What if the fastest way to think sharper, feel steadier, and show up stronger is the one habit you keep postponing? Dr. Leah Kaylor—licensed clinical and prescribing psychologist and longtime sleep expert for the FBI—joins us to unpack sleep as the hidden engine of performance, health, and daily sanity. Her journey from a small Pennsylvania town through the VA sleep clinic to federal service reveals just how many struggles are actually sleep problems in disguise—and how fixable they can be with the right tools.
We get practical fast. Leah demystifies insomnia by splitting it into primary, secondary, and paradoxical types, then walks through the proven CBT-I playbook: consistent wake times, smarter naps, reframing anxious sleep thoughts, and designing a wind-down routine that lowers light and dopamine. She breaks down circadian rhythm in plain English and shares a free, powerful reset: morning outdoor light within an hour of waking to cue the brain’s clock and get melatonin flowing on time at night. We also explore the link between short sleep, hunger hormones, and next-day cravings—why a single bad night can push you toward sugar, extra calories, and sluggish motivation.
Leah doesn’t shy away from the tricky stuff. She outlines how to make bedrooms safer for sleepwalkers, why scheduled awakenings can interrupt predictable episodes in kids, and how alcohol quietly wrecks sleep quality even when it helps you doze off. And we talk about her new book, If Sleep Were a Drug—a practical, data-informed field guide written with first responders in mind but useful for anyone who wants steadier moods, clearer focus, and real recovery.
If you’re ready to make tonight easier and tomorrow better, press play and try her simple steps: dim earlier, cut the late scroll, get morning light, and give yourself a landing strip before bed. If this conversation helps, share it with a friend, subscribe, and leave a review so more people can sleep better and live better.
drleahkaylor.com
all socials I am Dr. Leah Kaylor
Book will be on my website, books.by, and amazon.
