Is Lack of Sleep Spiritual Warfare? (A Christian Doctor's Guide to Rest)
Nyree Penn, MHSc., CAA
Inventor | Founder | CEO of PROSOMNIA Sleep Health & Wellness
The Divine Calling: Anesthesia, Faith, and the Sleep Pandemic
Nyree Penn is a leading innovator in sleep health and the inventor of PROSOMNIA Sleep Therapy™, the first clinical sleep treatment utilizing anesthesia to induce REM sleep. With over a decade of experience in clinical sleep solutions, Nyree is revolutionizing how the world views and manages sleep health.
The lack of restorative sleep is becoming a global health crisis—what Nyree Penn calls a "sleep pandemic". It’s a multi-factoral problem rooted in our frantic lifestyles and a lack of education on proper sleep health. For many, the desperate search for rest leads only to exhaustion and dependency on sleeping pills.
But for Nyree Penn, the Founder and CEO of Prosomnia Sleep Health and Wellness, the solution came not through a business plan, but through a divine intervention. Nyree, a seasoned anesthesia practitioner, was planning a life of travel anesthesia when God shifted her path. A chance encounter with a colonoscopy patient who desperately declared, "I'll do anything if you put me to sleep like that again," sparked a realization. Nyree researched and found that anesthesia-induced restorative rest, her current practice, didn't exist anywhere in the world.
This journey was not defined by comfort, but by faith. Nyree understood that to walk out God’s purpose, she had to give up her comfortable, high-earning career and step into the unknown. As she shares, when God puts a purpose on your heart, you can't ignore it—"It's not up to me anymore". Her leadership, therefore, is not self-driven, but guided by a commitment to fulfilling a heavenly assignment.
Leadership is Surrender: Trusting God's Blueprint
Great leadership is often marked by conviction, but Christ-centric leadership requires surrender. Nyree Penn’s journey exemplifies this principle: she was prepared for her calling long before she knew it. With over 20 years of experience in anesthesia and a background in cellular biology and molecular genetics, God had meticulously equipped her with the exact skills needed to pioneer this therapy.
In a society that encourages self-reliance, Nyree's testimony is a powerful reminder that our professional pathways are often God’s design. She reflects on past challenges and intersections, realizing in hindsight, "Now I understand why. This makes sense. This is why".
Embracing God's Purpose:
Strengthening Faith: Nyree affirms she could not have succeeded without strengthening her faith in God.
Finding Shelter: She finds strength and shelter in God’s grace and mercy.
Guidance and Strength: She prays daily for the guidance and strength to keep moving forward.
Leadership, in Nyree’s view, is about courageously pursuing the divine blueprint, even when it requires sacrificing a secure, comfortable life. It is a life walked out on faith.
The Science of Rest: Why REM Sleep is Your Spiritual Recharge
Nyree’s PROSOMNIA Sleep Therapy™ is centered on the scientific distinction between the two types of sleep: Non-REM and REM sleep.
Non-REM sleep is for your body.
REM sleep (Rapid Eye Movement) is for your mind.
The mind is the only place it can truly rest is during REM sleep, which happens in five to seven cycles a night. If you lack non-REM sleep, you will not achieve restorative REM sleep, which is where many sleep disparities occur.
Nyree also acknowledges a spiritual dimension to this rest, observing a "strong spiritual connection between dreaming REM sleep... and your ability to recharge and refresh and rejuvenate your brain". This aligns with biblical perspectives on the importance of rest and dreams as a means of communication. When the brain is rested, it is better equipped to hear, discern, and carry out God’s will. Nyree’s practice, therefore, is a ministry of restoration—giving the mind back its ability to function optimally, cognitively and spiritually.
The Discipline of Health: Taming the Digital Beast and Pills
Nyree's work involves not only medical intervention but also behavioral change, emphasizing that physical and neurological health requires discipline. This discipline echoes the Christian call to stewardship over our bodies and minds.
The Three Pillars of Healthy Sleep:
Consistent Schedule: Make sleep a consistent habit, sticking to a schedule so your body and mind know when to rest.
Cold and Dark: The sleeping environment must be cold and dark.
Eliminate Blue Light: Electronics, like cell phones, emit blue light, which physiologically tricks your body into thinking it’s daytime, drastically decreasing melatonin production.
Furthermore, Nyree issues a warning against chronic sleeping pill and melatonin use. Melatonin creates a negative feedback system, where your body stops producing its own because it is receiving an outside source. The widespread abuse of sleeping pills is creating a dangerous tolerance, leading many patients to come to her clinic for a medication management tapering process before they can even receive treatment.
Holistic Faith: Meditating on the Anointing
The most powerful takeaway from the discussion is the holistic integration of faith and discipline. David Mansilla shares his personal, Christ-centric sleep technique that perfectly illustrates this blend:
When his mind is racing, David uses biblical meditation and deep breathing, imagining the "beautiful golden anointing oil of the Holy Spirit" relaxing his body, starting from his forehead and moving down. Most of the time, he is asleep before the oil even reaches his waist.
Key Spiritual Disciplines for Rest:
Breathing Exercises: Nyree's clinic advocates for breathing exercises, yoga, and meditation—holistic ways to calm overactive, overstimulated brains.
Biblical Meditation: Instead of secular practices, focus on meditating on the Word of God.
Spiritual Stewardship: Be mindful that every action, including stretches or poses, may have a spiritual implication.
By integrating the discipline of science (cold, dark, schedule) with the power of faith (meditation on Christ), we can achieve the restorative rest needed to fulfill our purpose and be a guiding light in a dark world.
Written by Jovilyn Dela Cruz
“But when God puts something in your spirit and on your heart and you know this is your purpose, you can pretend to sleep if you want to, but sleep is not what I was doing.”
