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Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

nytimes.com

201–210 of 223 posts

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#201

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Thanks so much for registering and sharing! It's cool to see that somebody has made this work for a long period of time. I also want to look into this and see what other people's experiences have been like.

Well I don't know if I can say I'm making it work. I do end up in some crazy situations, like during winter not seeing daylight for a few weeks. I still think of it as being in "Well, that can't be good" territory. Then there's the horror of thinking - "If my work situation falls apart and I have to get a 9-to-5, how will I even deal with that?". I sometimes wonder if it'd just sort itself out if I quit caffeine comp…

My stomach protested after being feed copious amounts of coffee during the late 90's. Since then I only drink coffee involuntarily (like if someone already made me a cup before asking so I sip just out of courtesy). Today I stick to drinking mostly red teas. Which are not actually tea I hear. Anyways, my point is did you try to get off caffeine altogether at some point?

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#202

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Somebody is overly sensitive. Science has no place for the sensitive. You have no idea who I am. I could be a pretty smart guy for all you know. History repeats itself because of people who think they are above it. What you say here worries me. Be careful. You are a citizen of the echo chamber now.

Ah come off it, this is a disappointing response. You may be right but nobody reading this would have any reason to believe so. At the most basic level, if you believe that diet change beats supplementation or fixes the problems claimed, you have surely done research into this beyond personal experimentation. If you share your work then you are likely to persuade more people, and hence encourage better health behavio…

Maybe I hate people on this shitty forum and want to steer them wrong.

PS I don't like Paul Graham and find him to be very far up his own nerdy ummmm ass

PPS

I also want to help people who can see the forest for the trees. People who have enough common sense and well-roundedness will understand what I am saying. They will benefit. Everyone else will turn the other way, which is what I am after.

I want the smart to get smarter and the dumb to get dumber.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#203

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Well I don't know if I can say I'm making it work. I do end up in some crazy situations, like during winter not seeing daylight for a few weeks. I still think of it as being in "Well, that can't be good" territory. Then there's the horror of thinking - "If my work situation falls apart and I have to get a 9-to-5, how will I even deal with that?". I sometimes wonder if it'd just sort itself out if I quit caffeine comp…

My stomach protested after being feed copious amounts of coffee during the late 90's. Since then I only drink coffee involuntarily (like if someone already made me a cup before asking so I sip just out of courtesy). Today I stick to drinking mostly red teas. Which are not actually tea I hear. Anyways, my point is did you try to get off caffeine altogether at some point?

You know, I never tried, because I've never considered it a problem. I have 3 cups a day. I also know what it feels like to be too wired on coffee to sleep, so I feel like I know when that's not happening. But I've been drinking coffee for so many years uninterrupted... I do have to wonder if I even know what "normal" is.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#205

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I was thinking maybe the poorer cognition actually helps relieve the depression. Because a lot of depressives overthink (some past event, etc).

While you are certainly less able to overthink in that state, the euphoria is a discrete phenomenon. The euphoria and poorer high-level cognition seem not to be caused by each other (obviously discounting any cyclical feedback effects once they're both in play), but instead caused by the same process.

>discrete

'Distinct' you mean?

If only there was a way to get the euphoria without the reduction in function, huh?

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#206

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How did you decide which product to purchase for your supplements? Can you recommend any?

I just went to Whole Foods and bought the generics, except for the magnesium, where I bought a type that has good absorption. Many magnesium supplements do not. I tried to avoid mega-dosing, so to ensure that I only supplement every third day. I was more concerned about any deficiencies. And I went to Whole Foods because of that supplement scandal a couple of years ago. Whole Foods may charge a lot but is more truste…

I agree in that I go to Whole Foods or a similar store over mass market choices like Walmart, but even at Whole Foods you're not necessarily getting the best form of supplement in those generics. Differences between bio-availability or effectiveness can be very notable between citrates, acetates, chelates, glycinates, picolinates, etc. I've personally found some good functional medicine sources of information (I've found Chris Kresser and Chris Masterjohn informative, balanced, and non-doctrinaire) that pass the smell test, but find somewhere you trust that breaks that information down a bit more so that you're getting the best form of supplements. The best forms in my experience are typically not is the generics or multivitamins.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#207
post #151
post #70

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I recently bought a Philips HF3520. I've read great things about it but unfortunately I'm too heavy of a sleeper that it doesn't work for me. Give it a shot, it's definitely worth it in the long run if it works for you.

I have trouble getting up and I'm considering one of these. Does it make any noise while plugged in? I have sensitive hearing and find for example a lot of modern LED lamps have annoying buzzing associated with them due to poor quality transformers. If I'm sleeping with this thing next to me it has to be absolutely silent.

I've got an older version (https://www.amazon.com/Philips-Hf3470-Wake-up-Light-White/dp...), I've never noticed any buzzing. Can't say I have supersensitive hearing but I tend to notice things like that.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#208

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But think of the chaos if every person and business had to implement their own alternative to DST. Every business would change it's hours on a different date, and many wouldn't change their hours at all. Everyone would have to completely change their routines ad hocly. It's nice to have a single standard, and only have to change the clock. If it helps, don't think of clock as a measure of the sun. Think of it as a me…

Why would anyone want to implement their own DST? Why would anyone need to trick themselves by changing their clocks when they can just decide to get up at a different time? And what was going on before DST was invented? Chaos? And where people ignore this idea? Is it chaos there?

>Why would anyone want to implement their own DST? Why would anyone need to trick themselves by changing their clocks when they can just decide to get up at a different time?

That's what I mean. Imagine if business hours changed suddenly at a certain date instead of the clock itself changing. And every business had a different date, and some did change and some didn't, etc.

>And what was going on before DST was invented? Chaos? And where people ignore this idea? Is it chaos there?

To avoid the chaos, people didn't even try to do it. And they stayed on the same schedule year round. This means they lost an extra hour of sunlight for half the year. Which is a pretty undesirable outcome. Less time for outdoor activities, worse moods, increased depression, etc.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#209

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Hah that's interesting almost the exact same thing happens to me if I allow myself desired rather than scheduled sleep. In a way though I wish my natural cycle was closer to the typical 9-5. I found it easy to be isolated or depressed on the days when your waking life is so different than everyone elses.

I've found it somewhat easy to feel very isolated in the same way. A week of freelance work at hours when pretty much the whole of the country is asleep takes some getting used to. I recommend finding some Discord or IRC servers with like-minded individuals that may operate in other timezones, if that interests you. It's always the middle of the day somewhere, and I find that just having that communication available—…

Discord / IRC / Twitch / cytube is pretty much exactly how I deal with it.

Funny there is a whole world of us out there.

Re: Can sleep deprivation cure depression?

#210

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Registered an account just to say "Me too". I've been on this rotating cycle for several years at this point (so can't really tell how it might affect depression). It's remarkable how similar the timing is too... I go around the clock about every month or so. Though I don't think I could stay on normal time even if I wanted to. Eventually I'll have a night of insomnia, where I overshoot my usual pattern by probably 6…

I think you folks are actually no anomaly but the norm. Most people just don't act on it. The article even mentioned that most people's circadian rhythm is longer than 24 hours and that we force ourselves into a 24 hour rhythm. I think it's quite obvious. It's pretty easy to go to bed later and it's pretty easy to sleep too long for most people I know. (maybe it's just more noticeable though because people aren't lat…

I wonder if that means we are not native to this planet but rather one with a longer day.
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