Sleep Dilemma

[Spiderguy252]

I'm 19, and have never been a morning person for many years now. I tend to, and don't mind staying up late; I've also managed to pull off all-nighters if a situation so demands, without any major consequences the following day.

So here's my problem. Unfortunately for me, as the way things work out in today's world, everybody absolutely NEEDS to wake up pretty darn early (7 AM for an 8 AM class in my case). Why I can't do that with ease is obvious. But my question is, since I face a similar amount of difficulty waking up in the mornings regardless of whether I stay up late or not, is it advisable to keep my eyes open until past midnight, as I would like to do to get things done? Or should health come first and should I ensure I get my full quota of 6-8 hours of sleep?

[NoJobRob]

Only 6 to 8? Damn. I need 8 to 10. LOL I never was a morning person either, but these days I wake up naturally at around 9 or so. I think that's reasonable. I'm not exactly a spitting image of someone with good sleeping habits, but I know that for me, I can't just lay down and go to sleep if I'm not tired. If I try I'll just lay there for 4 hours and get really pissed because I can't fall asleep. I have to stay up until I get drowsy and then go to bed. I'm a slow starter too. When I get up it's best that no one says anything to me until I have 2 cups of coffee in me. I also take forever to get in gear. If I have stuff to do I'll just drink coffee and sit in front of the computer for 3 hours until I feel like getting in the shower. LOL But I'm a hard worker so I've earned the right to be lazy in the mornings.

Have you looked into taking afternoon or evening classes? When I was in college that's all I did, except for one or two classes that were only held at the butt crack of dawn. For those I just sucked it up and dealt with it. What else can you do?

[Spiderguy252]

I wish I had that luxury of waking up at 9. In fact, it'd be just about perfect for my day.

[billionairekid]

Your body has a certain rhythm that it's been trained to follow. It is possible to alter that rhythm with dedication and a little discipline. Whether you want to or not is up to you. I'm not a big fan of modern science because they tend to be narrow-minded but sleep study after sleep study confirms that regardless of how you feel, cognitive functioning decreases dramatically when you are sleep deprived (anything less than 7 to 8 hours a night).

Studies also repeatedly show that the longer you are sleep deprived, the worse you will perform on cognitive functioning tests. This often means that you make small mistakes or won’t perform to your full ability. In both cases you tend to miss these consequences in your subjective reality because well, it's subjective.

I recommend adjusting your schedule to ensure that you are getting your 7-8 hours of sleep.

[SatvikBeri]

I would try waking up at the same time EVERY day (including weekends) and then sleep whenever is natural-this is a method that Steve suggests on his website, and it worked wonderfully for me.

[RobbiePringle]

SpiderGuy252, maybe you're struggling to get up in the morning because you're not fully in love with what you are doing?

And maybe you're staying up so late at night because you're trying to squeeze something out of the rest of your day?

I don't know; what is it you want for your life?

I know, for my part, that if my day (particularly evening) has been spent doing something I really like doing, and that I am moving my life forward even in some small way, I can go to bed really late and wake the next morning fresh as a daisy.

However, if my day has been spent in struggle and toil, and I'm feeling frustrated, again staying up late because I want to change something, make something happen - as opposed to loving it all, and feeling the flow - I wake sluggish as hell.

Scientists can jabber on about optimum quantities of sleep all they like, in a world of six billion people how can they know? What's right for one person isn't for another and as it's often the case we make restitution for crappy living by doubling our efforts, the toll is quite telling - hence the need for more and more sleep.

Flow's where it's at, bro...

[ginkgo]

My mother was a night person. A day job destroyed her mental and physical health. Jay Leno was saying that he stays awake until like 3AM and mentioned other TV / movie stars that were like that.

I am also a night person. For years I had to drive a cab on the weekends since my home based business did not make enough. I drove the night shift and I loved it. Start 5PM and drive to close to 5 AM or stop a little early if I want.

Watch out! I owned the night. You have night DJs that rock. Actually rock stars do not go to bed early. Have you read the article posted on here a year ago saying that the average intelligence of night people is higher than that of day people. The technical term is larks and owls.

Intelligence: The Evolution of Night Owls | Psychology Today

[Porphyos]

Just out of curiosity, what happens if you have a strenuous day? Like you expend all of your energy at a theme park or doing a marathon or something? Do you still stay up late and wake up late?

[Spiderguy252]

Originally Posted by RobbiePringle

SpiderGuy252, maybe you're struggling to get up in the morning because you're not fully in love with what you are doing?

This is sadly, true. You've hit the nail on the head.

Originally Posted by Porphyos

Just out of curiosity, what happens if you have a strenuous day? Like you expend all of your energy at a theme park or doing a marathon or something? Do you still stay up late and wake up late?

In that case, I feel drowsy towards the evening but when the clock starts moving towards the 10s and 11s, my body gets back in gear and I'm wide awake again. Funny, eh?

[Mister G]

This article may help :
Using Electronics Before Bed May Hamper Sleep - MSN Health - Sleep Disorders

Regards,

[russianrocket]

Originally Posted by Spiderguy252

This is sadly, true. You've hit the nail on the head.



In that case, I feel drowsy towards the evening but when the clock starts moving towards the 10s and 11s, my body gets back in gear and I'm wide awake again. Funny, eh?

I've kinda experienced the same thing. I'm not even going to entertain the thought that I'm a "night person", as the night is very pointless to me, and being wide awake at night is worth less to me then being drowsy during the day.

[russianrocket]

Originally Posted by ginkgo

My mother was a night person. A day job destroyed her mental and physical health. Jay Leno was saying that he stays awake until like 3AM and mentioned other TV / movie stars that were like that.

I am also a night person. For years I had to drive a cab on the weekends since my home based business did not make enough. I drove the night shift and I loved it. Start 5PM and drive to close to 5 AM or stop a little early if I want.

Watch out! I owned the night. You have night DJs that rock. Actually rock stars do not go to bed early. Have you read the article posted on here a year ago saying that the average intelligence of night people is higher than that of day people. The technical term is larks and owls.

Intelligence: The Evolution of Night Owls | Psychology Today

Aren't you the guy advocating vitamin D? You know, the thing that we get from that other thing that only comes out during the day?

Rock stars die early, do drugs, and drink.
Movie stars and acting? Don't even get me started on them. Not exactly the epitome of good health , physical or mental.
Intelligent people tend to be more reclusive, and stay at night on electronics, instead of going out with people in the day time. It's not always the case, but many times it is. Not very many popular nerds out there. Very smart people keep to themselves, tinkering and coming up with new ideas. If that's an advocacy for being a night owl, I'd rather not.

[Brutha]

If you can't get 8 hours at night think about moving some time into a midday nap.