The Podcast That Puts Your ADHD Brain to Sleep
One of the best things you can do for your ADHD brain is to get plenty of sleep, yet many of us ADHDers struggle with getting to sleep. Even if you do stop doing that one more thing and get into your bed at a decent hour, there is a chance your brain will not shut down and go to sleep. It can be frustrating to stare at the clock for hours waiting for your brain to shut down. As it gets later, the pressure to fall asleep grows, and the pressure makes it harder to fall asleep. This can be one of the worst parts of having ADHD. For years, I struggled with falling asleep, only managing to fall asleep in a reasonable amount of time when I was extremely tired. Nothing seemed to help, and I did not want to become reliant upon sleep aids. I longed for relief and a way to fall asleep like a normal person.
Drew Ackerman (AKA Dearest Scooter. AKA Scoots. AKA Podboy). He is your borebud, your borefriend, your borebae, your companion in the "deep, dark night."
“Hey, are you up all night, tossing, turning, mind racing? Trouble getting to sleep? Trouble staying asleep? Well, welcome. This is Sleep With Me, the podcast that puts you to sleep. We do it with a bedtime story. Alls you need to do is get into bed, turn out the lights, and press play. I’m gonna do the rest. What I’m going to attempt to do is create a safe place where you can set aside whatever is keeping you awake, whether it’s thoughts, feelings, physical sensations... Whatever it is, I’m here to help.”
One night, I turned to the podcast app on my phone to look for a sleep aid podcast. I found a podcast called Sleep with Me. At first, I thought it was a podcast about sex. When I realized it was not and was, indeed, a podcast that puts you to sleep, I gave it a try. After listening to it for a bit, I decided I did not like it, and I continued to struggle with bedtime. Several months later, I decided to give it another shot. To my surprise, I discovered that there are episodes where the host Drew Ackerman, (He is rarely called Drew on the podcast. See the caption on his photo to see an incomplete list of his nicknames.) discusses Star Trek: The Next Generation, and this Trekkie was ready to listen to this podcast every night. Star Trek may have gotten me to give the podcast another try, but it is not what kept me listening to it.
This podcast actually helps me fall asleep. The stories Dearest Scooter tells are interesting enough to where you are able to forget about the thoughts that are keeping you up at night, but not so interesting that they energize you. When I was going through a tough break up, I could not do anything, except think about my ex. This made it extra hard to sleep. Sleep with Me was able to get my mind to calm down. In the middle of the night, I would frequently wake up and not be able to fall back asleep because I was just dreaming about her. If I turned on Sleep with Me, I would be able to fall asleep again. I feel I owe Scooter a lot for that.
Sleep with Me is the first podcast I have felt obligated to support. Most podcasts will beg for money, and I have never donated a single penny to any podcast ever. However, I view what Scoots does as a form of treatment for my ADHD. I pay for my visits to my doctor's office and for my medication, so it felt natural for me to donate to this podcast.
I encourage you to give this podcast a try. Many people who review the podcast on the internet say you need to give it a few tries before it starts to work for you. It is a bit odd. Each episode begins with advertisements. It is a sleep podcast, so most listeners will not be awake to hear them if they are at the end. You are able to skip over them and get to the bedtime story, but I enjoy listening to Sleep with Me's advertisements. They are far more entertaining than any other podcast advertisements. After the ads, Scooter moves into the intro. This introduction lets new listeners know what the podcast is and how it works. This is also a reminder for repeat listeners that they are in a safe, comfortable space. Then, Scoots begins the story. Finally, he ends the show with some thank yous and goodnights. Each episode is about an hour long. I usually queue up several episodes to play in a row, just in case I wake up in the middle of the night.
Unfortunately, the podcast does not work for everyone. However, Dearest Scooter claims he has listeners who enjoy the podcast, despite its inability to put them to sleep. They simply enjoy having a companion in the "deep, dark night." This is what inspired the podcast. Drew Ackerman has struggled with insomnia for most of his life, and many times, he found himself desiring to have a companion in his sleeplessness. He figured there must be others like him who cannot fall asleep at night, so he decided to become their companion.
If you are wondering what this quirky podcast is like, I have embedded a SoundCloud file of a TNG episode below. You can also find Sleep with Me on Apple's Podcast app, Stitcher, and where you listen to your podcasts.