Sleep quality and sleep patterns

[Donachello]

Hey guys, I've been getting curious about this for a while now. I would really like to figure out a way to optimize my sleeping habits to get the most rest possible since it does not seem to be working very well for me presently.

I remember in high school i got by on like 3-4 hours of sleep a night and yeah I felt like shit every morning but by lunch time I was pretty much functioning fine. These days I pretty consistently hit the hay before midnight and get between 7 1/2 to 8 1/2 hours of sleep a night and yet I wake up feeling like I got an hour or less. I honestly can't remember the last time I woke up actually feeling refreshed from a night of sleep and I don't even wake up in the middle of the night hardly ever.

Additionally, during my first three years of college I could go out 5 days a week if I wanted to and feel relatively fine even on morning #6 having averaged like 4 hours of drunk sleep a night. Now I feel like if I go out on Friday night it takes me until Tuesday to actually feel caught up on sleep.

I'm 22 and I feel like an old man. What gives? >_<

[NobleTruths]

22??? You are up shit-creek without a paddle.

[Monty3038]

I can' t specifically give you any medical reasons why, but think about this, what has changed since then? High School is usually a time when you have little responsibility except for school and can cruise through, then college is more responsibility but also a lot more activity... after college... you fall into the 'job' arena with little other to do... except worry about every thing... bills, dating, marriage, kids, job, poker, job, etc...

Maybe it is the stress.

I'm 40 and I sleep 7-8 hours a night and wake up exhausted every day.

[rong]

I can' t specifically give you any medical reasons why, but think about this, what has changed since then? High School is usually a time when you have little responsibility except for school and can cruise through, then college is more responsibility but also a lot more activity... after college... you fall into the 'job' arena with little other to do... except worry about every thing... bills, dating, marriage, kids, job, poker, job, etc...

Maybe it is the stress.

I'm 40 and I sleep 7-8 hours a night and wake up exhausted every day.

lol lol lol

[BennyLaRue]

Are you taking care of yourself? Are you working out, bro? Are you properly hydrated? Do you carry too much stress? etc. etc.

Do you have breathing issues like sleep apnea? It's hard to get rest when you don't have enough oxygen.

[bikes]

could be time for a different mattress as well. or a visit to doctor for sleeping meds

[supa]

I'm 40 and I sleep 7-8 hours a night and wake up exhausted every day.

+1

On vacation last week and got in around midnight lastnight. Got around 4 hrs of sleep, got up to go to work and said fuck that. One more day off isn't gonna hurt.

I get up by 5am weekdays so to get 8hrs I need to be down by 9. I know that when my diet is healthy and I'm getting some non-work related exercise I feel better throughout the day. If I'm eating fast food or off the roach coach I feel like shit every day all day. I've gone bck and forth with the good diet/ shitty diet thing for 20yrs (get lazy don't pack a lunch, eat some crap and really enjoy it so do the same thing the next day...) and I can always tell how rundown I feel because of it.

Also, I rarely do this but streching or yoga in the morning always makes feel great. Tivo some yoga show and do the first 5min of stretching after you wake up and see how that feels.

[thelorax]

exercise should help.
if you already exercise, then maybe a new mattress?

also, i find it much easier to actually fall asleep (idk if thats a prob for you) if i read a book (not on my comp) for a while before i pass out.

[Alexos]

Are you taking care of yourself? Are you working out, bro? Are you properly hydrated? Do you carry too much stress? etc. etc.

Do you have breathing issues like sleep apnea? It's hard to get rest when you don't have enough oxygen.

This.

Also try to take a 20min nap in the afternoon.

[Donachello]

Thanks guys, I'm definitely going to look into a new mattress. Any suggestions on that front?

I work out 5-6 days a week but it could certainly be some end of college stress that is contributing as well. Mornings have definitely gotten worse the closer I get to graduating and the harder I look for a job.

[jyms]

90% of sleep problems are from nutrition, stress or alcohol use. What's your usual day like and what type of routine do you have at night. Computer, TV and electronic use are huge issues at night as well, causing stress type issues to the body. Give us a quick rundown of a typical day that you don't sleep after. what do you eat, drink or ingest and at what times.

I just solved a friend'ss wife's sleeping issues with having her stop taking her B vitamins after supper. That was her biggest problem. The other was her laptop came to bed with her and she was on it for an hour or so, just before sleep.

[JR9477]

Eating right is important too, food is fuel for the body!

The 20 minute cat naps really help me out.

[Donachello]

@jyms I know some of my current habits are probably less than ideal. It's not so much that I have trouble falling asleep (probably only takes me 15-30 minutes once I am in bed) it's more than even after a solid time of sleep I wake up feeling shitty as all hell.

But basically here's is my schedule.

7-8am wake up, dick around or do homework until class at 9 MWF and 10 T/TH. Sometimes grab breakfast, sometimes not. (I've been trying to start running during this time but I haven't felt up to it very often and running while exhausted is just torture).

9/10-12 class.

12:30 lunch.

1:00-4 MWF work.
1-3 Tues work.

4-6 (MWF) relax for half an hour then go to the gym.
4-6 (T/TH) class.

6-7 dinner MTWF
6-10 (TH) class

Any free time left is spent on the computer making music, browsing the internet or doing homework while watching TV.

Generally try to get in bed between 11-12 though it sometimes slips to 1 or 1:30. I usually go straight from computer to bed and often fall asleep with the TV on low volume Sports Center.

I've definitely fallen off this last week or so from eating very well and am often only eating once or twice a day which I know is pretty terrible.

Weekends recently pretty much consist of me sitting in my room recovering from the week and zoning out in front of the computer TV with a break for a short run at some point. Basically never go out to the bars anymore due to expense and knowing that I'll spend the next 3-4 days feeling tired and unable to be 100% for work and school.

[jyms]

Lifehacker, tips and downloads for getting things done

[!Luck]

I find that drinking lots of water helps a lot. Esp in the morning. I also always try to drink half a glass of water before bed. it is enough to keep you hydrated without needing o wake up to go pee.

Also you just might be depressed.

[Illfavor]

I like the Sleep Cycle app.

But yea, I'm sure all that health stuff helps too or something.

[rpm]

i have a fuckload of trouble with sleep too. i haven't really experimented much with things like diet etc to remedy this, but i personally find that the best thing to do is to go about my day with the single goal of being completely drained by its conclusion. if i'm exhausted by the time i go to bed, the day has been successful. i seem to feel far more refreshed and rejuvenated the next day if i do this.

that said, you seem to be pretty active physically (compared to me at least), and you don't have any trouble getting to sleep (which i do in a big way), so, in all likelihood, yours is a completely different problem to mine but hey, maybe this will help in some small way. GL.

[philly and the phanatics]

meditating and eating right both help

[scott_owen]

i'm the same, I blame diet, lack of exercise and mattress quality.. plus i work alot harder now since i'm not being supported by anyone other than myself.. i don't think i'm stressed, but i'm definately more stressed than i was when i was younger.

gf's chiro recommends temporapedic memory foam mattresses, something about it molding to your body and if you're sleeping with someone your not effected in any way by their weight on the bed. also says good pillows are pretty important.

[bigred]

fap

[kiwiMark]

IT'S POSSIBLE TO GET TWO GREEN SQUARES?!

[Donachello]

IT'S POSSIBLE TO GET TWO GREEN SQUARES?!

fucking this +1

Thanks for all the advice guys. I'm definitely going to look into some of this stuff. Tried going to bed last night at 10, turned off the TV and everything. Probably ended up getting between an hour and an hour and 30 minutes of actual sleep cause I couldn't get comfortable all night. lol. So much for being well rested today :P

[Halv]

Omg so many questions. How many green squares can you get? Why do I only have one? Can you get several red squares?

[rong]

Memory foam is the fucking nuts.

But I would guess stress sounds like the issue. Getting organised is the best cure for stress. I write lists, organise what I can control or influence and focus my time on that. Really helps for me, but everyone's different.

[jyms]

Oh you can get lots of squares and yes you can get lots of red. It's going to take a while but soon enough we will see people trending to large scale squarage.

[givememyleg]

been sleeping 100x better past 2 months since i started working out.

but i'm also one of the few lucky ones who can sleep until 3pm one day, then get up at 9am the next and be fine with it. not really any time commitments and that really reduces stress. when i was working a 7-3 M-F and during school my stress levels were very high, almost always due to being tired. i would go mad being forced to a set schedule again.

[DoubleJ]

I'm definitely going to look into a new mattress. Any suggestions on that front?

The Natural Luxury Bed Collection from Vi-Spring is a promise of quality

not cheap, but sooooooooo good.

Downside - the chick in pic # 1 is not included

[Nakamura]

Circadian rhythms. Circadiana: What is a 'natural' sleep pattern?

Basic low down is people tend to sleep naturally in 4 hours blocks. This is why people can function on 4 hours of sleep, but eventually you need to pay back that time. I personally sleep in about 4.5 hours cycles and need about 9 hours sleep, or I just feel like crap.

[kevster]

These days I pretty consistently hit the hay before midnight and get between 7 1/2 to 8 1/2 hours of sleep a night and yet I wake up feeling like I got an hour or less. I honestly can't remember the last time I woke up actually feeling refreshed from a night of sleep and I don't even wake up in the middle of the night hardly ever.

If this is true then I'd definitely think about seeing a doctor. There could be issues with your metabolism, thyroid etc. Your issues sound identical to symptoms that my wife had before being diagnosed with an under-active thyroid and fibromyalgia.

[oskar]

For me changing to a really subtle alarm helped a lot. It goes on for a couple of minutes before it wakes me up, and then I get up right away. Snooze buttons are death.

[Monty3038]

lol lol lol

TYVM.

[rong]

I'm laughing because it's true, and I'm only 30.