How much sleep do you *need*? (alt. title "Am I Abnormal?")

[Old Dominion Heather]

I seem to need a LOT of sleep compared with you folks who go to bed at midnight and get up at 4 AM (you know who you are...cough...cough...Colleen!!)

 

I go to bed at 11 or 12 but then dh wakes me up around 8:15 or 8:30. He has to wake me though. Left on my own, I could easily sleep another hour. That would be 10 hours! It seems like only kids should need THAT much sleep. I sleep more than twice as much as some of you! I sleep more than dh!

 

It just doesn't seem right.

[Kathleen in VA]

I need more than the average amount, too. I've always thought that if the average was 8 hours per night and some folks can get by with 5-6 hours, that must mean some of us need a whole more to get that 8hr average. Make sense?

[Kim in Appalachia]

I often only get 7.

 

If you regularly need 10 hrs of sleep maybe you should have some tests done. I'm thinking Thyroid or Lyme's disease, just to name 2.

 

But maybe you just need a lot of sleep.

[Heather in the Kootenays]

If you're abnormal, you're in good company. :001_smile:

 

Left to my own schedule, I'll sleep from 9 p.m. - 5 a.m. or a bit later. Of course, I seldom am left to my own schedule. :glare:

[jmgconner]

I'm one who needs more than the usual 8 hours of sleep. I appreciate a good 9 hours of sleep per night. If I get less than 8, I'm normally falling asleep on my feet in the late afternoon.

[pianoplayer]

Yep, I'm with you on this! I need 9-10 hours of sleep to function well. Less than 8 for more than one or two nights and I'm a walking zombie.

 

Bottom line - how much sleep do I need? Always more, always more!:glare:

[Mrs Mungo]

I only need around 5-6 hours of sleep, I can sleep *maybe* 7 if my activity level has been very high and/or I've been sick. I typically go to bed at 1am and get up at 7am. Lately (read: last night/this morning but hopefully will keep at it), I've switched to sleeping 11:30pm-5am (getting up to work out with hubby). My hubby needs more sleep than I do. Only one of my kids seems to be taking after me. My two girls can quite easily sleep 12 hours, my son needs less sleep than they do.

 

I don't think needing or not needing lots of sleep makes one abnormal, I think different people are just made up differently.

[Mesa]

10-11 hours would be perfect for me. LOL. It drives my hubby bonkers. He's always complaining about having to wake me up in the morning. I'm usually in bed at midnight and wake up at 8 when dh leaves for work.

 

I need my thyroid checked.

[E_Edgerton]

Between 6-8 to feel refreshed and ready for the day...however on days when I have nothing else to do....12! I love sleeping!

[Tammyla]

I prefer a good 9 hours a night and 10 in the winter. I'm fine functioning on 8 or 7, but not a sweet and there is a definite lull in the day. My doctor says as long as you feel good when you get up and function without a lot of stress, that's the right amount of sleep for you.

[nancypants]

I often go to bed between 11:30 and 12 just because I love all of that undisturbed quiet time at night. Normally I wake up at around 8:30... normally being during the Fall/Winter/Spring when the sun doesn't come blazing, unwelcomed, into my room at 5 a.m. I can now manage to sleep until about 7:15 by which time it is just too bright for me to be able to fall back asleep if I happen to be woken by the dog or another person (which happens often).

 

I think I need and desire 8 hours of sleep... but apparently not enough for me to change my ways and go to bed earlier! LOL

[Tammy]

And if I don't get all those 9 hours....everyone knows about it, LOL!

 

Tammy

[Plaid Dad]

I do best with 9 hours but usually get 6-7 at night. That's why I take naps!

[Ashleen]

I need 8 hrs a night. I go to bed at midnight and get up at 8 to take the dog out. The coffee pot is set to have my coffee ready at 8:30.

 

I am physically incapable of sleeping longer than 8 hours, and in fact even if I go to bed at 3 a.m., I'll still get up at 8:00 on the dot (I never use an alarm). However, getting less than 8 hours' sleep, especially over several nights, turns my personality monstrous (b*tchy, short-tempered, yelling at people). As long as I get exactly 8 hrs, I can be really nice.

 

My poor husband gets up at 2:30 in the morning to go to work. I could not do what he does and still have a nice personality.

[Vicki]

I need 8-9 hours of sleep each night. Although I can get by with 7 hours, less than that and I usually end up with a headache.

God bless,

Vicki

[mommybee]

I typically sleep about nine. When my thyroid needed fixin' I was sleeping that much but also sleeping for hour long naps during the day. That's how I knew something wasn't right, plus a bunch of other random symptoms...but that's another story.

 

I don't think it's abnormal to need a lot of sleep. I believe some of us just need more than others and I only see it as a problem if we are sleeping more than we are getting things done. Sometimes I feel guilty that I can't get up early in the morning, but I just can't. I hate to wake to an alarm. I like to let my body sleep and naturally wake up. Usually I'm pretty consistent

 

Off to work, see you ladies later!

[KellyGirl]

I have always needed lots of sleep. Eight hours will do, but to really feel refreshed and energized I need 9 or maybe even 10 hours. (I can't remember the last time I got that much sleep) If I go more than a few days on less than 8 hours I will end up sick.

 

When I was in middle school/junior high, I would get home from school, do my homework and go to bed at about dinner time then sleep until 6:00 the next morning. I probably did that once or twice a month.

[Sharon in SC]

....as long as you feel good when you get up and function without a lot of stress, that's the right amount of sleep for you.

 

For me, this would mean an easy 8-9+ hours of sleep. :-}

[HollyinNNV]

I need 9-10 hours and have had all the blood work to make sure I'm healthy. It is just the way I function best.

Holly

[DB in NJ]

It varies so much for me.

 

We were just down the shore for a week. I went to bed every night around 10 (early for me) and was up by 6 (also early for me). I sleep less in the summer than the winter. Also, if I have my period, I could sleep for about 12 hours!

 

I *need* 6 good hours of sleep to function well. I prefer at least 8 hours though. When I used to run, I was up at 5 every morning and out the door by 5:30 at the latest. That was nice, but I found myself ready for bed by 9.

[DB in NJ]

Are naps not the most wonderful thing?! I just took one myself.....glorious!

 

I can't do it often, certainly not every day (how I wish I could!), but man, that was great. I do find that if I wake up early (like 6 AM), I need about 30-60 minutes of quiet time in the afternoon if I'm going to make it past dinner! LOL

 

Sometimes I feel like my grandfather: He was up at 5 every morning; ready for bed by 6 every night. But he'd get "washed" (that's what he always called it), put on his jammies, and settle in his recliner for some Lawrence Welk. He never made it past the first number ;)

[mcconnellboys]

I need every bit of that much sleep. So does my sister. So does my father. I believe that his mother did, too. So maybe it's a genetic thing?

[Krista in LA]

I need at least 9. I'm so jealous of those people who need less sleep. I just think of all the things I could do with an extra 3 hours a day. Sigh.

[Plucky]

I am at my best with 8 1/2 hours. I so wish I could get less.

[Mom2legomaniacs]

I require a lot of sleep. But in the past few months, my body has been weirder than normal. And I am having trouble sleeping some nights. I don't know what is going on. Before that, I would require around 9 or more hours a night.

[Lolly]

I have found that as I get older it is getting harder to sleep through the night. Now, I am lucky to get 7-8 hours in a day. I handle it better than I would have/did a few years ago when I didn't get my night sleep.

[charlotteb]

I need a good solid 8 to 10 hrs at night to feel rested. I think that's because I'm a very light sleeper and wake up often.

 

DH, on the other hand, can live on about 4 hours a sleep at night and function just fine. He's so weird :)

[LunaLee]

I have always gotten by on 5-6 hrs with a cat nap in the afternoon. That was mostly because I was working full time though and there was never enough time in the day. But now, I get a full 8-9 hours a day and I always feel tired. So I've been doing a little experimenting and I've figured that I am one of those that do better with about 5-6 hours with a little nappy nap later in the day. But I'm also more productive after dark, hence my board name, which is why I think this works better for me.

 

And as far as being abnormal, I say first lets examine what exactly is normal?:001_smile:

[cjzimmer1]

Normal for me is about 9 hours. However, I frequently get anemic and as soon as my iron levels drop my need for sleep goes up. Since my doctors won't treat it until it gets really really bad (I can't take oral supplements and the only thing that works for me is iron infusions), I have just learned to accept that the majority of the time i need 9-10 hours a day plus at least 1 daily nap (2 is preferable but seldom happens).

 

Stephanie

[Peela]

I read a book recently called Sleep, Sugar and Survival and it convinced me we probably need (as humans) more sleep than we think, particularly in winter. Lots of research to back it up. So, its winter here, and I am trying to get more sleep than the 8 or so hours I am used to and which I thought were adequate. I feel so much better! I didn't realise. I am often skipping my afternoon nap now because I just don't feel tired, if I can get at least 9 hours sleep. I am going for 9.5 though! Hard when I have a good book to read though, and cant bring myself to turn out the light.

[Christine]

I'm generally a 9 hour person myself.

 

My DH, who does have hypothyroidism, is a 6 hour sleeper.

[Tutor]

I need a minimum of 9 hours. I also do not function well before 10am. Period. I can do mundane things like put in a load of laundry or get dressed (usually), but anything that requires any thought I put off until after 10 am (school, business calls, writing, etc).

[jail warden]

I feel my best at 9-10 hours, but usually get 8 1/2 since having kids. I'm okay for a while with that, but when PMS rolls around, I sleep more and make up for the other times!

[3lilreds in NC]

I need a lot of sleep. I don't get enough, and there comes a point when I get mean, and then cease to be able to function normally. If I am really b*tchy and can't control my tongue, I know I'm too tired.

 

I can do the mommy-never-sleeps thing for a while, but I have to tell you that when Schmooey goes through a few nights of waking up even once, it kicks my hiney. I think it's the meanest thing a baby can do, start sleeping through the night and then take it back! :D

 

I don't know how much I need, per se. In an ideal world, I would go to bed at 10pm and have a wakeup time of 7. That's about 9 hours I guess. Right now I get to bed usually later than 11 and wake up at 6 to an alarm. Bleah.

[Sasharowan]

I'm the odd one. I can function on 6 hours of sleep, but it depends on when they are. No matter what time I go to bed, if I am wakened before 8am, I have a much harder time functioning. If I can sleep past 8 (ideally 9) I am much better off. We have been doing cub scout day camp all week and having to get up at 6:30am is killing me. We took today off because eveyone was feeling bad (mostly tired and too hot). We'll go back tomorrow for the pizza and water fight.

[Tabrett]

Something to think about:

 

A REM cycle takes 3 hours to complete. If you sleep 6 hours you complete 2, if you sleep 9 hours you complete 3. If you are woke up before your REM cycle is complete you are groggy and tired and may have a headache.

 

This might account why most people say they need 6 or 9 hours of sleep.

 

If you can't get a good 9 hours of sleep, it might be better to wake yourself up after 6.

 

Why society says "a person need 7 hours of sleep" is crazy. That wakes you up at the beginning of a 3rd REM cycle.

 

If you power nap for 20-30 mins you are waking yourself up BEFORE you start a REM cycle hence you are not tired. If you take a 3 hour nap you will probably feel really good. Napping outside of this cycle may account for why people say "If I take a nap I am more tired or have a headache".

 

I need 9. Unfortunately I get 7 with no nap. Mostly groggy all day.

[ereks mom]

Occasionally, if I've had a high level of activity or have been sleep-deprived for a couple of days, I need closer to 9 hours of sleep. Usually, I aim for 8 hours, but can get by on 7. Less than 6 hours or more than 9 hours, though, and I get a splitting headache.

[Faithseed]

That makes a lot of sense. I'm much better off getting 6 hours than if I get 7. There's no time for a 3 hour nap, although in those rare occasions where I might get one, I feel wonderful. However, if I only nap for 1-2 hours, I feel absolutely horrible.

 

I'd LOVE 9 or more hours. Sleep is my #1 wish item- even above chocolate or wine ;).

 

Faithseed

[Pajama Mama]

Before I discovered my hypothyroid problem, I felt like Rip Van Winkle. I could sleep forever and it wouldn't be enough. I wanted 12 hrs but got more like 4-5. My son requires that I feed him with a machine. I feed him until about 11 PM each night. When he was going to school, I had to wake at 5 AM to feed him and get him ready before the bus arrived. When my thyroid was outta whack, I would go back to sleep after the bus picked him up around 8. You could imagine how much I got done around the house with housework and schoolwork. Now that my thyroid is in better shape, I still need at least 8 hrs of sleep. But during the school yr I still only get 5-6 at the most. Now that it's summer I'm sleeping alot more. It's great!

[Staci in MO]

And only get five hours night after night and think I'm doing fine...

 

I'm crabbier, less patient, and really don't enjoy life as much. The thing is, I never seem to realize this until I start getting more sleep.

 

So, I probably really need 7 to 8 hours. I can function with a lot less for quite a long period of time, though, if need be.

[Staci in MO]

After going on little sleep for awhile, the first couple of nights when I get more sleep, I feel worse. It's after the 3rd or so night with more sleep that I start to feel better.

 

Okay, I'm just going to have to go to bed earlier tonight. :glare:

[Colleen]

I seem to need a LOT of sleep compared with you folks who go to bed at midnight and get up at 4 AM (you know who you are...cough...cough...Colleen!!)

 

You don't want to hear from me, eh?;):D

 

I remain firmly convinced that while people do have different sleep patterns, some folks sleep more than they need to. I have absolutely no evidence to back up that claim, btw.:bigear: