Welcome to our sleep blog!

We spend approximately a third of our whole lives sleeping. Have you ever wondered why our bodies need to shut down for a few hours every single day? Scientists all over the world have been asking that exact question and have learned quite a lot over the years. Here we will explore the big questions concerning why and how we sleep and what happens when we don’t sleep enough. 

We will also discover how changing lifestyles and increasing use of technology may impact our sleep. What effect has the recent pandemic had on our sleep habits? What happens in our brains and bodies when we are asleep? Do sleep medications actually work?

Join us in finding answers to these questions and learn with us how to sleep better to live better.

Lukas

Hi! I am Lukas, a student, writer and notoriously bad sleeper. While studying Artificial Intelligence at university, I learned technology and the mind. Now it’s time to translate this complex scientific knowledge into understandable messages that can help all of you. For now I am specifically interested in sleep. If you’re anything like me, you spend a lot of your day watching phone and computer screens. I want to find out whether the light from these screens keeps us up at night and what we can do about it so that we can all sleep well!

Johanna

Hi! I’m Johanna. As a neurobiologist and avid napper, sleep is a topic that has captured my attention. Over the past few years I’ve studied the mechanisms of sleep in the lab and have learned some pretty cool things about how and more importantly why we sleep! It turns out sleep, and even dreams, play a pretty important role in keeping us healthy and happy. Want to learn more about how sleep can keep you smiling? Join us for a dreamy tour of the unconscious.

Sebastiaan

Heya, I am Sebastiaan. The past few years I’ve been studying biology. One of the things I’ve learned during my study is that sleep is immensely important for your mental state and marvelously complex. Besides sleep I am interested in evolution and cultural development as well. Combining these two, there’s one topic that piqued my interest; biphasic sleep. More primitive societies, both now and in the past, tend to sleep multiple times a day, instead of the well-known 8 hour block. I’ve been wondering whether this more natural pattern holds any benefits and I’m eager to find out.

Wesley

Hi I’m Wesley, a second year master student of medical imaging in Utrecht, I am following the this course because I think communicating science with the public is both very relevant and underrepresented in my field, for my topic I chose what affects the circadian rhythm and sleeping patterns of humans, and why interhuman differences are so substantial, I find sleep patterns very interesting as many people don’t fit in the suggest 24:00-7:00 sleep rhythm.

Dominique

Hi, I’m Dominique and I’m a sleep scientist in the making! As a master student in cognitive neuroscience, the relationship between our minds and our brains is incredibly fascinating to me. Follow me along while I unravel this relationship and discover what’s going on in our heads when the lights are off. I write about the latest scientific discoveries in sleep and dream research, and how this relates to how we feel in our everyday lives. Stay tuned if you’re curious how to improve your brain’s sleeping skills and sleep your way to a healthier and happier you!