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This seems pretty random as usual. There's an easy test that applies to yourself only though. Go to a place without tv/internet/books (electricity is fine) for

by zobzu 11y ago

This seems pretty random as usual. There's an easy test that applies to yourself only though. Go to a place without tv/internet/books (electricity is fine) for a week, where you exercise outdoors and spend time with people. I always end up sleeping 2-3h more (from 6h regularly to 9h!), wake up earlier, and sleep earlier - and in fact, feel better. Most of the rest is just the stress inducing work/city life most of us zombies "have" to go through.

eru 11y ago
I have internet and everything, and just sleep 9h normally. When camping, I just go to bed earlier and wake up earlier.
weland 11y ago
This is highly anecdotic and I'd be happy to counteract it with the opposite experience. Whenever I spend enough time in the outdoors (I used to go camping regularly until a few years ago), I'd end up sleeping less and going to bed later. I'd generally end up sleeping for about 6-7 hours, from 01:00 or so -- and feeling a lot better in the process.
scotchmi_st 11y ago
There are plenty of confounding factors with your own "easy test", some of which you admit yourself- the stress of the life in general. Who's to say that living a neolithic existence isn't stressful? Indeed, it probably is far more stressful. This has nothing to do with electric lights and computers. This is just life in general. At least you can take a break every so often.
- zobzu 11y ago
  yes id guess the no computer and tv helps with the stress levels, rather than being "because of looking at the screen" by itself.
zelos 11y ago
I believe some of that is 'sleep debt', after a few weeks you tend back to 7-8h.
marincounty 11y ago
I think that's good advice. I heard some university did a study on insomnia. They took a group Insomniacs/individuals with sleep reversal on a 14 day backpacking trip. I believe they were all cured by the end of the trip. I probally got the facts/study wrong, but heard something like this lately. Too lazy to look it up. I don't think they had a control group. I don't know if it's my damaged brain, or I've just become conditioned to the noise in society. I can go to sleep, or relax in complete silence. I need a radio, or TV on in order to sleep. To be honest, I need background noise in order to read, or code. The only time I have overcome my wandering thoughts, when in silence(when I think about it--nature is filled with sounds.) is on rigrious outdoor adventures, but they have to be rigrious--like back packing, and river rafting(trips where I need to do most of the work. The paid for trips--I'm not tired enough to sleep. My mind just wanders, and I'm up, and tired the next day.)
- ar_turnbull 11y ago
  IIRC there was a study on sleeping in tents, too — which would suggest that the insomnia curing in your example was less a result of rigorous outdoor adventures and more from the participants sleeping outside (falling temperature, natural lighting, lack of noise, etc).

by zobzu 11y ago

eru 11y ago

I have internet and everything, and just sleep 9h normally. When camping, I just go to bed earlier and wake up earlier.

weland 11y ago

This is highly anecdotic and I'd be happy to counteract it with the opposite experience. Whenever I spend enough time in the outdoors (I used to go camping regularly until a few years ago), I'd end up sleeping less and going to bed later. I'd generally end up sleeping for about 6-7 hours, from 01:00 or so -- and feeling a lot better in the process.

scotchmi_st 11y ago

There are plenty of confounding factors with your own "easy test", some of which you admit yourself- the stress of the life in general. Who's to say that living a neolithic existence isn't stressful? Indeed, it probably is far more stressful. This has nothing to do with electric lights and computers. This is just life in general. At least you can take a break every so often.

zobzu 11y ago
yes id guess the no computer and tv helps with the stress levels, rather than being "because of looking at the screen" by itself.

zelos 11y ago

I believe some of that is 'sleep debt', after a few weeks you tend back to 7-8h.

marincounty 11y ago

I think that's good advice. I heard some university did a study on insomnia. They took a group Insomniacs/individuals with sleep reversal on a 14 day backpacking trip. I believe they were all cured by the end of the trip. I probally got the facts/study wrong, but heard something like this lately. Too lazy to look it up. I don't think they had a control group. I don't know if it's my damaged brain, or I've just become conditioned to the noise in society. I can go to sleep, or relax in complete silence. I need a radio, or TV on in order to sleep. To be honest, I need background noise in order to read, or code. The only time I have overcome my wandering thoughts, when in silence(when I think about it--nature is filled with sounds.) is on rigrious outdoor adventures, but they have to be rigrious--like back packing, and river rafting(trips where I need to do most of the work. The paid for trips--I'm not tired enough to sleep. My mind just wanders, and I'm up, and tired the next day.)

ar_turnbull 11y ago
IIRC there was a study on sleeping in tents, too — which would suggest that the insomnia curing in your example was less a result of rigorous outdoor adventures and more from the participants sleeping outside (falling temperature, natural lighting, lack of noise, etc).