“I think the hardest thing is getting advice from people who can sleep. As a kid I told my parents I couldn’t sleep at night and they’re like “try warm milk”, and I’m like “no, no, you don’t understand, I CAN NOT sleep””
Sleep is a such an incredibly important part of life. We all know that. Strangely, it may also be the most universally taken for granted part of life that we all share. When we are sleeping good and able to fall asleep easily we hardly give sleep a second thought. It’s just…something you do. When we can’t sleep, our bed can become a source of anxiety, our mind a prison, and our life a nightmare. It’s the number one foundational cornerstone to both physical and mental health. Today’s guest, Drew Ackerman, is very familiar with the pains of not being able to fall asleep. He has struggled with insomnia since childhood. Four years ago he decided to do something radical, and incredibly interesting, to help people like himself. He created a podcast where he tells bedtime stories for people struggling to fall asleep. Not too exciting, sometimes downright boring, the exact type of thing you would naturally fall asleep to. Drew’s podcast has since exploded and he helps hundreds of thousands of people fall asleep every month.
“I think when I was a kid, maybe I wasn’t looking for a solution. I was just looking for someone to be like “wow, that sounds awful”.”
“My critical part would be like, “you’re gonna tell bedtime stories…you’re gonna release these to the public. Really?! You’re gonna do that?””
Interview Contents
4:30 - The origins of Drew’s insomnia.
9:00 - The cycle of anxiety and insomnia.
10:40 - Insomnia “cures” that didn’t work.
14:00 - The idea and implementation of Sleep With Me.
22:30 - Marketing such a unique podcast.
26:00 - Helping people via the podcast.
29:00 - Life lessons from the podcast.
37:00 - The growth of Sleep With Me.
41:20 - Drew’s current sleep status and bedtime routine.
45:00 - Advice.
Links
THIS EPISODE WAS MADE WITH THE SUPPORT OF
Roxanna
Michelle & Jim Wortner
Janelle Swanson
Jimmy Seymour
