Sleep Unplugged with Dr. Chris Winter

Latest Episodes:

#173 - Sleep and Altitude: Only Look Up Oct 13, 2025

Show notes

Whether you’re skiing in Aspen, hiking Kilimanjaro, or just wondering why sleep feels so strange in the mountains, altitude messes with your rest in fascinating ways. In this episode we will:

Explore the biology of what’s really happening in the brain and body when oxygen thins out
Find out why your sleep becomes fragmented and restless, and what recent research reveals about the role of hypoxia, periodic breathing, and even oxidative stress in your slumber at altitude
Share new data on how altitude amplifies both insomnia and sleep apnea
Unpack the science behind those sleepless nights at high elevation
Provide practical, evidence-based strategies to make them better

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

#172 - Sleep Hygiene is Not Insomnia Therapy: Save Me Tonight Oct 06, 2025

Show notes

We’ve all heard the sleep hygiene advice: turn off your screens, keep your room cool, avoid caffeine after lunch. While we can agree that these practices set the stage for better sleep, does engaging in them actually help those with sleep problems? In this episode we will:

Examine the intended role of sleep hygiene
Look at what research tell us in terms of using sleep hygiene as a tool for insomnia treatment
Dive into what it means for an insomnia therapy to work
Differentiate between actions geared at changing sleep behaviors and actions geared towards changing interpretations of sleep behaviors

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

#171 - Getting Your Kid To Sleep Through The Night: Crying In My Sleep Sep 29, 2025

Show notes

Few parenting debates stir more passion than how to help a baby sleep. In this episode, we will:

Explore the science and controversy behind “cry it out,” Ferber/check-and-console, and gentler alternatives
Review what research says about sleep outcomes, stress, and attachment
Think about this concept in relationship to varyting sleep needs
Unpack the safety concerns around bed-sharing and why guidance is so divided
Offer practical takeaways so parents can choose an approach that works—and feels right—for their family

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

#170 - Sleep Earbuds and Earplugs: Of Course I’ve Had It In The Ear Before Sep 22, 2025

Show notes

When it comes to sleep, sometimes silence is golden—and sometimes it needs a little help. In this episode, we’ll explore the world of earplugs and earbuds designed to quiet the night and protect your rest, because sometimes the best way to protect your dreams is to put a little something in your ear. In this episode we will:

Determine why reducing noise can make such a difference for falling asleep and staying asleep
List the best earplugs made specifically for sleep—like BET SLUMBUR, Loop, Swanwick, and Happy Ears
Introduce new approaches to noise masking that blend soothing sound with comfort and advanced sleep tracking (Ozlo)
Revisit noise canceling innovations that actively fight disruptive sounds (QuietOn 4.0)
Learn how to match the right solution to your unique sleep environment—whether it’s a snoring partner, thin apartment walls, or unpredictable travel nights

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

#169 - Periodic Limb Movement Disorder: Out At Night Moving Sep 15, 2025

Show notes

We’ve all seen it—or maybe we’ve been told we do it: twitching, jerking, or kicking in the night. But when does this common sleep quirk cross the line into a diagnosable condition? In this episode, we will:

Define Periodic Limb Movement Disorder (PLMD) and explain how it differs from simple nighttime movements
Explore its surprising prevalence in both adults and children—and its strong ties to Restless Legs Syndrome
Review leading theories of cause, from dopamine to iron to spinal generators
Highlight intriguing new research, including cardiovascular links and AI-based detection
Discuss treatment strategies—from iron replacement to dopaminergic medications and lifestyle approaches

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

#168 - #MASA (Make America Sleep Again): Wake Me Up When September Ends Sep 08, 2025

Show notes

Did you know…

Only 57% of Americans now say science has a mostly positive effect on society—down 16 points since before COVID?
And yet, 83% of people still trust their doctor more than anyone else when it comes to vaccine advice?

We’ve all lived through it—the pandemic reshaped our health, our trust, and our divisions, and those dividisions have been on full display recently as hearings have highlighted a growing distrust in the medical and scientific communities. In this episode, we will:

Explore why COVID was not just a disease, but a collective trauma—and how trauma often drives blame and denial
Examine the promise of MAHA (Making America Healthy Again) and the peril of dismantling expertise in the process
Confront the deep health inequities that make the U.S. lag behind other developed nations in life expectancy and outcomes
Ask why preventive medicine never fulfilled its promise in our healthcare system
Review how vaccines remain one of the greatest public health successes—even as skepticism grows
Unpack why rare side effects feel amplified when billions of doses are given
Revisit the vaccine rollout as both a modern miracle and a “fog of war” moment with inevitable missteps
Challenge the myth of “doing your own research” and why interpretation of science matters more than access
Discuss how shaming during the pandemic hardened divides instead of fostering change
Look ahead: why questioning science is healthy, but abandoning it could cost us the cures and treatments of the future

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

#167 - Frequent Nighttime Urination: All Through The Night Sep 01, 2025

Show notes

When it comes to insomnia, many people begin their journey staring at the clock after yet another middle-of-the-night bathroom trip and wondering: is it my bladder or my sleep that’s broken? In this episode, we will:

Define what nocturia is—and what counts as normal versus abnormal
Explore why most people wake up first and then feel the urge to urinate
Reveal how nocturia can be a surprising red flag for obstructive sleep apnea
Distinguish between urinary problems that happen all day long versus nighttime-only frequency linked to sleep disorders
Challenge the myth that cutting off fluids during the day is an effective fix
Reassure you that a single nightly bathroom trip can be perfectly healthy

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

#166 - 10 Ways to Sleep Better in a Hotel: Take Me to The Hotel Aug 25, 2025

Show notes

We’ve all been there—different bed, strange noises, mystery thermostat settings—and suddenly your “dream” vacation or business trip comes with a side of sleeplessness. But hotel sleep doesn’t have to be a gamble. In this episode, we will:

Explore why the “first night effect” sabotages rest in unfamiliar places
Share 10 science-backed strategies to optimize any hotel room for sleep
Learn how to manage temperature, light, and noise—even when you can’t control the building
Discover how bringing small comforts from home can calm an over-alert brain
Review simple, evidence-based tricks to dodge jet lag and keep your circadian rhythm on track

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

#165 - Headache and Sleep: Gotta Painful Swelling Brain Aug 18, 2025

Show notes

Headaches don’t punch the clock at bedtime — in fact, for many, night is when they strike hardest. In this episode, we’ll:

Explore how disrupted sleep can trigger and intensify migraines, cluster headaches, hypnic headaches, and chronic daily headache
Examine the role of sleep apnea in “morning headaches” and how CPAP therapy can make them disappear
Review the latest research linking insomnia treatment to reduced headache burden — including new findings from a Seattle study on prazosin for posttraumatic headache in veterans
Break down the brain mechanisms connecting sleep and pain, from hypothalamic circadian control to CGRP signaling
Offer practical, research-backed strategies for patients and clinicians to address both sides of the equation

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

#164 - Temperature vs. Tired: Which Sign is Vital? Aug 11, 2025

Show notes

At every medical appointment, certain rituals unfold: height, weight, blood pressure, and—almost reflexively—temperature. But in asymptomatic patients, how often does that temperature reading actually matter? In this episode, we will:

Examine the origins of routine temperature checks and their current clinical value
Explore data showing how infrequently temperature readings in well visits lead to meaningful outcomes
Introduce the idea of sleep as a more relevant and revealing “vital sign”
Highlight how simple questions—like “Do you snore?” or “Are you sleepy during the day?”—can uncover high-impact sleep disorders
Contrast the diagnostic yield of temperature checks vs. sleep screening
Consider why sleep is still overlooked in routine care, despite its massive public health implications
Reimagine a future where sleep quality is as routinely measured—and meaningfully addressed—as blood pressure

Produced by: Maeve Winter

Twitter: @drchriswinter
IG: @drchriwinter
Threads: @drchriswinter
Bluesky: @drchriswinter
The Sleep Solution and The Rested Child

Thanks for listening and sleep well!

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