Project Sleep’s President & CEO, Julie Flygare, JD, spoke on the emerging science of sleep health and sleep disorders at Aspen Ideas: Health 2023, over June 21 – 24, 2023. In the session, “The Gift of Sleep,” Julie shared her insights alongside Jeff Aronin, Chairman & CEO of Paragon Biosciences, and Dr. Chris Winter, a neurologist and sleep specialist.
Sleep, perchance to dream—and to awaken restored, energetic, and prepared to meet the challenges of the day. The evolutionary gift of sleep lowers the risk of chronic disease, and supports brain health, immune function, and emotional regulation. Yet one in three adults say they don’t get enough sleep and as many as 70 million Americans suffer from insomnia, narcolepsy, sleep apnea, or another sleep disorder. Cultivating the right habits can improve the quantity and quality of your sleep and align your shut-eye with your body’s circadian rhythms.
Julie felt honored to be featured alongside many other “big thinkers and innovative doers,” including Anthony Fauci, Former Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases; Chelsea Clinton, Vice Chair of the Clinton Foundation; and US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy.
Aspen Ideas: Health gathers each summer to elevate and accelerate bold approaches to better health for all. For this 3-day event, their global community of over 1,000 attendees meet on the Aspen Institute’s Colorado campus. This community includes healthcare and public health practitioners, researchers, business leaders, policymakers, advocates, artists, and journalists.
The conference is designed to engage challenging conversations, introduce extraordinary innovations, and guide deep dives into transformations that lie ahead. Project Sleep is incredibly excited that sleep health and sleep disorders was included in this year’s conversation.
In this unique broadcast, Julie shares her journey—from wanting to push narcolepsy out of her life to founding Project Sleep. She then reads favorite passages from her book, Wide Awake and Dreaming: A Memoir of Narcolepsy. Julie also shares what’s helped her live well with narcolepsy and offers tips to get started in advocacy and awareness. Afterward, she answers questions from live viewers.
On March 22, 2022, Julie delivered a TEDx Talk at San Diego State University. Julie’s talk, “What Can You Learn from a Professional Dreamer?” focuses on the power of sleep. Sleep can be harnessed for good, but can also bring us down in ways we might never have imagined.
