What happens in the borderland between sleep and waking?

with Baland Jalal, Harvard University

Recording will be sent to all ticket holders.

Join us for an evening with the world expert on sleep paralysis, a brilliant, often terrifying journey into what the strange experiences at the borderlands of sleep can tell us about how our brains work, our sense of self is built, and consciousness arises. Ultimately, leading back to the universal pillars of human experience and emotions like jealousy, fear, embarrassment, love, belief, and free will.

One in five of us will have experienced visceral nightmares at least once in our lives and about half the world’s population has had a lucid dream.

Baland Jalal has spent the last decade exploring sleep disorders in six different countries, diving into fascinating stories and strange occurrences when our dream world spills into our waking brain, like dreaming with your eyes open. How does our upbringing and culture affect these  experiences? Why do some people see ghosts, witches, demons, aliens, vampires and even gigantic cats? 

“His work offers unique insights into how culture can impact the experience, why people see ghosts, and how to treat it.” Devon Hinton, Harvard Medical School

“This is done in a deep and serious, yet accessible way.” V. S. Ramachandran, University of California San Diego

Join Baland for a live discussion on the strangest hours of the night, with time for your own questions

The Phantom Mind:  Insights from the Borderlands of Sleep will be available to purchase on the night, and is officially published on 12 November. Pre-ordered now at Waterstones, Foyles, Amazon, The Guaradian Bookstore and more.

Schedule 

• 18:30:  Arrive & grab a  drink
• 19:00-20:00: Discussion and Q&A
• 20:30: Exit Venue

Baland Jalal

Baland Jalal is a researcher in the Department of Psychology at Harvard and the author of more than 50 scientific papers. His fascination with sleep paralysis has taken him from Copenhagen to Cambridge to Harvard, and his work has been featured in The New York Times and the BBC. He also writes for TIME magazine.

Your Organiser

Kate is an event coordinator at the Psychedelic Society. Her research background spans clinical sleep studies, altered states of consciousness, and personalised gene therapies. She currently works applying neuroscience to the arts at the neuroaesthetics lab, Kinda Studios. Working with Onaya Science, she explores how rituals, music, and plant medicines support trauma recovery. Kate brings curiosity and care to the ways we feel, connect, and transform (and will usually be found outside).

@katedalbyy

The Venue

We will be meeting at beautiful , The Sanctuary, &Soul. 

The venue serves  a variety of drinks and food available for purchase on the night.

Please reach out if you require concessionary tickets.

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ACCESS:  We do our best to include everyone in our events, regardless of health circumstances. If you have access requirements please email the event organiser directly to discuss. Many facilitators are able to offer reduced ticket prices for those truly unable to afford the ticket price. If this applies to you, do please get in touch with the event organiser.

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