An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
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An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
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Re: An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
#2I agree with the 4 suggestions under "Unintuitive New Invariants" but add consider taking magnesium just before bed. My experience is that it helps the whole body relax, enabling sleep to be more easily achieved. Discuss it with your G.P first.
Re: An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
#3My problem is that I wake up in the middle of the night after 3-4 hours. Vaping one puff of indica cannabis puts me back to sleep until the morning. And even if I don't go back to sleep right away I'm feeling so good that I don't mind.
Apparently it's genetic. My genome has 100% correlation with genetic variants associated with insomnia.
Re: An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
#4To further add on the recommended app, the VA department also has other fantastic applications such as the mindfulness one. Being government funded they have no tracking, no ads, no plans, and a clear and pragmatic UX.
As they should be, since the vast majority of useful apps aren't really anything that challenges the bleeding edge of software development
Re: An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
#5A lot of people wake up at 3 or 4am. This is typically stress related.
Possible solution:
1. Sit up or get up. If getting up, I usually get a mint tea.
2. Journal. Write down your thoughts. Very important: write down _what you are going to do tomorrow_, step by step. Usually the brain is worrying about something and by telling it what you’re going to do about it tomorrow it seems to calm down.
3. When you’ve gotten everything out, read. Just keep reading until you can’t keep your eyes open.
I’ve found this almost always works. Waking in the middle of the night is caused by stress around a problem. Your brain just wants to know the narrative around how that problem will get resolved or improved. Then it will fall sleep again.
Re: An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
#6> My form of insomnia starts with an active mind some evening.
Not a doctor, but I’m very confident that this is ADHD. Sleep disorders are very common, ADHD is linked with a late melatonin onset and evening “buzz” or overexciting are almost textbook examples.
Treatments are there, but needs to be discussed with healthcare professionals. And “don’t change schedule” is a harmful advice. Fatigued driving is as dangerous as driving intoxicated. Some professions and activities require heightened focus as they’re dangerous to themselves and others.
Re: An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
#7A lot of people wake up at 3 or 4am. This is typically stress related. Possible solution: 1. Sit up or get up. If getting up, I usually get a mint tea. 2. Journal. Write down your thoughts. Very important: write down _what you are going to do tomorrow_, step by step. Usually the brain is worrying about something and by telling it what you’re going to do about it tomorrow it seems to calm down. 3. When you’ve gotten e…
> Waking in the middle of the night is caused by stress around a problem
I don't think this is universal. For example: rotating shift workers can have a mostly physiological insomia, due to various disrupted rhythms.
Re: An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
#8No screens and no light brighter than single-digit candle power after sundown is a pretty good cure for, I suspect, a whole lot of modern cases of sleeplessness.
Light your whole house up brighter than the mirrored hall at Versailles and engage with devices that put entertainments better than a pre-modern emperor could command at the grandest, most expensive carnival he could assemble at your fingertips and sleep becomes elusive.
“The emperor’s having trouble sleeping! We lit up the palace with thousands of candles and invited over the greatest scientists and sages and show persons of all kinds (including the naked variety) and are holding a 24/7 carnival with all those folks just outside his bedroom and we just can’t figure out what might be the problem.” LOL, I mean, maybe there’s other stuff going on too, but I think I know where to start…
Re: An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
#9Melatonin.
There's loads of wisdom about improving sleep. Exercise, wind down rituals, avoiding caffeine, various diet ideas. Changing bedtime, changing alarm time. Nothing made a perceptible difference. Dropping caffeine was especially useless advice as it has no impact on my sleep but made me much less effective.
Melatonin tablets however are magic. My pet theory is the CYP1A2 genotype which is known to control how effectively you eliminate caffeine also affects how effectively you eliminate melatonin. Being unusually efficient at metabolising melatonin seems likely to present as insomnia.
Re: An Algorithmic Solution to Insomnia
#10Melatonin. There's loads of wisdom about improving sleep. Exercise, wind down rituals, avoiding caffeine, various diet ideas. Changing bedtime, changing alarm time. Nothing made a perceptible difference. Dropping caffeine was especially useless advice as it has no impact on my sleep but made me much less effective. Melatonin tablets however are magic. My pet theory is the CYP1A2 genotype which is known to control how…
This. I used to lay awake for hours, my mind racing. Started taking melatonin every night about 30 mins before going to bed and life has much improved. Once in a while I’ll lay awake like the old days but for the most part I’m out quickly. I never was able to find anything that worked like this