16 ms·

My worst semester at University I had three 8am lectures... I knew I was a bit of a night owl, but at this point I didn't realise that I actually had a severe s

My worst semester at University I had three 8am lectures... I knew I was a bit of a night owl, but at this point I didn't realise that I actually had a severe sleep disorder. I had just assumed that what people said (you just have to be disciplined, just go to be earlier, etc.) was potentially true, which was demoralising. It was actually pretty liberating to find out about differences in circadian rhythms. I still get similar bad advice, which is about as useful as "just be happier" is to a clinically depressed person...

tozeur 9y ago
How did/do you deal with your different circadian rhythm? I have a friend who can easily sleep 12 hours at a time and consistently goes to bed past 3am and wakes up in the afternoon (and has also dealt with depression in the last). I’m wondering what else I can do to help besides push for no screen time past 10pm etc.
- joveian 9y ago
  Sleeping 12 hours at a time frequently is hypersomnia (at least if actually sleeping, not just in bed unable to sleep). The wikipedia page on hypersomnia links to a number of things that can cause it, including depression. If possible, getting evaluated for sleep apnea is a good idea since that is at least fairly easy to treat (even if the treatment is rather annoying :/). I have Non-24 and insomnia and had hypersomnia when I was younger. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypersomnia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypersomnia I would encourage your friend to look at the Circadian Sleep Disorders Network site: https://www.circadiansleepdisorders.org/ https://www.circadiansleepdisorders.org/ There is a mailing list mentioned there for people with circaidian rhythm disorders, a good way to hear about what works or doesn't work for other people (you don't need to join the organization to subscribe). There is a huge amount of individual variation both in how people are affected and what helps deal with it. Some people do well if they stick to their internal schedule and some of us don't. Unfortunately, there isn't really good treatment for circadian disorders and trying to live on the shifted schedule can be the easiest for for people who do well on that schedule (which is not to say easy as finding a job on such a schedule can be very difficult). The standard treatment recommendation is melatonin and avoiding light before bed and light therapy in the morning. This works for some people, at least for a while, but not for most people (I'd recommend putting some effort into trying to adjust the schedule, just know that it might not work). If avoiding all screen time is too difficult, I recommend turning the color temperature on f.lux or redshift way down (I use 2500K). Also worth noting that trying to adjust your schedule by shifting forward can turn DSPS into Non-24 (that is what happened for me, and the CSD-N survey shows it has happened to a bunch of people while only a few find it helpful), so I'd highly recommend against that (unfortunately some sleep doctors recommend it). Also, stay away from benzos; they don't work long term but are addictive.
heurist 9y ago
College was rough for me, I felt best sleeping on a 3am to noon schedule and half of my required classes could only be scheduled before noon. I managed to get through it but still felt like I was unable to learn as effectively as I could have. I also recall being a zombie in high school because I was forced to wake up at 6 every day and could not fall asleep until midnight, and at the time my body required much more sleep than I was getting... From age 12 to 23 I thought something was wrong with me as a human because I was tired, depressed,and anxious but I've learned that when I sleep well those symptoms disappear. Life has been much better since I gained more control over my schedule.
- mrhappyunhappy 9y ago
  I remember in my high school classes kids were always super tired in am. On many occasions where we had subs come in and put on a movie, many kids would just fall asleep. I had to fake being awake by pretending to be looking down between the desk and my legs and when the teacher walked by I would just “pick up” my pen and get right back to work - I was sleeping the whole time.
JepZ 9y ago
So how did you solve your sleep disorder?
- stephen_g 9y ago
  I haven’t yet... Managed to convince work to let me come in at 10-10:30am and I typically work until 6:30-7pm, or leave a bit earlier and do an extra hour or so from home at 9 or 10pm. So I still do a standard amount of hours for full-time here, just shifted back one or two hours. Apparently your sleep cycle does slowly get earlier as you age so maybe I’ll be able to do 9am to 5:30 in a decade or so! I may go back to the doctor and try melatonin supplements or something, but as long as work’s OK with it I’m doing alright.

tozeur 9y ago

How did/do you deal with your different circadian rhythm? I have a friend who can easily sleep 12 hours at a time and consistently goes to bed past 3am and wakes up in the afternoon (and has also dealt with depression in the last). I’m wondering what else I can do to help besides push for no screen time past 10pm etc.

joveian 9y ago
Sleeping 12 hours at a time frequently is hypersomnia (at least if actually sleeping, not just in bed unable to sleep). The wikipedia page on hypersomnia links to a number of things that can cause it, including depression. If possible, getting evaluated for sleep apnea is a good idea since that is at least fairly easy to treat (even if the treatment is rather annoying :/). I have Non-24 and insomnia and had hypersomnia when I was younger. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypersomnia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypersomnia I would encourage your friend to look at the Circadian Sleep Disorders Network site: https://www.circadiansleepdisorders.org/ https://www.circadiansleepdisorders.org/ There is a mailing list mentioned there for people with circaidian rhythm disorders, a good way to hear about what works or doesn't work for other people (you don't need to join the organization to subscribe). There is a huge amount of individual variation both in how people are affected and what helps deal with it. Some people do well if they stick to their internal schedule and some of us don't. Unfortunately, there isn't really good treatment for circadian disorders and trying to live on the shifted schedule can be the easiest for for people who do well on that schedule (which is not to say easy as finding a job on such a schedule can be very difficult). The standard treatment recommendation is melatonin and avoiding light before bed and light therapy in the morning. This works for some people, at least for a while, but not for most people (I'd recommend putting some effort into trying to adjust the schedule, just know that it might not work). If avoiding all screen time is too difficult, I recommend turning the color temperature on f.lux or redshift way down (I use 2500K). Also worth noting that trying to adjust your schedule by shifting forward can turn DSPS into Non-24 (that is what happened for me, and the CSD-N survey shows it has happened to a bunch of people while only a few find it helpful), so I'd highly recommend against that (unfortunately some sleep doctors recommend it). Also, stay away from benzos; they don't work long term but are addictive.

heurist 9y ago

College was rough for me, I felt best sleeping on a 3am to noon schedule and half of my required classes could only be scheduled before noon. I managed to get through it but still felt like I was unable to learn as effectively as I could have. I also recall being a zombie in high school because I was forced to wake up at 6 every day and could not fall asleep until midnight, and at the time my body required much more sleep than I was getting... From age 12 to 23 I thought something was wrong with me as a human because I was tired, depressed,and anxious but I've learned that when I sleep well those symptoms disappear. Life has been much better since I gained more control over my schedule.

mrhappyunhappy 9y ago
I remember in my high school classes kids were always super tired in am. On many occasions where we had subs come in and put on a movie, many kids would just fall asleep. I had to fake being awake by pretending to be looking down between the desk and my legs and when the teacher walked by I would just “pick up” my pen and get right back to work - I was sleeping the whole time.

JepZ 9y ago

So how did you solve your sleep disorder?

stephen_g 9y ago
I haven’t yet... Managed to convince work to let me come in at 10-10:30am and I typically work until 6:30-7pm, or leave a bit earlier and do an extra hour or so from home at 9 or 10pm. So I still do a standard amount of hours for full-time here, just shifted back one or two hours. Apparently your sleep cycle does slowly get earlier as you age so maybe I’ll be able to do 9am to 5:30 in a decade or so! I may go back to the doctor and try melatonin supplements or something, but as long as work’s OK with it I’m doing alright.