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Sadly I feel like it's the opposite for me, most days I'm running at half speed, and on a "good" day it's like I have a different brain - I process things more
by solaxun 7y ago
Sadly I feel like it's the opposite for me, most days I'm running at half speed, and on a "good" day it's like I have a different brain - I process things more rapidly, I'm more optimistic, I get more done, etc.
I suspect it's sleep related because I can generally feel how the day is gonna go within 10 minutes of being awake, but the frustrating part is that hours of sleep seems to have little bearing on how refreshed I feel in the morning. There is some correlation there, but not enough to say it's all about the hours.
It's not sleep apnea or any known sleep disorder either, so please withhold the ensuing deluge of HN faux Dr's and their google-fu diagnoses ;)
I don't recall this being an issue much in my 20's, maybe this is what aging is like. I've had to resort to just taking advantage of good days and doing as much work as possible, and then on bad days I'll just do mundane work I normally would otherwise not want to do.
So at least for me - yes having good and bad days is entirely normal.
- jamilbk 7y agoI noticed this too. For me, diet was the main culprit in my inconsistency. My armchair theory is that either fluctuating blood sugar levels during sleep or imbalance of gut microbiome are the cause. A mild ketogenic diet worked wonders for my sleep quality and mental clarity. Intermittent fasting too (on meal a day). Those can be tough to follow, though. I also found that eating no carbs 4 hours before bed and no big meals 2 hours before bed can help as well.
- ag56 7y agoI second looking into your diet. I have over the months worked out that a low histamine diet works for me... but it could be anything for you. Really easy to test — follow a strict elimination diet for a few days. Nothing but rice, potatoes, chicken and water. At least with me I felt like a different human within 3 days.
- fileeditview 7y agoIf you have small kids, I think this experience is pretty normal. If you cannot find any explanation for it maybe get a blood analysis and let them check for deficiencies (e.g. iron). Good luck.
- DangitBobby 7y agoI know you asked specifically not to be armchair doctored but here it comes. How sure are you that you don't have sleep apnea? Did you actually do a study? Everyone I talked to didn't think I had it but I did a study anyway and lo and behold... no matter how much sleep I got, no difference whatsoever, always tired, just like you. But now several years later I did another one and I don't have it anymore. I think if you have it at a particular threshold they might not always diagnose you with it. So if you have a "mild case" like me you might meet the threshold one night and not the next.
- karatestomp 7y agoSame. I have like 10 or so days a year when I’m so quick-thinking, motivated, optimistic, and energetic, I feel like if I kept it up for a year I’d take over the damn world. But it’s just a day every now and then, so doesn’t amount to much. I do wonder whether most high-achievers wake up feeling that way more days than not. God damn life would be so easy and pleasant if that were the case.
- kidintech 7y agoI have those as well! Definitely more rare than my dumb days though. It's not so much the fact that I'm sharper, but life is just...rose-colored.
- karatestomp 7y agoExactly. I feel much sharper, much more energetic, and much more optimistic. Exactly “like I have a different brain”. Those days are awesome. If I could even get a couple of those a week, man, that’d be nice.
- jolmg 7y agoHow to have good sleep is also a bit of a mystery for me. A fresh breeze, sunlight, de-congested nostrils, lack of alarm, and relaxing ambient sounds like chirping birds and people living their lives in the distance seem to help, but ideal conditions aren't always available.