Title: Sleeping with the frenemy

Abstract: Insomnia broadly described as a difficulty in getting to sleep or staying asleep, is ‘the’ global epidemic of the 21^st Century, affecting over 400M people every year. Despite increasing knowledge over the last 50 years regarding the prevalence, persistence, and the associated healthcare costs of insomnia (e.g. a significant risk factor for the development of Major Depression, Type II Diabetes, and Coronary Heart Disease, and £25M per annum spent on hypnotic use in the UK), preventative sleep medicine is still in its infancy. In this lecture, he will present the findings from his programme of work that examines the concept of acute insomnia: its definition, assessment, and management. The lecture will explore the circumstances, at individual, social, and societal levels, and mechanisms whereby a ‘normal’ biological reaction to stress can disrupt sleep and how this transitions into to acute insomnia. Then how our own actions and reactions can damage the sleep / wake system, resulting in chronic, unremitting, insomnia. Finally, he will demonstrate how three simple rules (the 3 D’s) can be applied in everyday settings to maintain good sleep health and prevent the development of insomnia.