Mike Birbiglia got used to strange things happening to him when he slept—until something happened that almost killed him. Mike's story and other reasons to fear sleep, including roaches, bedbugs, "The Shining," and mild-mannered husbands who turn into maniacs while asleep.
If you want more first-hand stories and information about sleep disorders, check out Paradox Lost by Dr. Carlos Schenk. He also has a DVD called Sleep Runners.
Mike Birbiglia's story was recorded at The Moth, and was recently part of a one-man show called "Sleepwalk with Me." Mike's tourdates are here, his album Two Drink Mike is here, and his album My Secret Public Journal (Live) is here.
Go here to check out The Moth Podcast, Moth stories on CD, and Moth show dates in New York and Los Angeles.
Prologue.Host Ira Glass talks about his own fear of sleep, and we hear from people who have very strong reasons of their own to fear sleep. We also hear sound of troubled sleepers from a DVD put together by Doctors Carlos Schenck and Mark Mahowald of the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center. Dr. Schenck is also the author of the books Sleep and Paradox Lost. (8 minutes)
Act One. Stranger In the Night.
Mike Birbiglia talks about the sleepwalking that nearly killed him. It's an excerpt of his one-man show "Sleepwalk with Me" that begins Off-Broadway in October.
His story was recorded at The Moth, which has other stories like this on their free podcast and at their website themoth.org.
Check out Mike's website, with his tourdates and other work. Both his comedy albums are available for download at the iTunes store.
The poem Ira reads in this act is called "The Scratch." It's in Raymon Carver's collection All Of Us. (13 minutes)
Song: "To Go To Sleep," British Sea Power
Act Two. Sleep's Tiniest Enemies.
This American Life producers Nancy Updike and Robyn Semien report on critters that can kill sleep: cockroaches and bedbugs. (11 minutes)
Song: "How Do You Sleep," John Lennon
Act Three. The Bitter Fruits of Wakefulness.
Joel Lovell explains why, as an 11-year-old, he trained himself not to fall asleep, and how that had some unintended consequences. Note that the Internet version of this story has slightly different language than the version broadcast on the radio. (10 minutes)
Act Four. Hollywood-Induced Nightmare.
This American Life's own Production Manager Seth Lind explains how he ended up watching Stanley Kubrick's The Shining when he was six years old, and how it led to two years where every night he had trouble falling asleep and nightmares. Seth is a member of the improv comedy group Thank You, Robot. (7 minutes)
Song: "Sleepwalker," Brother Ali
Act Five. A Small Taste of the Big Sleep.
For some people, the fear of sleep is linked to the fear of death. We hear from some of them. In the radio broadcast version of this act, Ira Glass also read from Philip Larkin's poem, "Aubade." (3 minutes)
Song: "While You Were Sleeping," Elvis Perkins