about a study where participants were told to wear a sleep tracking device, which randomly told them how they slept, irrespective of actual sleep quality. “The fascinating finding was that people who were told they slept poorly, felt worse, and were sleepy by day, be careful what data you accept as truth. Even in a sleep lab, with EEG monitoring, it can be hard to perfectly track sleep, so all other home or consumer devices are not any better.”

Click HERE for the full article.

Craving quality sleep? Don’t underestimate a good pillow — 15 picks for all sleep styles

By Jessica Migala and Rebecca Treon, June 5, 2023

“Being comfortable, cool, not in pain and breathing well are essential to a good night’s sleep,” says Dr. Alex Dimitriu, who’s double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and is the founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. “Besides comfort, a pillow plays a significant role in keeping the spine and the airway aligned — and this serves to reduce any discomfort and also ensure optimal airflow for good breathing through the night.”

Click HERE for the full article.

Green Noise 101: How Nature’s Sounds Soothe Your Mind

By Kamrin Baker, June 2, 2023

Green noise, according to Dr. Alex Dimitriu, the founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, is a particular subset of white noise, and sounds similar to the sound of running water, or wind, which can be quite soothing, and does occur naturally outdoors. 

Click HERE for the full article.

The Quarter-Hour Rule Could Help You Get a Better Night’s Sleep

By Sarah Stiefvater, May 24, 2023

Generally, a normal sleep latency [The amount of time required to fall asleep] is somewhere between five to 20 minutes. Dr. Alex Dimitriu, MD, also told us at that time that he usually tells his patients to spend 20 minutes trying to fall asleep. “Clock watching is bad, as is getting stressed out about not sleeping in bed,” he explains. After about 20 minutes of not being able to fall asleep, you should get out of bed and do something relaxing like reading in a dimly lit room. When you feel sleepy, get back into bed and try again.

Click HERE for the full article.

Antidepressants are ineffective for treating chronic pain, review finds

By Annie Lennon, May 16, 2023

To understand why duloxetine and milnacipran — and not other antidepressants — may reduce chronic pain in the short term, Medical News Today spoke with Dr. Alex Dimitriu, double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine, and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, not involved in the study. He told us: “Both duloxetine and milnacipran offer some advantage to pain. The reason is that these medications work on norepinephrine, implicated in pain perception, as well as serotonin, implicated in depression.”

Click HERE for the full article.

The #1 Sign You Might Be Heading for an Existential Crisis—Plus, What To Do About It, According to Experts

By Beth Ann Mayer, May 10, 2023

Existential crises can be challenging to grapple with, but help is available. “Self-awareness, self-care and therapy can all be helpful,” says Dr. Alex Dimitriu, MD, double board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. “Remember you are a biological organism, and take care of your human needs.”

Click HERE for the full article.

Sleep Apnea May Increase Your Risk for Alzheimer’s Disease

By Beth Ann Mayer, May 10, 2023

“Lack of slow-wave sleep, in this case, due to sleep interruption from sleep apnea, results in effectively, a mild form of brain damage, or at least aging, by about two years for every 10% loss of slow-wave sleep,” says Alex Dimitriu, MD, who is double board-certified psychiatry and sleep medicine and founded Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. “This is consistent with the theory that the brain needs slow-wave sleep to clean itself up and prepare for the next day.”

Click HERE for the full article.

Enable Dark Mode