Clare Ladyman

'I could cope so much better if I could just get a good night's sleep.' This regularly repeated phrase from friends and mothers far and wide (as well as herself) is what prompted Clare Ladyman into the field of sleep science. Clare's PhD looked at how sleep and mental health are related throughout the pregnancy and postnatal periods, and how providing information on sleep can help reduce the likelihood of mothers experiencing depression. She completed her research studies at the Sleep/Wake Research Centre, Massey University, Wellington, and now lives in Perth, Western Australia, with her husband and two teenage boys (who finally now sleep... a lot). Leigh Signal has been a sleep scientist for over 20 years. She is presently associate professor and portfolio director, Fatigue Management and Sleep Health, at the Sleep/Wake Research Centre, Massey University, Wellington. Ten years ago, when she was pregnant with her second child and struggling with her own sleep, she began a series of projects looking at the links between perinatal sleep and mothers' health. One of the projects she co-led was entitled E, Moe Mama ('Go to sleep, mother'). Although when translated it sounds like an instruction, the name is meant to convey care, support and encouragement for mothers to be able to sleep well, which is what she hopes this book helps you do.