Becoming Nocturnal

[Master X]

What if a human being decides to sleep during the day and live his life at night? Would that person have a hard time adjusting to sleeping during the day?

Would it be unhealthy and less effective than night sleep? Our eye sight makes us creatures of the day but we don’t have to be. What would happen if I started doing this?

[Minsc]

You might have some problems with melatonin but you should be able to adapt fine other than that.

If you do, you can go to bed an hour later every day to adapt easily.

[NotesMaeve]

I worked third shift as a manager right out of college. Frankly, it sucks and you greatly miss out on life and socializing, especially in a small town.

[Sam988]

Well i'm kind of nocturnal. I normally wake up at 11:30am and since my university classes happen at 7:30pm to 10:45pm i got used to being more nocturnal. I swim 3 times a week at around 10:30pm (since classes usually don't last until 10:30pm) and love to do it in the night. The place where i swim has glass roofs so i can see the stars and the moon and all that. Strangely, it is around 10 pm when my energy daily energy peaks.


And i usually go to bed at around 4am. I got used to being more nocturnal especially because i don't have anything to do in the morning and i hate (can't get used to) waking up early, despite my best attempts to change this habit.

[DarkSociologist]

Yeah, the melatonin thing.

You get melatonin when it's dark outside (you have to be in the darkness for your body to start producing it), which helps you sleep. It's also apparently a very powerful antioxidant, so you might have an increased risk of cancer.

I'm sure your circadian rhythms can adapt though. So you'll feel like crap the first few days, then start feeling somewhat normal.

Any particular reason why you would want to do this? Just to see what happens?

[YazKMan]

Originally Posted by DarkSociologist

Yeah, the melatonin thing.

You get melatonin when it's dark outside (you have to be in the darkness for your body to start producing it), which helps you sleep. It's also apparently a very powerful antioxidant, so you might have an increased risk of cancer.

I'm sure your circadian rhythms can adapt though. So you'll feel like crap the first few days, then start feeling somewhat normal.

Any particular reason why you would want to do this? Just to see what happens?

Melatonin has also been shown recently to aid memory formation (although the experiment was performed in zebrafish).

[mlc82]

In my perfect world, I'd sleep days and be awake nights. For some reason, I just like the dark more so than the day most of the time, despise getting up early, and can easily stay up all night long without even noticing. Once 8 or 9pm hits, no matter how sleepy I might be during the day, it's like I get an intense burst of energy that just doesn't go away until I force myself into bed- Once I actually do go to sleep though, waking up is generally pure hell on earth.

I've been like this since my early teens.

[DarkSociologist]

Originally Posted by mlc82

In my perfect world, I'd sleep days and be awake nights. For some reason, I just like the dark more so than the day most of the time, despise getting up early, and can easily stay up all night long without even noticing. Once 8 or 9pm hits, no matter how sleepy I might be during the day, it's like I get an intense burst of energy that just doesn't go away until I force myself into bed- Once I actually do go to sleep though, waking up is generally pure hell on earth.

I've been like this since my early teens.

That's kind of cool. What time do you go to sleep and wake up now?

[mlc82]

Originally Posted by DarkSociologist

That's kind of cool. What time do you go to sleep and wake up now?

Lately I haven't actually needed to be up really early, so have been forcing myself into bed around 1 or 2am (I'm trying to get this back to 12am), and waking up at 9 or 930am. I try to wake up around the same time every day regardless of when I go to sleep.

When I say "forcing myself", 9 times out of 10 I mean FORCING myself. There's always something else I'd rather be doing, and it's frustrating because my best ideas always come to me at night, but seem to be nonexistant during the day (along with any enthusiasm to put them to work until the next night comes along).

If I didn't have a line of work that pretty well requires doing what I do during the day, and a girlfriend, I would live like a vampire

[DarkSociologist]

Maybe you should see what ideas come to you late at night on the weekends. You might find something good and then can quit your job.

Oh, and maybe you should try lucid dreaming. That way you're getting your sleep, but you're conscious as well and can get those good ideas.

[mlc82]

Originally Posted by DarkSociologist

Maybe you should see what ideas come to you late at night on the weekends. You might find something good and then can quit your job.

Oh, and maybe you should try lucid dreaming. That way you're getting your sleep, but you're conscious as well and can get those good ideas.

I honestly might as well not have a job right now- I'm a self employed personal trainer and business is DEAD from Thanksgiving through Xmas

I keep a notebook and pen at my computer desk, and scribble ideas down constantly- it's buckling down and getting to doing them that I have to sometimes kick myself on

[ginkgo]

Humans are very good at adapting to different things. Some animals are meat eaters and some are vegetarian but humans can eat either way. There is actually the technical term of larks and owls referring to studies done on people who like being awake during the day or at night. My mother was an owl and she worked 9 to 5 and hated it. I am an owl and have spent decades being awake at night and have no problem sleeping. During nicer weather I try to wake up by 12:30 PM so I can sunbathe. I go to sleep around 3:00 AM.

I can also have a day schedule but do not like or prefer it. I guess it is the saying "I am a night person." John Travolta said on the Jay Leno show (a late night show) that he goes to sleep around 5:00 AM and that Jay Leno goes to sleep around 3:00 AM. I hear that New York has lots of activity late at night. A college woman told me that she goes to a copy place near NYU college around 4:00 AM and it is very busy. In Philadelphia I can go to a copy place or supermarket at 4:00 and hardly anyone is there.

Pennsylvania has a law that public places cannot sell alcohol after 2:00 AM. People tell me that in NYC you can buy anything late at night. Also I notice that in my area people are awake much later on Friday and Saturday night since they do not have to get up early for thier job. I used to drive a cab (Sat and Sun) from 5 PM to 5AM. The day drivers drive from 5AM to 5 PM.