31–40 of 138 posts
It depends on your biochemistry to a large degree. Some people need hardly any sleep, some do _much_ better work if they sleep a full night's sleep, which can be defined anywhere between 6 and 10 hours. Some people do well on a 24-hour clock, some don't. Minor sleep disorders are common and often not diagnosed. Don't worry about anyone else (one of the luxuries of a lot of tech jobs), find the schedule that leaves yo…
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If you’re able, you should do what comes naturally Not sure I agree with this - For me, sleeping is just a habit. I get into the habit of staying up late, or the habit of getting up early. This makes it sound trivial - but it's not - habits take work to form and work to change. Naturally everyone is different. I'm sure there is research that disagrees with me :-) But that's my experience anyway.
You might find this interesting: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_sleep_phase_syndrome
I guess my point was - don't necessarily pigeon-hole yourself as a "night owl" or "morning person".
Go to bed earlier at night.
This plus consistency (i.e. Don't try to wake up at 5AM M-F and then sleep til noon every Saturday and Sunday).
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This plus consistency (i.e. Don't try to wake up at 5AM M-F and then sleep til noon every Saturday and Sunday).
Consistency is for assembly lines. Sleep when you're tired. Eat when you're hungry. Just as importantly, don't eat or sleep when you're not hungry or tired.
Go to bed earlier at night.
What if I have a problem going to bed earlier? Sometimes, I can stay awake in the bed for at least an hour, if not even a couple of hours. It's like when you suffer from insomnia. By the way, have a look at this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_sleep_phase_syndrome
To the extent that I've solved it, I solved it after I had kids, and sleeping until 1PM became untenable for the family.
The answer for me? Wait for it: waking up early every morning.
I've learned that there is absolutely no way to predict when I'm going to fall asleep at night (even if I eliminate caffeine, use-bed-only-for-sleep, avoid stimulating reading before bed, etc); the only habit I've deliberately changed is that I never code after 10PM (a surefire way to look up and have it be 4AM).
Nope, what works for me is, whether I got to bed at 12:30A or 4:45A, I'm out of bed with the kids at 7A. If I have a bad night, I'll fall asleep the next night before 12A. Won't have any choice.
A day, a couple days, a week in sleep dep, not worth the life stress of starting the day in the afternoon.
I have two Rhode Island Red roosters that are both quite loud. I only need one; do you want the other?
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What if I have a problem going to bed earlier? Sometimes, I can stay awake in the bed for at least an hour, if not even a couple of hours. It's like when you suffer from insomnia. By the way, have a look at this http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delayed_sleep_phase_syndrome
Don't stay in bed if you're not sleeping. That just conditions you not to fall asleep when you're in bed.
The exception I have is reading. Doesn't seem to make any difference. In fact, I usually drift off better if I read.