Posted on 07/20/2007 2:09:28 PM PDT by tlj18
Two nights ago I slept for about 15 hours, although I was up for 34 hours before
Yesterday I was up for 15 hours, then slept for 11 hours
Those are normal stats to me
Not really. I have to be quite tired to fall asleep quickly. But in Basic Training, I always fell asleep VERY quickly. As in a matter of seconds :-) But let's just say that my MOS is more intellectual than physically oriented, which certainly has its downsides.
Yeah, that’s what I do. I don’t set the alarm on Friday nights (my time to sleep). And I usually wake up around noon or later. During the week I would usually sleep around 5-6 hours. Maybe my body is just trying to get more sleep, to get rested. Sleep deprivation does build up. But it is an amazing experience.
?
Actually, I just woke up :-)
I would suggest that you are missing out on *quality* sleep, which your body tries to make up for with quantity.
Here are some ideas that might help:
1) Try sleeping with Breathe Right nasal strips on your nose for a week. You might need more oxygen while sleeping to get to a deeper level of sleep. They may also reduce snoring.
2) Get some “32” or better rated foam earplugs. Extraneous noises might be interfering with your rest.
3) Have a glass of warm milk before bed. Warmed milk has chemicals in it that promote restful sleep.
4) If you regularly snore, you may have sleep Apnea. This can be a dangerous condition and should be treated.
5) Body position while sleeping may matter to you. Become aware of how you sleep, and how restless you are when you sleep.
6) Try varying the temperature of the room you are sleeping in. Warmer or colder may give you better rest.
7) There is an over-the-counter sleep aid called Doxylamine Succinate (25mg) which is the same pill in brand name and generic. It is just the part of antihistamine that makes you drowsy. For some people it can give them a very deep sleep, and they wake up much more rested. Though for the first few uses, you may remain drowsy when you wake up in the morning. It is available in drug and grocery stores.
depression.
No, I have healthy blood pressure.
I naturally sleep 12 hours a night if not awakened by an alarm.
Talk to your GP about getting a sleep study done. The symptoms you describe could be cause by a variety of things. In my case it was a form of parasomnia. As I’d start to drift off, my foot would begin to shake, waking me up. But I wouldn’t feel (/remember) the movement or even that I had fallen asleep. Instead, it felt like I’d just been lying there, waiting (which is why my GP originally diagnosed it simply as insomnia). Periodically throughout the night I’d wake myself up like this. But I wouldn’t remember it. All the interruptions were keeping me from getting rested, which is why I was sleeping so long (10 or 12 hours, easy). Anyway, none of this was evident until I had the study done.
Somehow I think you are quite correct... :-)
I can just see it now... doing the land navigation course in SF training... take a nap but wake up 15 hours later...
You are a NO-GO, Soldier!
Your REM pattern is messed up. Think back to the last time you had a real dream. There is something that is keeping you “en guard”. I still go through this most nights, but it is getting better. Good Luck!
That's 7.5 hours per night. Not a problem.
Amazingly, I didn’t really feel tired for most of my 34 hours of being awake. However, after about 32 hours, it started to get hard to function. It was a really great experience. But it’s normal for me to sleep than long without an alarm, even if I was only awake for 18 or 19 hours that day. Sleep isn’t bad for you, but it kind of hurts your waking world life.
Just not for half the day, though.
I had real dreams the last two nights. I even dream in color, which is apparently unusual. It was kind of a bad dream, which my Navy instructor during this past winter in Pensacola telling me how embarrassed she was of me. She was my instructor for four months (October 2006 to February 2007), and it took me several hours to recall her name!
I was doing some research, and I read that the body produces melatonin (the chemical that induces sleep) for about 12 hours after you fall asleep. So, based on that fact, sleeping for 12 hours appears like it is quite natural!
Ah...the reason I asked is because I had low BP when I was younger (it’s still lower than average but more healthy/normal as I get older), couldn’t give blood during blood drives, and was always sluggish waking up in the AM.
Your reply is interesting. I remember my son and brothers and cousins and uncles saying the same thing about good soldiers being able to sleep anywhere. But they never said anything about “long sleepers” in the military. Unless on furlough, of course. Otherwise, that bugler crows pretty early.
Sometimes I think we don’t give ourselves “permission” to sleep until we’re ready to get up. Except maybe when we’re on vacation.
I think we all ought to pamper ourselves a bit more. It’s good for the soul.
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