are you an insomniac?

[wellington1869]

discuss.

[mr_a500]

No.

[mr_a500]

OK... my first answer was a little too brief, so let me elaborate.

It always takes me at least half an hour to get to sleep and I must be lying completely flat. It is impossible for me to sleep sitting up. I also can't sleep with any noise - like radio or TV. (or people discussing the next fiscal quarter)

I sleep best with a huge industrial-sized fan drowning out any small noises. Unfortunately, even industrial-sized fans don't stop deep-bass subwoofers - so when I hear thumping bass, I want to kill people.

[unicomp]

Not usually. If I have some ideas that I can't forget then I might be somewhat unable to sleep.

[instantkamera]

nay, unless I travel alone (I can't sleep in hotels). I fall asleep to music or talking (used to be the radio, now podcasts).

[mr_a500]

I fall asleep to music or talking (used to be the radio, now podcasts).

I don't know how people can do that. If I hear any music or talking while I'm sleeping, it makes me sick. Even when I'm listening to music I like, as soon as I start getting tired I have to turn the music off or I'll start feeling sick.

[elservo]

As long as I shut off everything except for the fan in the bedroom, I fall asleep pretty quickly.  I feel pretty insane if I leave the television on too late, though, so I usually have to shut it off early and then put myself in some sort of sleep ritual to get really tired.  The laptop has kept me up all night on more than one occasion, so I've been trying my best to shut that off early, too, but my best so far has not been good enough.

[Lanx]

yes, it's gone on for so long that my fiancee cannot sleep if i am sleeping first which adds to my insomnia actually, so i stay up till she sleeps, this usually isn't an issue until i try to "correct" myself and sleep at like 11/12 sometimes. I don't mind this anyway, much better than coddling! (not like i'm a brute but really... only women like coddling anyway)

[williamjoseph]

OK... my first answer was a little too brief, so let me elaborate.

It always takes me at least half an hour to get to sleep and I must be lying completely flat. It is impossible for me to sleep sitting up. I also can't sleep with any noise - like radio or TV. (or people discussing the next fiscal quarter)

I sleep best with a huge industrial-sized fan drowning out any small noises. Unfortunately, even industrial-sized fans don't stop deep-bass subwoofers - so when I hear thumping bass, I want to kill people.

My god.... i must have a twin....

[wellington1869]

a half hour to get to sleep? I wish I could say that.

I cant sleep unless I'm physically or mentally exhausted. And when I am, I sleep whereever I am and no matter what time of day. So either way my "sleep at night" schedule blows up.

As evidenced by my 3 AM wild postings on GH.

That said, in a given 24 hour period, I do tend to get my 7 hours in somehow. Its just a question of what time to what time.  I wish I could sleep from, say, midnight to 7am like normal people. It would make my social relationships much easier.

The only way I can keep that schedule is if I play tennis every evening, wearing me out thus. The days when I play evening tennis I sleep well and keep a normal schedule.

[wellington1869]

I used to be able to do "tricks" to get into sleep mode. You know, like when you were little, and your parents made you drink warm milk, or change into pajamas, or some other ritual, which could put your mind into a different 'mode' and ready for sleep.  I cant seem to do that anymore voluntarily.

[instantkamera]

I don't know how people can do that. If I hear any music or talking while I'm sleeping, it makes me sick. Even when I'm listening to music I like, as soon as I start getting tired I have to turn the music off or I'll start feeling sick.

I dunno. It makes me feel very relaxed, like when my parents used to read to me.

[mr_a500]

My god.... i must have a twin....

It's like in The Simpsons when Milhouse meets another Milhouse and says, "Now I know what it feels like... when doves cry."

a half hour to get to sleep? I wish I could say that.

I cant sleep unless I'm physically or mentally exhausted. And when I am, I sleep whereever I am and no matter what time of day. So either way my "sleep at night" schedule blows up.

As evidenced by my 3 AM wild postings on GH.

Bah! Who has time for a "sleep at night" schedule? I sleep whenever. I have no pattern. My favourite time to sleep is 7am to 2pm - but I also like to sleep from 4pm to 8pm. I'm not picky though. I can easily sleep from 1am to 11am. If I drink an entire bottle of good Cabernet Sauvignon, I can get to sleep in 15 minutes, but I'll wake up 5 hours later, post on geekhack, then go back to bed for another 8 hours. (wake up screaming, claw at the sky, then back to sleep)

[wellington1869]

lol thats like my day.

hey, part of the new globalized world is the 24-hour work day. I figure i'm just being 'post modern'.

[Brian8bit]

My body clock works in 36 hours. Awake for 24, sleep 12. Sometimes though I won't sleep for a couple of days. I just find that sometimes I don't need to sleep. Also suffer from exploding head syndrome and sleep paralysis.

[wellington1869]

i do think afternoon naps (siestas) are very 'civilized'.  They should allow for those at work. We take them anyway.

[mr_a500]

i do think afternoon naps (siestas) are very 'civilized'.  They should allow for those at work. We take them anyway.

I totally agree. You shouldn't be forced to be vertical the entire day. You need to be horizontal occasionally. (blood flow... stuff like that)

"Sex siestas" are very good too.  (...but I doubt they'd allow them in the office)

[Rajagra]

I've always fell asleep quickly until my last job became stressful (in a bad way, not the useful type) and then I became unable to sleep for days at a time. It was killing me.

What helped me cure the problem was understanding it, which I managed by reading "The Promise of Sleep" by William C. Dement. It explained a lot of things that made no sense to me before. The basic principles aren't that complex, which makes it all the more shocking that general practitioners are terribly ignorant about sleep disorders and treat sufferers wrongly.

I totally recommend the book to anyone who has any concerns about sleep.

Key points are that there are several competing factors that determine whether you are sleepy or not. The main ones being sleep debt and the Circadian rhythm.

Sleep debt is simply the idea that for every two hours you are awake, you develop one hour's worth of sleep debt that needs to be paid back (for an average person.) The more sleep debt you have, the more sleepy you tend to be. Sleep debt is cumulative!!! If you continuously sleep less than you need, the debt gets large - and a single, long sleep session may not clear it.

The Circadian rhythm is often misunderstood. It is not what makes you sleep once a day. It is what makes you alert twice a day. Once in the morning to wake you, and again in the late afternoon to help you resist the sleep debt that you have accumulated during the day.

There are other factors like stimulation and caffeine, etc. but the above two are the main ones, once you understand them it can explain what otherwise seems like illogical effects.

[itlnstln]

I have also heard that insomnia is a symptom not a condition, but I'm no doctor.  Did "The Promise of Sleep" cover that at all?

[Rajagra]

I have also heard that insomnia is a symptom not a condition, but I'm no doctor.  Did "The Promise of Sleep" cover that at all?

Yes. It covers more of the actual conditions than you can shake a stick at. Well, at least a dozen if I remember correctly. Been a few years since I read it. It's not a quick read. But I was highly motivated to plough through it at the time. It was well worth it. Doctors tend to tread sleep disorders as trivial or imaginary, and can make you feel like an idiot for suffering with them. It takes a book like this to make you realise the doctors are often the idiots.

[itlnstln]

I'll have to check it out.  Thanks, raj.

I wonder if they have it on Audiobook.  Then, I can play it to help me fall asleep.  

Just kidding, of course.

[itlnstln]

I'll have to check it out.  Thanks, raj.

I wonder if they have it on Audiobook.  Then, I can play it to help me fall asleep.  

Just kidding, of course.

[Rajagra]

Managed to find some scans. Contains some sad stories of misdiagnoses.

[instantkamera]

I've always fell asleep quickly until my last job became stressful (in a bad way, not the useful type) and then I became unable to sleep for days at a time. It was killing me.

What helped me cure the problem was understanding it, which I managed by reading "The Promise of Sleep" by William C. Dement. It explained a lot of things that made no sense to me before. The basic principles aren't that complex, which makes it all the more shocking that general practitioners are terribly ignorant about sleep disorders and treat sufferers wrongly.

I totally recommend the book to anyone who has any concerns about sleep.

Key points are that there are several competing factors that determine whether you are sleepy or not. The main ones being sleep debt and the Circadian rhythm.

Sleep debt is simply the idea that for every two hours you are awake, you develop one hour's worth of sleep debt that needs to be paid back (for an average person.) The more sleep debt you have, the more sleepy you tend to be. Sleep debt is cumulative!!! If you continuously sleep less than you need, the debt gets large - and a single, long sleep session may not clear it.

The Circadian rhythm is often misunderstood. It is not what makes you sleep once a day. It is what makes you alert twice a day. Once in the morning to wake you, and again in the late afternoon to help you resist the sleep debt that you have accumulated during the day.

There are other factors like stimulation and caffeine, etc. but the above two are the main ones, once you understand them it can explain what otherwise seems like illogical effects.

interesting

[wellington1869]

sounds like there's a mosquito in your room. no wonder you cant sleep.

[chongyixiong]

I sleep much more easily when it's raining outside and the overall environment is colder (it's warm here, sometimes even at night - I live on the equator okay)..

However, I too sleep easily when there's talking on the radio or listening to calm music.
Recently, I enjoyed using the following site to soothe my jumpy soul before I fall asleep:

http://www.soundsleeping.com

My combination is:
100% thunder
60% rain
40% fire
20% beach

So it's like sleeping under a homemade tree on the beach on a desert island with thunderstorms over the horizon.. sweet

PS: interesting book btw

[clickclack]

Well that was a fun site, I wish I had speakers instead of my headphones for it. I don't think I could quite use your settings though, a bit too much like a natural disaster going on! Lawls XD


I don't think I have a sleeping problem, well... in terms of the actual sleeping part that is. I just tend to like staying up later as I feel it's more calming and I can focus a bit better. But I a am worried it might become a bad habbit. I tend to go to bed between 4am and 7am regardless of when I need to wake up at.

hmmm... come to think of it I should be hitting the hey right about now, peace out!

[J888www]

I don't know how people can do that. If I hear any music or talking while I'm sleeping, it makes me sick. Even when I'm listening to music I like, as soon as I start getting tired I have to turn the music off or I'll start feeling sick.

Probably because your preference of music is not "soothing/relaxing" type ? you're not going to fall asleep to AC/DC or would you ? Why do you think people sing Lullabies to children to help them reach the state of slumber ? because some soft music may calm the state of mind/stress/excitement.
 
Sometimes, drinking less tea, coffee and no MSG may help, but if you are a "true insomniac", you'll be able to get some sleep on that great big bed behind the Pearly Gates/Nirvana/Valhalla, whatever the destination of your sojourn, there's a nice mattress in waiting.

I try to sleep as less as possibly, one life-time is far too short to be wasted away unnecessarily.

[mr_a500]

Probably because your preference of music is not "soothing/relaxing" type ? you're not going to fall asleep to AC/DC or would you ? Why do you think people sing Lullabies to children to help them reach the state of slumber ? because some soft music may calm the state of mind/stress/excitement.

I hate AC/DC. I listen to Baroque music. It doesn't matter how soothing it is - I can't listen to music while sleeping (or near sleeping). My brain wants to follow the music and can't relax.

[Rajagra]

I used to have 2 PCs on in my bedroom 24/7 (running Folding At Home.) PCs are pretty good white noise generators, so do a good job of masking external noise. Once you get used to the sound you not only learn to ignore it, you start to associate it with sleep and find it relaxing.

I never had much luck with earplugs - even custom moulded ones I had made. They reduce sound, but not enough for you to stop hearing anything. And if they cause any discomfort after being in for a few hours, they are doing more harm than good.

[mr_a500]

There is one good type of earplug sold here with a 33 decibel rating (highest I've seen) that are quite comfortable - not too bulky and don't stick out too far. They're skin coloured too, so not too noticeable if worn in public (unlike those annoyingly bright neon pink ones). Still, they do absolutely nothing to stop deep bass. They mostly block the higher frequencies.

[EverythingIBM]

I hate AC/DC. I listen to Baroque music. It doesn't matter how soothing it is - I can't listen to music while sleeping (or near sleeping). My brain wants to follow the music and can't relax.

AC/DC needs moar harpsichord and polyphony.

I used to have 2 PCs on in my bedroom 24/7 (running Folding At Home.) PCs are pretty good white noise generators, so do a good job of masking external noise. Once you get used to the sound you not only learn to ignore it, you start to associate it with sleep and find it relaxing.

I never had much luck with earplugs - even custom moulded ones I had made. They reduce sound, but not enough for you to stop hearing anything. And if they cause any discomfort after being in for a few hours, they are doing more harm than good.

I *really* like the sound of a light hum of a computer in the background when I'm sleeping... it gives me some peace of mind, I don't know why. Preferably a quiet computer though, so it's not obtrusive, yet calming at the same time.