On 17 Nov 2010 at 1:10, Pollak, Edward wrote:


> I distinctly remember reading that there are some (very few) 
> people for whom it is normal to get an hour or less sleep per 
> night. 

> Can anyone out there helpwith a reference? It's driving me
> nuts. 

Driving while nuts is a serious offense. I hope this helps.

Meddis R, Pearson AJ, Langford G.An extreme case of healthy 
insomnia. Electroencephalogr Clin Neurophysiol. 1973 
Aug;35(2):213-4

I recall this is the case of an elderly woman who only slept a few 
hours a night, (not an hour or less) and managed just fine with 
it. Unfortunately, there's no abstract available from PubMed, and 
since I dragged all my files home and they're now piled in boxes 
on the floor, I can't find the copy I'm sure I have somewhere.

I might try to dig it up tomorrow, but most university libraries 
should have a copy of  this old journal (good luck on getting it 
on-line).

On the other hand, there is a dreadful disorder known as fatal 
familial insomnia, thought to be a prion (like mad cow) disease, 
in which the sufferer stays awake until he dies (hence the fatal 
part), but I doubt this is what Ed is looking for.

Stephen
--------------------------------------------
Stephen L. Black, Ph.D.          
Professor of Psychology, Emeritus   
Bishop's University
Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada               
e-mail:  sblack at ubishops.ca
---------------------------------------------

---
You are currently subscribed to tips as: [email protected].
To unsubscribe click here: 
http://fsulist.frostburg.edu/u?id=13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df5d5&n=T&l=tips&o=6550
or send a blank email to 
leave-6550-13090.68da6e6e5325aa33287ff385b70df...@fsulist.frostburg.edu

Reply via email to