I Hated Sleep—Until This Hidden Brain Episode Changed My Mind

If you had told me a year ago that I’d be prioritizing 8 hours of sleep each night, I would have thought, Impossible!

I’ve spent most of my adult life seeing sleep as optional—an inefficient use of time, or a waste of time. While studies on sleep over the past few years have enlightened me to how wrong I was, I still struggle to go to bed before midnight. I notice that, although my intellect recognizes the value of going to bed before midnight (ideally, it'd be even earlier) for 8 hours of sleep, other parts of me—probably emotional or psychological—didn't want to sleep. I have too much fun when I'm awake!

However, the Hidden Brain episode "Eyes Wide Open: Part 2" completely reframed how I see rest. Knowing that sleep is when our brain detoxes and performs many invaluable operations helped my intellect want to sleep more, but it wasn't enough to change my sleep in meaningful ways. I've needed to want to sleep more.

Finally, Hidden Brain's "Eyes Wide Open: Part 2" introduced me to the mysterious creative opportunities that can occur during sleep. Transformative inventions have originated during sleep! For example, the iconic guitar riff in the Rolling Stones hugely popular song, "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" came to Keith Richards in a dream, according to Eyes Wide Open.

Whether you struggle to sleep, have a love-hate relationship with it, or want to optimize your health, this 5-minute Raindrop episode can be a powerful introduction to new ways of viewing sleep.

This episode is part of the Practical Nontoxic Living Raindrop series, a collection of short, powerful insights for everyday healing. It’s also featured in the Ultimate Home Detox Unpacked, a curated podcast collection that supports your home detox journey.

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