Hi Nora. Thanks for contacting us and your question. Sorry to hear about your predicament. I recall Dr. Winters mentioning the situation in his book but there was no further discussion. This is something you should best discuss with your physician.

Hi Phyllis:

Thank you for your reading the post and your kind comments.

In his book, on pages 31 to 34, Dr. Winters discusses how much sleep we need and delves into how our sleep needs change as we age. He refers to research, done in 2014 and published in 2015, that examined sleep needs among nine different age groups. The study found that the amount of sleep we need declines as we age to the point where our elders only need seven to eight hours a night.

When asked how much sleep we need, Dr. Winters responds: “Enough”. Not too little and not too much. I suspect if you were to ask him about your 91 year old mother, putting aside obstructive sleep issues like apnea, he would recommend the protocol I followed.

He did not discuss overactive bladder as an issue; at least I could not find it. However, he does discuss antihistamines and their effect on dementia; as well as a medication to treat overactive bladder, oxybutynin, as another potential cause of dementia.

Dr. Winters is no fan of medications as an answer to your sleep problems. He is a believer in you finding out about your sleep, how much you need, regulating your sleep and sticking to a schedule.

If overactive bladder is an issue, you might want to consult a pelvic health Physical Therapist. They have tricks and strategies that can help you address this issue and not interrupt your sleep.

If sleep is a concern for you I highly recommend Dr. Winters’ book largely because you will learn a lot about your sleep and he helps to eliminate much of the poor quality information available on the internet (not ours, of course!).

Hi Renee

I am sorry to hear that you are “sleep challenged”. It must be frustrating. Thank you for your kind comments.

Hi Renee: I did not cover sleep apnea in my review because it, as you point out, requires a much different treatment protocol.

Dr Winters does discuss sleep apnea in chapter 14 and some of the interventions available. He points out that continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) is the most popular treatment option. The other treatment approaches he mentions are 1) sleeping on your side, 2) oral appliances, and 3) surgery – which can be as easy as a tonsillectomy or as complex as a reset of the jaw. He does mention newer surgical options.

I recommend you consult with a sleep specialist if you have sleep apnea.

Hi Megan: Thanks for your comments. I agree that many of the articles you read on the web simplify the solution too much. Dr. Winters’ book provides the education and points to several viable solutions. Well worth the investment!