In the News

Why Morning Anxiety Is a Thing and What to Do About It

By Jessica Migala, September 29, 2020 Your body was built to deal with anxiety as soon as you open your eyes in bed, says Alex Dimitriu, MD, a dual-board certified doctor in psychiatry and sleep medicine in Menlo Park, California. “In the morning, [the stress hormone] cortisol is elevated, and you have more adrenaline and an […]

Seven Hours of Sleep the New Gold Standard?

September 18, 2020. Dr. Dimitriu was published in Psychology Today in an article titled: Seven Hours of Sleep the New Gold Standard? “The amount of sleep required by the average person is five minutes more.” Those words — from playwright Wilson Mizener — represent one answer to the conundrum: How much sleep is needed each […]

Sleep Experts Call for End to Daylight Saving Time

By Elizabeth Millard, Fact checked by Andrea Rice, September 11, 2020 For many people, another issue is that it takes more than a few days to adjust, adds Alex Dimitriu, MD, founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. “In my practice, issues like insomnia, depression, and anxiety often get worse around the shift in daylight saving, […]

Hot Weather Might be Triggering Your Anxiety Dreams — 7 Ways to Cool Down

Written by Meg Walters on September 11, 2020 According to Alex Dimitriu, MD, double board certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, hot weather causes you to wake up more often at the end of the REM cycle. This means you’re more likely to remember the dream you were […]

These antidepressants are the most popular meds on SingleCare in September

By Jamie Rose, September 9, 2020 In addition to shorter days, September marks the start of the back-to-school season, and many people return to work after summer vacations. According to Alex Dimitriu, MD, the founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine, many factors can contribute to a declining mood in September: “The official ‘return […]

Forcing a Smile May Improve Your Mood, Study Suggests

By Elizabeth Millard, August 28, 2020 This study highlights a potentially curious feedback loop between external appearance and internal feelings, according to Alex Dimitriu, MD, founder of Menlo Park Psychiatry & Sleep Medicine. “There could well be a link between how we appear and how we feel, whether we are forcibly smiling or simply frowning less,” he […]

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