Hacker News Board Hacker News, browsed like a classic message board
Live data from Hacker News

Why Can’t I Sleep?

ucsf.edu

Post reply on HN
Print view View original

171–180 of 288 posts

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#171

Post by wombat-man »

Gene_Parmesan wrote: post #106
unishark wrote: post #36

> ...extreme night owls (who might naturally sleep, for example, from 2 to 10 a.m.)... Uh what's the next adjective after "extreme"? This reminds me of companies with so-called "flex time" where you have the option to come in as late as 9 if you want to.

Well, technically it's a disorder at that point - delayed sleep phase disorder, which I have secondary to ADHD. Circadian rhythm is genetically determined and all long term studies of delayed sleep phase show it's essentially impossible to change. However it's one of those things that's a disorder only because it goes against what our societies expect. I used to think I had insomnia for years, because I would try to…

I wasn't officially diagnosed, but this describes my tendencies. I don't know if it's placebo effect or what, but taking 1-2 mg of melatonin has helped get me on track.

Now it's harder to stay up on weekends but ehhhh

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#172

Post by koheripbal »

wruza wrote: post #150
koheripbal wrote: post #117

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I found something that works for me. One of the things that prevents adults from sleeping is worrying about life problems. Getting your brain to shut up about problems that you cannot fix at night is the problem. My trick is to listen (not watch) to old television shows ...all night. I selected a few hundred hours of old television that'd I'd seen many times before, got a pair of very comfortable ear buds to sleep wi…

One of the things that prevents adults from sleeping is worrying about life problems And that adult may not even realize it, because that worry is usually covered by layers of coping. “I’m fine” is adults worst enemy. My trick is to listen (not watch) to old television shows ...all night Before using a technique described in itt’s root comment, I also used for-sleep hour+ long asmr videos. Cannot compare their effect…

note: I don't have a TV either - I use my phone and the Plex app.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#173

Post by CameronNemo »

amalcon wrote: post #123
enominezerum wrote: post #104

Over here I have the opposite. I can't stand waking up and will sleep for half the day if I can. Always have been like this. Morning are the worst. Though, I would attribute this to my mom being a major nightowl and me being one as well. 2nd and 3rd shifts have been the highlight of my life, but those roles are so hard to come by that I just accept a WFH job where I skirt the system and work later while still handlin…

I was like that for a long time. About 3 years ago, my spouse convinced me to go to a sleep doctor. One of the first things he checked was my nose: it turned out I had a severe deviated septum. He referred me to a surgeon who was able to fix that with a very common procedure. I now fall asleep more quickly, and wake up naturally after about 7-9 hours depending on physical activity. You probably have a different thing…

For me I wake up with back pain and a was of mucus in the back of my throat. Tonsils are usually a bit unhappy as well.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#174

Post by stronglikedan »

wruza wrote: post #149

Ironically, I fixed my moderate chronic insomnia succesfully by going to a doctor with a completely unrelated( citation needed ) set of symptoms. My CBT therapist wanted me to fall asleep during the appointment to perform another technique, but obviously I could not. He said to not worry and explained a routine which I’m happy to share to those who didn’t try yet: - lay, relax, comfort^ - do not move further - do not…

Ah, yes, Body Scan Mediation. It works wonders. I'm usually asleep somewhere between the waist and knees.

I prefer to listen to a soft-spoken guide (guided meditation) when doing this technique. Plenty of resources online for that.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#175

Post by aardvarkr »

wruza wrote: post #149

Ironically, I fixed my moderate chronic insomnia succesfully by going to a doctor with a completely unrelated( citation needed ) set of symptoms. My CBT therapist wanted me to fall asleep during the appointment to perform another technique, but obviously I could not. He said to not worry and explained a routine which I’m happy to share to those who didn’t try yet: - lay, relax, comfort^ - do not move further - do not…

This is incredibly helpful, thanks!

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#176

Post by koheripbal »

lanstin wrote: post #153
gotbeans wrote: post #147

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This. Being a very anxious person in nature, I will add there is something that positively helps anxiety in repetition of something known. I can't put my finger on it but, I always feel aliviated when a new episode starts after the previous one. It's one of the things that has helped me most during hard times, and gave me back being able to fall sleep at night.

This human truth is at the heart of many religious practices. Time as we experience it has aspects of repetition and aspects of novelty. Doing something again and again makes it powerful for us. For the general issue of worries keep me up at night, I have found that after a few years of meditation, this has almost stopped being issue for me. Maybe if there is some big issue I will wake up one morning early and not be…

Now I understand why my grandmother would pray, saying the Hail Mary prayer again and again and again, when she was going through emotional times.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#177

Post by stronglikedan »

ralusek wrote: post #168
fernandotakai wrote: post #158

Earlier quoted context omitted.

funny enough, i use the techniques that headspace taught me to fall asleep -- which are REALLY similar to the ones you described. focus on your body, focus on your breath, try not to "pay attention" to anything. it totally helped me, and i can now fall asleep much easier than before.

> Focus on your [] > Try not to "pay attention" to anything

Focus internally. Don't pay attention to external factors. Simple as.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#178

Post by jaxgeller »

Insomnia is something I've dealt with for most of my adult life. I followed everything you were supposed to do, got blackout curtains, no coffee, no alcohol, exercised, but still had issues. This article below helped me realize the insomnia is actually a form of performance anxiety. Sitting in bed tossing and turning, mind racing wishing you were asleep is the problem. You have to train yourself that you can sleep and to not fear it, gain the confidence that you can fall asleep.

https://ilya.sukhar.com/blog/an-algorithmic-solution-to-inso...

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#179

Post by whywhywhywhy »

Anyone who has gone their whole life with trouble sleeping and getting up on time google “Delayed sleep phase syndrome”.

Suddenly all my sleeping issues made a lot more sense after this and now I just live to my own schedule rather than the one school and such tried to force me to believe was correct and told me I was lazy for not following it.

Re: Why Can’t I Sleep?

#180

Post by diydsp »

stronglikedan wrote: post #174
wruza wrote: post #149

Ironically, I fixed my moderate chronic insomnia succesfully by going to a doctor with a completely unrelated( citation needed ) set of symptoms. My CBT therapist wanted me to fall asleep during the appointment to perform another technique, but obviously I could not. He said to not worry and explained a routine which I’m happy to share to those who didn’t try yet: - lay, relax, comfort^ - do not move further - do not…

Ah, yes, Body Scan Mediation. It works wonders. I'm usually asleep somewhere between the waist and knees. I prefer to listen to a soft-spoken guide (guided meditation) when doing this technique. Plenty of resources online for that.

Can also step it up a notch and use progressive relaxation. many youtube videos for that, too.
Post reply on HN