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Impacts of lack of sleep

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Re: Impacts of lack of sleep

#111

Post by wenc »

fleddr wrote: post #30
mikenew wrote: post #15

I've struggled with sleep for as long as I can remember. I have improved it considerably in the past year (still not perfect). Out of the dozens upon dozens of things I've tried, here's what I think made the most difference, in order of importance. 1. Very consistent bedtime and wake up time. +/- 30 minutes, but ideally less. Obviously if you struggle with sleep you can't count on falling asleep at the same time, but…

Can't agree on reading. It's cognitively stimulating, assuming you read something that interests you. I don't know about you, but I can't just close the book and forget about it.

Try reading a book you find boring, like a book in a foreign language that you kinda understand but only barely (for most Americans this would be something Spanish, maybe something by Isabel Allende). The cognitive load will make you doze off -- at least it works for me.

Also try heavy books like Kant's Critique of Pure Reason. That one's another snoozefest for me.

Re: Impacts of lack of sleep

#112

Post by wenc »

mikenew wrote: post #15

I've struggled with sleep for as long as I can remember. I have improved it considerably in the past year (still not perfect). Out of the dozens upon dozens of things I've tried, here's what I think made the most difference, in order of importance. 1. Very consistent bedtime and wake up time. +/- 30 minutes, but ideally less. Obviously if you struggle with sleep you can't count on falling asleep at the same time, but…

I find brown (not white!) noise really helps too. I particularly like Alexa's brown noise mix.

I tell Alexa to "play brown noise" and the droning sound calms my mind in minutes.

Also writing therapy helps -- writing down all the thoughts bothering me and then crumpling it up and chucking it in the trash really helps me let go. There's something about externalizing one's thoughts that helps one let go of them.

Re: Impacts of lack of sleep

#113

Post by maroonblazer »

mikenew wrote: post #15

I've struggled with sleep for as long as I can remember. I have improved it considerably in the past year (still not perfect). Out of the dozens upon dozens of things I've tried, here's what I think made the most difference, in order of importance. 1. Very consistent bedtime and wake up time. +/- 30 minutes, but ideally less. Obviously if you struggle with sleep you can't count on falling asleep at the same time, but…

Meditation has been a big help to me when I wake up in the middle of the night. But sometimes letting thoughts go isn't enough. I've often found that the muscles in my body simply don't want to relax enough for me to be able to fall asleep, so I need to put extra effort into helping them relax.

This can be anything from the traditional 'body scan' where you start at the crown of your head and work your way down, focusing on relaxing every part of your body (head, neck and shoulders are the big ones for me). Or I sometimes imagine getting a full-body massage, and that can do the trick. Of course if you've never had the experience of a full-body massage this likely won't work.

Re: Impacts of lack of sleep

#114

Post by OzyM »

FabHK wrote: post #67

Is this scientific consensus? I remember the Matthew Walker book (Why We Sleep) was heavily criticised. For example this article + discussion: https://guzey.com/books/why-we-sleep/ https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26684519 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21546850 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22419958

My thoughts exactly. My overall takeaway from sleep research is that although there are some health risks with undersleeping, there are (possibly greater) health risks with oversleeping, plus the prevalence of sleep deprivation is greatly overestimated.

Re: Impacts of lack of sleep

#116

Post by xattt »

mettamage wrote: post #33
mikenew wrote: post #15

I've struggled with sleep for as long as I can remember. I have improved it considerably in the past year (still not perfect). Out of the dozens upon dozens of things I've tried, here's what I think made the most difference, in order of importance. 1. Very consistent bedtime and wake up time. +/- 30 minutes, but ideally less. Obviously if you struggle with sleep you can't count on falling asleep at the same time, but…

A couple of things worked on there for me as well, but the biggest one for me personally is 0.3mg of melatonin I started with 3mg, way too much, went to 1.5mg, still too much. Then did 0.7mg, that was fine but still some small side effects. Then 0.4mg that was fine. Then 0.2mg, that didn't work. Then I did 0.3mg and it seemed to be the sweet spot. I can just barely perceive it working and it is just enough to make me…

Most melatonin tablets are available in 3 mg formulation. What sort of microtome are you using for dosing?

Re: Impacts of lack of sleep

#117

Post by agumonkey »

mikenew wrote: post #15

I've struggled with sleep for as long as I can remember. I have improved it considerably in the past year (still not perfect). Out of the dozens upon dozens of things I've tried, here's what I think made the most difference, in order of importance. 1. Very consistent bedtime and wake up time. +/- 30 minutes, but ideally less. Obviously if you struggle with sleep you can't count on falling asleep at the same time, but…

I did one thing in the last years: wake up early, and directly go for a walk to the bakery. 45min ~ it was surprisingly mentally refreshing and after 3 days my body got a natural alarm clock as if the reflex of walking was now preset.

Re: Impacts of lack of sleep

#118

Post by maximus-decimus »

bladley wrote: post #28

My problem is that I get too much sleep and it's very difficult for me to wake up if there's no meeting scheduled that morning for my flexible remote job or if there's no social pressure to get up. I'll happily sleep 12-14 hours if you let me. I've been this way since I was a teenager, and I'm 25 now. I know this sounds like I'm complaining about a luxury, and lack of sleep is definitely worse, but it's always made m…

Ever got a sleep test? You might have some health condition like sleep apnea.

Re: Impacts of lack of sleep

#119

Post by maximus-decimus »

alexpotato wrote: post #71
op00to wrote: post #61

I have kids. I am just going to be sleep deprived so my children don’t feel abandoned when they can’t sleep like I did. I’d rather have well adjusted kids than be well rested.

I always love reading the "productivity hacks" of people without kids and there is always an item which is basically: - go to bed and wake up at the same time and try to get 8 straight hours. Or if not, take a nap etc. Good luck with that if you have multiple children under 5

My favorite is the book How To Live Your Life In 24 Hours which was written around 1920 I think. It doesn't technically imply you don't have kids... more that your wife will take care of literally all the work at home.

Don't have time in the morning? Tell your wife to fill the kettle and put matches beside it so you can more easily prepare your tea when you wake up!

Re: Impacts of lack of sleep

#120

Post by tatrajim »

Just in case anyone cares, this gracefully aging guy has found a reliable way to refreshing sleep every night for many years:

-- Learn some form of qigong meditation (not East Asian myself, but lived there many years). Just before bed, it's a huge help to quality sleep.

-- Practice a calorie restricted diet several times a week. On days I eat ~400 kcal., my sleep heart rate dips 5-10%.

-- Listen at bed time via earphones or otherwise to audible recorded books, selected for the sonority of the narrator and the subject matter -- not too boring, not too arousing.

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