Paradox Lost

Carlos H. Schenck, MD is a graduate of the Johns Hopkins University, State University of New York at Buffalo Medical School, and the Psychiatry Residency at the University of Minnesota Medical School in Minneapolis, where he is currently an Associate Professor of Psychiatry. Since 1981 he has been a Staff Psychiatrist at the Hennepin County Medical Center and the Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center. He has had nearly 200 publications pertaining to sleep disorders, and has lectured widely on the Parasomnias, which are the behavioral and experiential disorders of sleep. He also served as Co-Chairman of the Parasomnias Committee for the newly revised sleep nosology, The International Classification of Sleep Disorders—2nd Edition, which was published by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine in 2005. In "Paradox Lost: Midnight In The Battleground Of Sleep And Dreams," Dr. Schenck recounts the discovery of the dream-enacting disorder” in 1982, which he and his colleagues named the Rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep behavior disorder”—RBD. More than a thousand cases of RBD from around the world have been reported in medical journals. RBD is now recognized as one of the most important discoveries in sleep medicine because of its far-reaching influence across the neurosciences. For example, RBD is closely linked to Parkinson’s Disease and related disorders. Dr. Schenck and his colleagues have also discovered and reported on other Parasomnias,” such as the Sleep Related Eating Disorder. These are surprisingly common disorders in that 4% of adults engage in Sleepwalking; 3% have Confusional Arousals, which can manifest as abnormal sleep-sex and morning sleep drunkenness”; 2% have Night Terrors; 2% engage in Sleep Violence; 1% have Dream-enacting behaviors; 1-5% have Nocturnal Eating disorders; and 10% have Restless Legs Syndrome. "Paradox Lost" an unprecendented book about a realm of human (nocturnal) experience that before now has been a mystery to most people. In this book, 61 of Dr. Schenck’s patients (often with their family) tell their stories about strange experiences and mis-behavior during sleep, and the relief brought by therapy of their parasomnias. Dr. Schenck describes his own experiences with parasomnias and scientific discovery, summarizes important clinical information, describes effective therapies, and discusses the legal implications. He also analyses the notorious 1987 trial in Toronto, Canada involving Ken Parks, who drove 14 miles while sleepwalking and murdered his mother-in-law—for which he was acquitted. This book of clinical stories from the far side of sleep should interest the general public and also students and professionals in medicine, nursing, sleep technology, neurosciences, psychology, cultural anthropology, nutrition, and law about a fascinating and important new frontier in sleep medicine.Schenck, Carlos H. is the author of 'Paradox Lost', published 2005 under ISBN 9780976373407 and ISBN 0976373408.