7 ms·
Not to dimish the problem but to add my own experience, consider that a delayed sleep onset can be confused with bedtime procrastination. My circadian rythm te
by zemvpferreira 3y ago
Not to dimish the problem but to add my own experience, consider that a delayed sleep onset can be confused with bedtime procrastination.
My circadian rythm tends to 25-26 hours. Every day I feel sleepy 2 hours later than the day before. That means every day I'm tempted to delay my bedtime by 2 hours because I don't feel sleepy at all. For the longest time I though the my difficulty falling asleep was habitual/emotional/hygienic.
After a decade of experimentation with caffeine, lighting, food, meditation, journaling, restricted sleep etc etc etc the best solution for me by far has been a low-dose melatonin supplement one hour before my desired bedtime. As long as I do that I hardly ever stay up longer than I should, and go to sleep immediately. Food for thought if you have chronic trouble falling asleep and don't feel like there's anything terribly 'off' about your habits.
(If I'm anxious/stressed I still sleep badly)
- Obscurity4340 3y agoYou "listen" to anything or silence?
- zemvpferreira 3y agoOn melatonin? I'm on YouTube until my head is too heavy to hold up (a novel experience). Off melatonin? I tried silence among other things but it just makes me either bored or anxious. No way to spend 5-10% of your day.
- Obscurity4340 3y agoU ever tried listening to an anchor piece or book that you listen to every night ritualistically? I feel like it works equally well for children and adults. Everyone loves a story they've heard a million times that tells their body implicitly its time for nighty bye bye :) Edit: also, you ever try cutting the visual so there's only audio? Try it and report back ;)
- zemvpferreira 3y ago[dead]
- noman-land 3y agoIs there a name for this circadian misalignment? I've never done any serious testing but over time have experienced the same realization, that my ideal day seems to be longer than 24 hours.
- nmarinov 3y agoThere is some research and some terminology but not a whole lot of conclusive stuff. Look up circadian rhythm sleep disorders, non-24-hour sleep–wake disorder, delayed sleep phase disorder, free running sleep.
- MengerSponge 3y agoThe name is "being human", and it's probably not pathological: subjects kept in environments without external timekeepers (such as sunrise/sunset or clocks even) tend to keep a 25 hour circadian rhythm. Our bodies respond strongly to food and light and caffeine. Food when you wake up, and darkness as you're going to sleep. Remember that caffeine has a half-life of up to 9 hours, so if you're having trouble winding down at bedtime, that might be attributable to the cup of coffee or soda you had at lunchtime.
- pawelduda 3y agoUp to 9 hours? More like 4-6 AFAIK
- MengerSponge 3y agoSpeculation: I'd expect a huge selection effect w.r.t. caffeine half-life. If your physiology yields a really long caffeine half-life, you won't drink as much because it keeps you from sleeping. These people will show up in studies as "not habitual users" Not speculation *up to* 9 hours. Your Mileage Will Vary. My point was for people who aren't sleeping well, who should be extra aware of the stimulants they're taking and how long they can be active. 4-6 hours is also pretty long, which means there aren't very many lambdas between that afternoon cup and when you're trying to go to bed.
- anktor 3y agoAbsolutely agreed. I've had some type of insomnia on and off most of my life, last year was particularly bad. Started taking melatonin, first day I fell asleep and rested like I couldn't for the past year. Asked my doctor about and he told me to keep taking it as long as I felt it worked, since anything he could give would be much much more addictive