One of the great battles of my life has been the battle to get a good night’s sleep. While I have some periods of success (including right now, thankfully), I always know that another bout of insomnia is never far away. I have learned to embrace this as one of the means through which the Lord keeps me weak and, therefore, dependent upon him. Yet while I have embraced it, I continue to take action against it, for the two are not mutually exclusive.
Those who struggle with sleep know what it’s like to be constantly looking for answers, and if not answers, then tips, tricks, or methods that might turn another wasted night into a good or at least reasonable one. Yet like so many things in life, insomnia so often seems to resist even our best attempts to defeat it.
Sleep, and the lack of it, is the subject of Matt Rehrer’s new book When Sleep Won’t Come. Rehrer is an emergency medicine physician in the San Francisco Bay Area who has a particular interest in the area of sleep. “My interest in studying sleep began from my own struggles,” he says. “As an emergency medicine physician, I work shifts that cover all hours of the day, including overnights. Working when most of the world sleeps presents challenges on both falling asleep and staying asleep when the sun is shining and kids are playing. My sleep problems extend beyond shift work challenges to other reasons and seasons—parenting, ministry, and the challenges that come in everyday life. While writing about sleep, the Lord has given me many opportunities to put into practice what I write.” As a doctor, he has interacted with patients who suffer from a chronic lack of sleep and even wind up in the emergency room because of it. As a pastor and counselor, he has seen how sleep affects spiritual well-being, fostering or contributing to many other issues.
“As both a doctor and pastor, I want to approach sleep from different angles: scientifically—to help you understand your body’s physical rhythms and needs; biblically—to show how God uses sleep and sleeplessness to reveal His grace and care. Sleep is not just a complex biological rhythm of the body but a spiritual rhythm of the soul.” This makes his book unique and uniquely helpful. He did not set out to write an exhaustive or scholarly examination of sleep, and that means his book is far more accessible to those of us who are interested in gaining a biblical perspective on both sleep and sleeping—the theory and the practice.
He begins by explaining what sleep is, then tells why we do it (and indeed must do it). From here he advances to the blessings of sleep and the consequences of insufficient sleep, in each case dedicating a brief chapter to the matter. He then offers medical, environmental, and spiritual reasons we fail to get the sleep we need, before offering wise ways to pursue better sleep. Two final chapters tell how to rest when we cannot sleep and how to live the next day exhausted. It is here that he is at his most pastoral.
Many potential readers will wonder whether he writes about sleep medications and techniques, and the answer is yes. He explains the differences between sleep medications, what they accomplish, and their potential negative consequences. He does the same with some of the non-medication techniques you may find recommended when researching ways to increase sleep.
When Sleep Won’t Come is a brief book, and one that sits nicely at the intersection of medicine and theology, or perhaps better said, medical care and pastoral care. It addresses an issue that is widespread and an issue for which many people experience a great deal of despair. It addresses it with the care of a doctor and the wisdom of a pastor.
I met Rehrer at a conference a few years ago and as we chatted, he mentioned his book. I immediately told him that I was interested in reading it and, if he wished, potentially willing to endorse it. After he had written it and it had passed through the editorial process, I read it at last and will leave you with the endorsement I subsequently passed along, which began much like this review: One of the major battles of my adult life has been the battle to simply get a good night’s rest. I have tried very nearly every strategy and technique there is, except for reading a distinctly Christian book on the subject. I was pleased to learn that in this book, Matt Rehrer brings both medical and theological expertise to the matter. He addresses the whole person and offers a whole solution. And for that reason, I can give this book the praise that only a writer on this subject wants to hear: Read this book, because it may just put you to sleep.
