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How long after switching from sleep deprivation to a normal sleep cycle did it take for things to improve? I've been sleeping 5-6 hours for 10+ years and recen

How long after switching from sleep deprivation to a normal sleep cycle did it take for things to improve? I've been sleeping 5-6 hours for 10+ years and recently moved to 8 hours of sleep a night but it's been a month and I'm not noticing any positive effects and I'm wondering if I'm just burning 2-3 hours of my life on any given day.

stefkors 8y ago
Its gonna take atleast the same amount of time it took to build up The deficit to be rid of it completely
dpeck 8y ago
not parent, but I've started doing the same as you for around 5 months now. I've noticed is that I can generally get up easier in the morning and thinking in abstracts and analogies may come a little quicker. I've also noticed that being tired hits me a LOT harder than it used to. Previously I guess I was kind of tired all the time so the marginal difference wasn't much but the last few months if I'm feeling the afternoon/early evening slump its much more difficult to push through and get anything accomplished, even if whats getting accomplished is just spending time with my family and trying not to nod off on the couch. It's supposably a lot better for health, so I'm going to keep doing it, but its an adjustment and it does feel like I'm wasting at least some of my time.
drakonka 8y ago
I'd say I felt much more rested (but that's obvious) after the first few nights, but overall mood and mental improvements seemed to be noticeable, on reflection, a month or two in. I think even if I didn't feel subjectively better though, I'd keep doing it. I choose to trust our existing body of scientific knowledge about how damaging lack of sleep is and how critical sleep is for long term mental and physical health.
swatcoder 8y ago
Did you start the new routine because you wanted some specific effect or because you thought you "should" for some abstract/cultural reason? I'd give it more than a month to adapt, but you should try to identify some specific benefits you want to achieve. Looking for a general sense of "wellness" or "alertness" is going to be hard to affirm and credit. But you can watch for and recognize more specific goals like you wake less groggy, fall asleep more easily, exercise more effectively, work with more lasting focus, stay more composed in trying situations, etc. The goals will be personal. And if you weren't struggling with anything that better sleep might fix, maybe it's true that you don't need it!

stefkors 8y ago

Its gonna take atleast the same amount of time it took to build up The deficit to be rid of it completely

dpeck 8y ago

not parent, but I've started doing the same as you for around 5 months now. I've noticed is that I can generally get up easier in the morning and thinking in abstracts and analogies may come a little quicker. I've also noticed that being tired hits me a LOT harder than it used to. Previously I guess I was kind of tired all the time so the marginal difference wasn't much but the last few months if I'm feeling the afternoon/early evening slump its much more difficult to push through and get anything accomplished, even if whats getting accomplished is just spending time with my family and trying not to nod off on the couch. It's supposably a lot better for health, so I'm going to keep doing it, but its an adjustment and it does feel like I'm wasting at least some of my time.

drakonka 8y ago

I'd say I felt much more rested (but that's obvious) after the first few nights, but overall mood and mental improvements seemed to be noticeable, on reflection, a month or two in. I think even if I didn't feel subjectively better though, I'd keep doing it. I choose to trust our existing body of scientific knowledge about how damaging lack of sleep is and how critical sleep is for long term mental and physical health.

swatcoder 8y ago

Did you start the new routine because you wanted some specific effect or because you thought you "should" for some abstract/cultural reason? I'd give it more than a month to adapt, but you should try to identify some specific benefits you want to achieve. Looking for a general sense of "wellness" or "alertness" is going to be hard to affirm and credit. But you can watch for and recognize more specific goals like you wake less groggy, fall asleep more easily, exercise more effectively, work with more lasting focus, stay more composed in trying situations, etc. The goals will be personal. And if you weren't struggling with anything that better sleep might fix, maybe it's true that you don't need it!