The Sleep Anxiety Fix No One Talks About with Mollie Eastman

Dr. Michael J. Breus sits down with Mollie Eastman, founder of Sleep Is a Skill, to explore the connection between anxiety and sleep. Mollie shares her personal journey from debilitating sleep anxiety and acute insomnia—rooted in a chaotic upbringing and years of benzodiazepine use—to discovering alternative paths to rest and healing like psychedelics and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy for Insomnia (ACT-I). The episode closes with practical safety guidelines for anyone considering recreational substances as a sleep aid, and Mollie's two core anchor habits: a consistent wake time and morning bright light exposure. Note: This episode discusses recreational drug use for informational and educational purposes only. It is not medical advice—listeners should consult a healthcare professional before trying anything discussed. Learn more about Mollie Eastman at sleepisaskill.com and follow her on TikTok and Instagram. For more information about the episode, head here: https://sleepdoctor.com/pages/podcast. Upgrade your sleep. Visit coopsleepgoods.com/BETTERINBED to get 20% off your first order. Stay up to date with Lemonada on Facebook, and Instagram. For a list of current sponsors and discount codes for this and every other Lemonada show, go to lemonadamedia.com/sponsors. Joining Lemonada Premium is a great way to support our show and get bonus content. Subscribe today at lemonadapremium.com. Chapters: 00:00 Medical disclaimer 01:31 How Mollie slept last night (and her psychedelic journey) 03:14 Defining sleep anxiety 03:22 How international travel triggered Mollie's insomnia 04:44 "Sleep is like love" — chasing sleep makes it worse 05:01 Doctors, benzos, and the fear of a pharmaceutical path 06:00 How Mollie pulled herself out of insomnia 06:48 Connecting psychedelics and sleep 07:16 Mollie's trauma background and psilocybin experimentation 08:19 Tracking HRV and sleep improvements with Oura data 10:12 Beckley Institute and legal psychedelic retreats 11:04 How to safely screen for and prepare for a retreat 13:10 Nervous system dysregulation and unresolved trauma 14:04 "Hardware vs. software" — why psychedelics target the root cause 15:27 Fear as the root of insomnia 16:36 Sponsor: Coop Sleep Goods pillows 18:06 Listener question: THC gummies for sleep 18:41 Dr. Breus on THC, CBN, and CBD dosing 20:33 Mollie on THC for sleep onset vs. optimization 22:09 Cannabis risks for seniors 24:40 ACT-I therapy, explained 25:15 CBT-I vs. ACT-I  28:28 Sponsor: Sleep Doctor 29:32 Insights from Dr. Satchin Panda (Salk Institute) 30:16 Eating timing, digestion, and melatonin 33:05 Living in Austin as a "healthy geography" 33:23 Latitude, sunlight strength, and mitochondrial health 35:05 Time spent indoors (EPA data) and vitamin D 36:23 Mollie's top two anchor habits for better sleep 37:03 Where to find Mollie Eastman (Sleep Is a Skill) 39:06 Recap: understanding sleep anxiety 40:25 Guidelines for safely exploring recreational drugs for sleep 41:56 Outro & credits Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices