Sleepwalk with Me: Comedian's sleep disorder experience comes to film

Mike Birbiglia’s sleep disorder has been the basis for a book and one-man show. Now the comedian’s REM sleep behavior disorder is featured in film. Sleepwalk with Me made its premiere at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.

The movie is presented in association with WBEZ Public Radio's This American Life. Birbiglia has appeared as a semi-regular contributor to This American Life. Its host, Ira Glass, is a producer for the movie.

Birbiglia plays a New York stand-up comedian with girlfriend issues and a sleep disorder. Birbiglia’s real-life REM sleep behavior disorder causes his body to physically act out dreams. He limits the frequency of these episodes by taking clonazepam, a drug used to treat seizures by activating parts of the brain to produce a calming effect. He also sleeps in a makeshift cocoon – wearing a sleeping bag up to his neck and mittens so he can’t open it and get up.



Sleepwalk with Me also pays homage to sleep medicine. William C. Dement, MD, PhD, can be heard narrating his own audiobook as Birbiglia falls asleep while driving. Dement in 1975 launched the American Sleep Disorders Association, now known as the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. He also served as its president for the first 12 years.

No word if the film has found a distributor. But the book is available for purchase and segments with Birbiglia on NPR are available at This American Life and Fresh Air. More about Mike Birbiglia’s story can be found in the Sleep Education Blog. Or go to the AASM’s patient education website for additional information on parasomnias, like sleepwalking and REM sleep behavior disorder.

Image: Sleepwalk With Me Publicity Photo

Mike Birbiglia Sleeps with Downy in Macy’s Window

Comedian Mike Birbiglia is putting the freshness of Ultra Downy April Fresh to the test by living and sleeping for a week behind a Macy’s store window in New York City. Proctor & Gamble is using the event to pitch Downy as the latest sleep aid.


But will a week of “clean sheet freshness” help Mike sleep better?

It will be a tough test. Birbiglia is notorious for being a bad sleeper.

“I am the worst sleeper in America,” he declared during a press conference at Macy’s.

In his stand-up routines and in his book Sleepwalk with Me, Birbiglia shares vivid details about his struggle with REM sleep behavior disorder.

People who have RBD act out action-packed dreams as they sleep. The dreamer may punch, kick, jump or get out of bed and run. All of this occurs while he or she is still asleep.

Although Downy is no cure for RBD, putting fresh, clean sheets on the bed can be one way to help create a relaxing sleep environment. But it might not be so relaxing when people on the New York City streets are watching you through a window.

Mike will find out. He moved into his Macy’s bedroom yesterday and spent the night. “This is so, so strange,” he Tweeted.

In the week ahead Birbiglia plans to host a Yoga instructor and other special guests in his store window bedroom. He also plans to learn more about mannequin culture. And he wants to know why P&G doesn’t offer a pizza-scented Downy.

Watch live streaming video of Mike in the Window from four different camera angles on Facebook.

Sleepwalk with Me: Comedian Mike Birbiglia's Sleep Disorder Scare

Meet Mike Birbiglia. He claims he jumped out of a second-story hotel window to avoid a missile attack. Witnesses say a madman crashed through a window in the middle of the night and then stumbled badly injured into the hotel lobby.

Birbiglia was as surpised as the hotel guests when he woke up covered in gashes. The guided missile attack was a nightmare but his actions were anything but a dream. 33 stitches and an overnight sleep study later Birbiglia was diagnosed with REM sleep behavior disorder, a parasomnia that causes the body to physically act out dreams.

The series of encounters leading up to his diagnosis are the subject of a series of memoirs titled Sleepwalk with Me.

Birbiglia makes his living by standing in front of an audience recounting long, embarrassing stories about his life. His darkly humorous accounts of REM sleep behavior disorder have earned him a Nathan Lane produced one man show, several Comedy Central specials and a spot as a semi-regular contributor to NPR’s This American Life.

Along the way he’s become the unofficial face of REM behavior disorder. Fans have approached Birbiglia to tell him they’ve had similar sleepwalking experiences and won’t repeat his mistakes.

In an interview with Time Magazine, Birbiglia admitted he sleepwalked for years before he was diagnosed.

“I [often] remember thinking this, ‘This seems dangerous. Maybe I should see a doctor.” And then I would think, “Maybe I’ll [just] eat dinner.’ And I went with dinner for years.”

Birbiglia limits the frequency of these episodes by taking clonazepam, a drug used to treat seizures by activating parts of the brain to produce a calming effect. Because there is no cure, he sleeps in a makeshift cocoon. He wears a sleeping bag up to his neck with mittens so he can’t open it and get up.

Sleepwalk with Me is on bookshelves now. Look for the film version written and acted by Birbiglia coming soon.

Hear Mike Birbiglia's live full-length performance of how he leaped through a hotel window on This American Life or listen to a in-depth interview on NPR's Fresh Air.

When Dreams Come Alive: REM Sleep Behavior Disorder

Dreams that come to life are the stuff of fantasy novels and horror movies. But it’s also a reality for people who suffer from REM sleep behavior disorder.

People who have RBD act out vivid dreams as they sleep. The dreams tend to be action-packed. The dreamer may punch, kick, jump or get out of bed and run. All of this occurs while he or she is still asleep.

The disorder may sound funny. But injuries are common. Cuts, bruises or broken bones may occur to the dreamer or to a bedpartner.

Why does RBD occur? Normally your brain paralyzes most muscles during the stage of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. This is the stage of sleep when you have most dreams and nightmares. RBD occurs when the brain fails to tell the muscles to remain still.

RBD is similar to sleepwalking. But a sleepwalker tends to be confused upon waking up. Once awake, a person with RBD usually has clear recall of a vivid dream.

Sleepwalkers also are more likely to get up calmly, have their eyes open and walk out of the room. RBD actions tend to be more intense and dramatic.

RBD was identified and reported in the journal Sleep in 1986. Sixteen years later a follow-up report was published by the same research team. People with RBD are at risk for developing Parkinson’s disease.

RBD appears to be rare, affecting less than one percent of people. It is more common in older men. A new study followed 93 people with RBD. Participants had an average age of 65.4 years; 80 percent were men.

But stand-up comedian Mike Birbiglia is evidence that RBD can strike when you are younger. During his routines he often shares true stories of his RBD episodes. He is even starring in an off-Broadway show called Sleepwalk with Me.

Laughter is good medicine; but people with RBD should seek medical help. Contact an AASM-accredited sleep disorders center if you act out your dreams while you sleep.