ANTONIO
ZADRA
I hold a PhD in clinical psychology from McGill University, am Professor of Psychology at the Université de Montréal and a researcher at the Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur’s Centre for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine. My research interests include lucid dreaming, nightmares, recurrent dreams, somnambulism and dream-related parasomnias. In addition to numerous publications on sleep, dreams, and dream-related disorders, my books include When Brains Dream: Exploring the Science and Mystery of Sleep (2021), co-authored with Robert Stickgold, and The Dreamkeepers (2021), a suspense novel blending sleep science with dream mythology. My work has been featured in television documentaries (e.g., PBS Nova, CBC’s The Nature of Things) and written up in various magazines, including the New Yorker, Slate, Washington Post, The Guardian, Bloomberg, le Figaro, Psychology Today, and New Scientist.
In a few words, explain what drew you to this project.
I have always been interested in interdisciplinary projects involving the fields of sleep and dreams. The Sociability of Sleep represents a particularly exciting project that brings together people with a wide range of complimentary backgrounds to bring to fruition an innovative and important social initiative.
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Q & A
How would you describe your relationship to sleep?
Intimate.
Why do you find sleep a compelling site for research?
Much about the nature and multiple functions of sleep remains poorly understood. While people are becoming increasingly aware of the vital role sleep plays in their lives, this universal state of being that occupies a third of our lives still holds many mysteries.
What do you think is the biggest misconception people have about sleep?
That sleep is a homogenous state during which little of value happens.
Are you an early bird or night owl?
Night owl by nature, early bird by familial obligations.
Do you use a sleep monitoring app. If so, which and why?
I don’t as a lot of evidence indicates that sleep trackers are rather unreliable and the resulting data inaccurate on many fronts.
Do you have a recurring dream, or have you ever had any particularly notable recurring dreams?
I’ve had several. One of my favourite is discovering a new room in the house where I grew up.
What is your favourite [song/podcast/video/audio book/tv show] to fall asleep to?
I prefer to read my way to sleep.