6 ms·

6 hours is not enough sleep

pavel_lishin 10y ago
It is for some people, and it isn't for others, which is why this kind of generic advice is amazing if it fits you exactly, and awful if it doesn't. I can function on six hours, but not well. I also can't easily take 15 minutes to meditate in the morning, because I have a two month old baby I have to help care for in the mornings. This somewhat limits my ability to meditate and exercise.
- manibatra 10y ago
  I second that! I have tried sleeping for 8 hours and I just end up feeling sluggish all day. Less than 6 hours has the same effect. 6 hours just happens to hit the sweet spot. I would suggest meditating anytime in the day. I dont believe that it specifically has to be in the morning. It could be a placebo but just sitting still for a bit does some to help.
  - gooseus 10y ago
    I don't know how true this is, but it's something I've found true for myself... I've read (or heard) that your sleep cycle is 90 minutes down to deep sleep and back, so it's best to get up after some multiple of 90 minutes because that's when you'll have cycled back to the lightest sleep. So typically I either get 6 hours or 7.5 hours of sleep a night, though if I ended up getting 3 or 4.5 one night I'll sometimes try to get 9 the next night. If I can't get at least 3 hours of sleep, I just stay up. So it's possible the problem with 8 hours is that you're trying to wake up in the middle of a cycle and thus the sluggishness. Or maybe I'm just spreading pseudo-science.
    - manibatra 10y ago
      I have heard that too but never really got down to testing it out. In fact I have resigned to the fact that when it comes to sleep to each their own. For eg I have experienced better quality of sleep after taking ZMA ( I weight train ). But I have heard anecdotes where people have said that its just a placebo.
      - visarga 10y ago
        I take Magnesium every day, it has helped my sleep tremendously. I am more relaxed and less stressed during the day, too. It's like I am 10 years younger.
        Scarbutt 10y ago
        A what time do you take the magnesium?
    - melvinmt 10y ago
      > I've read (or heard) that your sleep cycle is 90 minutes down to deep sleep and back, so it's best to get up after some multiple of 90 minutes because that's when you'll have cycled back to the lightest sleep. That's basically how http://sleepyti.me http://sleepyti.me works.
- akovaski 10y ago
  I don't really understand how your baby makes it difficult to take 15 minutes to meditate, because I would imagine you were sleeping in increments longer than 15 minutes. So why is this? Is the baby waking up when you wake up?
  - pavel_lishin 10y ago
    > Is the baby waking up when you wake up? It's more accurate to say that I wake up when the baby wakes up - I hear her start to stir because she's hungry/awake, and that rouses me. But yeah, she also tends to wake up when one of us does in the morning, unless we're very quiet, since she's just about slept out at those times. I tend to also let my wife sleep in and take care of the kid in the morning, since she takes care of her all day, and half of the night. It seems unfair to dump the kid on her in the morning, too, while I exercise and meditate. > I would imagine you were sleeping in increments longer than 15 minutes Some bad nights, you'd be surprised.
    - jamiepenney 10y ago
      I've been getting up earlier so I have some time before my kid wakes up. He's adjusted to my earlier schedule now so all that's happened is I'm doing his breakfast at 6:30 instead of 7. Hard to keep quiet in a 2 bedroom house where the shower is right next to his room unfortunately.
    - kevinskii 10y ago
      I would have wondered the same thing 3 years ago: Can it really be that hard to find 15 minutes to meditate when you have a young kid? It turns out that, yes, it can.
    - wiredfool 10y ago
      Between three kids 2.5 yrs apart each, I think I went more than eight years never getting a reliable night sleep at home. Maybe once or twice a month did I manage to fall asleep and not get woken up for some reason.
    - marcusgarvey 10y ago
- duaneb 10y ago
  Six hours feels like you can function, until you can't. I think i remember seeing that people who could reliably function with just six hours exist but are vanishingly rare. Juat be honest with yourself.
  - barry-cotter 10y ago
    It depends on the person. Need for sleep follows a normal distribution in terms of what you require. Natural short sleepers who only need 4.5 hours exist. Most people who sleep that much are chronically sleep deprived but there are people who just genuinely don't need that much sleep. https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000804.htm https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000804.htm I'm not a short sleeper but I need closer to seven hours sleep a night than eight.
paulsutter 10y ago
You ignored his central point (that a morning routine helps set his focus for the day), and latched on to perhaps the least important piece of information in his post (the specific amount of sleep that works for him). If you really feel the need to disagree, you might suggest better activities or make a compelling case that focus is considered harmful.
squeaky-clean 10y ago
Everyone needs different amounts of sleep, and 6 hours is right for some. Try telling Elon Musk that he doesn't get enough sleep. https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2rgsan/i_am_elon_musk_ceocto_of_a_rocket_company_ama/cnfqekk https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2rgsan/i_am_elon_musk...
restalis 10y ago
AFAIK, it's more about the amount of complete REM cycles. The sleep gets more and more "shallow" in a continuous session. Six-hour night sleep session and a nap at noon may be more efficient than an eight-hour night sleep.

It is for some people, and it isn't for others, which is why this kind of generic advice is amazing if it fits you exactly, and awful if it doesn't. I can function on six hours, but not well. I also can't easily take 15 minutes to meditate in the morning, because I have a two month old baby I have to help care for in the mornings. This somewhat limits my ability to meditate and exercise.

manibatra 10y ago
I second that! I have tried sleeping for 8 hours and I just end up feeling sluggish all day. Less than 6 hours has the same effect. 6 hours just happens to hit the sweet spot. I would suggest meditating anytime in the day. I dont believe that it specifically has to be in the morning. It could be a placebo but just sitting still for a bit does some to help.
- gooseus 10y ago
  I don't know how true this is, but it's something I've found true for myself... I've read (or heard) that your sleep cycle is 90 minutes down to deep sleep and back, so it's best to get up after some multiple of 90 minutes because that's when you'll have cycled back to the lightest sleep. So typically I either get 6 hours or 7.5 hours of sleep a night, though if I ended up getting 3 or 4.5 one night I'll sometimes try to get 9 the next night. If I can't get at least 3 hours of sleep, I just stay up. So it's possible the problem with 8 hours is that you're trying to wake up in the middle of a cycle and thus the sluggishness. Or maybe I'm just spreading pseudo-science.
  - manibatra 10y ago
    I have heard that too but never really got down to testing it out. In fact I have resigned to the fact that when it comes to sleep to each their own. For eg I have experienced better quality of sleep after taking ZMA ( I weight train ). But I have heard anecdotes where people have said that its just a placebo.
    - visarga 10y ago
      I take Magnesium every day, it has helped my sleep tremendously. I am more relaxed and less stressed during the day, too. It's like I am 10 years younger.
      - Scarbutt 10y ago
        A what time do you take the magnesium?
  - melvinmt 10y ago
    > I've read (or heard) that your sleep cycle is 90 minutes down to deep sleep and back, so it's best to get up after some multiple of 90 minutes because that's when you'll have cycled back to the lightest sleep. That's basically how http://sleepyti.me http://sleepyti.me works.
akovaski 10y ago
I don't really understand how your baby makes it difficult to take 15 minutes to meditate, because I would imagine you were sleeping in increments longer than 15 minutes. So why is this? Is the baby waking up when you wake up?
- pavel_lishin 10y ago
  > Is the baby waking up when you wake up? It's more accurate to say that I wake up when the baby wakes up - I hear her start to stir because she's hungry/awake, and that rouses me. But yeah, she also tends to wake up when one of us does in the morning, unless we're very quiet, since she's just about slept out at those times. I tend to also let my wife sleep in and take care of the kid in the morning, since she takes care of her all day, and half of the night. It seems unfair to dump the kid on her in the morning, too, while I exercise and meditate. > I would imagine you were sleeping in increments longer than 15 minutes Some bad nights, you'd be surprised.
  - jamiepenney 10y ago
    I've been getting up earlier so I have some time before my kid wakes up. He's adjusted to my earlier schedule now so all that's happened is I'm doing his breakfast at 6:30 instead of 7. Hard to keep quiet in a 2 bedroom house where the shower is right next to his room unfortunately.
  - kevinskii 10y ago
    I would have wondered the same thing 3 years ago: Can it really be that hard to find 15 minutes to meditate when you have a young kid? It turns out that, yes, it can.
  - wiredfool 10y ago
    Between three kids 2.5 yrs apart each, I think I went more than eight years never getting a reliable night sleep at home. Maybe once or twice a month did I manage to fall asleep and not get woken up for some reason.
  - marcusgarvey 10y ago
duaneb 10y ago
Six hours feels like you can function, until you can't. I think i remember seeing that people who could reliably function with just six hours exist but are vanishingly rare. Juat be honest with yourself.
- barry-cotter 10y ago
  It depends on the person. Need for sleep follows a normal distribution in terms of what you require. Natural short sleepers who only need 4.5 hours exist. Most people who sleep that much are chronically sleep deprived but there are people who just genuinely don't need that much sleep. https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000804.htm https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000804.htm I'm not a short sleeper but I need closer to seven hours sleep a night than eight.

paulsutter 10y ago

You ignored his central point (that a morning routine helps set his focus for the day), and latched on to perhaps the least important piece of information in his post (the specific amount of sleep that works for him). If you really feel the need to disagree, you might suggest better activities or make a compelling case that focus is considered harmful.

squeaky-clean 10y ago

Everyone needs different amounts of sleep, and 6 hours is right for some. Try telling Elon Musk that he doesn't get enough sleep. https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2rgsan/i_am_elon_musk_ceocto_of_a_rocket_company_ama/cnfqekk https://www.reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2rgsan/i_am_elon_musk...

restalis 10y ago

AFAIK, it's more about the amount of complete REM cycles. The sleep gets more and more "shallow" in a continuous session. Six-hour night sleep session and a nap at noon may be more efficient than an eight-hour night sleep.