On Mon, 17 Sep 2001, Jeff Bartel went:
> With respect to the first one, I (and, I suspect, the student) know that
> it's harder to sleep when you're "stressed," but I was unsure as to the
> mechanism involved.
I'm never unwilling to speculate.
The brain regions that are likely to be active during stress--in
particular, parts of the amygdala--can activate the ARAS (ascending
reticular activating system) through connections to brainstem
structures such as the pedunculopontine nucleus. Result: sustained
alertness, whether you want it or not.
--David
