EDMONTON — When clocks fall back this coming weekend, most of us will gain an hour of rest – a welcome gift in a world where sleep, like sex, has become something many people worry about.
University of Alberta political theorist Cressida Heyes has launched a new podcast called "Sleep is the New Sex,” drawing on her long-term research project into the cultural politics of sleep. The podcast explores how our attitudes towards sleep reflect deeper ideas around gender, identity, sexuality, work and the economy. Each episode features a different guest expert and covers a range of topics including beauty sleep, sleep coaching, working from bed, and sexual violence.
In some ways, says Heyes, sleep has become a symbol for what’s wrong with modern life.
"It has taken over from sex, or at least is alongside it, as a subject of tremendous cultural anxiety. Are other people getting more and better? Am I doing it right?"
Today’s “sleep crisis” in a stress-filled world is often driven by circumstances beyond our control, such as exploitative labour conditions or shift work, explains Heyes.
"There is this hustle and grind mentality that just won't die," she says, "that we should all work ourselves into an early grave in the prospect of some kind of economic or personal success.
"For example, some elite men are still interested in telling us they don't sleep and that this is a sign of virtue. But who really benefits from an exaggerated “work ethic”? Not workers."
Even when sleep is represented as positive, it’s often in the context of consumerism. The global sleep-aid industry is worth more than $1 billion, in many ways making it the "new sex," says Heyes.
“Our podcast is about teaching “sleep literacy” — how to decode all the cultural messages about sleep that come our way, not just as wellbeing advice but as politics.”
To speak with Cressida Heyes, please contact:
Sarah Vernon | U of A Media Relations Strategist | svernon@ualberta.ca