Joyofsixreboot Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 So I've been trying to get 7-8 hours thinking it would help my stress levels. I think it's stressing me out 😬 If I go to bed late, if I go to bed early, if I have morning light, exercise....I just consistently sleep about 6 hours. I just wake up. I don't have a problem falling asleep I just wake up early. Is it possible to be an outlier or am I just so jacked up on modern life my body can't sleep? From what I read people who need less sleep are rare. Should I just bag the whole caring thing and let my body do it's thing! The Hive always knows. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Just let your body do its thing. It will tell you when it needs more. I think all this sleep crap is overhyped. Not saying some people don't get enough, but you would think we're the first generation ever challenged by too little sleep with all of the hoopla surrounding it. If you're trudging through life exhausted, that's one thing, but if you're functioning fine I say just go with. I think it's cyclical personally. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tress Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Assuming you are functioning fine and you are not propping yourself up with massive doses of caffeine.....I would let your body do it's thing. If 6 hours are enough, than that's enough. (I wish it was enough for me, I really need at least 8 hours.) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 I think every body is a bit unique and that the recommendations are just averages. If you feel fine on less sleep then don't stress about it. The stress is probably doing you more harm than the extra sleep would be helping. (I have the same conundrum with exercise sometimes--if I totally stress myself out trying to find time to exercise is there really any net benefit?) 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 I vote do your own thing. Have you tried covering your window(s) in your bedroom? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 (edited) Your body knows best. Can you go back to sleep after six hours of sleeping? I'd try that. If you can't, then I guess you really don't need a lot of sleep. I assume you don't see a change between seasons, or a correlation with morning light? What happens when you travel across time zones, totally disturb your circadian rhythm, and then get back home? Envious. I need 8-9 hours. Edited January 4, 2017 by regentrude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 If you feel well then I'd just call yourself lucky. I mean no need trying to sleep more if you don't feel you need it, just be thankful for the extra time :) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teachermom2834 Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 I need 8-9 hours but dh really needs only 5-6. It drives me nuts! For years I was convinced he was sleep deprived and I nagged him about it. I finally just accepted it. He works long hours crunching numbers. I don't know how he does it. I finally am convinced it is just fine. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 (edited) How long have you been trying to get more than 6 hours of sleep? It can take months for your body to settle into a new rhythm. How often have you switched things up? You mentioned going to bed early/going to bed late. To establish a sleep pattern, you need to go to bed at the exact same time every night, including weekends for many weeks in a row. You can't try going to bed early for a week, then to bed late for a week. Instead pick a time and stick with it for months. Are you tired in the day? Can you fall asleep in the afternoon within 7 minutes? Do you doze during tv or movies? If so, you're not getting enough sleep. If you're wide awake and your mind is clear all day, then perhaps your'e getting enough sleep. If you want to try again: Pick a bedtime and move mountains to get yourself into bed at that time every single night--Friday/Saturday nights included. No staying out late with friends and missing your bedtime. Do this for 4 months. No napping during the day, unless it's 20 minutes or less. If you can fall asleep within 7 minutes in the middle of the day, then you are sleep deprived. If you are so exhausted you can't think straight, you can take a 20 minute nap, but more than that runs the risk of messing up your bedtime sleepiness. Is there something that is waking you 6 hours later? A dog barking? A husband leaving for work? If it's something that wakes you, try to find a way to make that thing stop or to block the noise (earplugs or something.) Edited January 4, 2017 by Garga 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomatHWTK Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 Among the odd things I have recently researched-- bimodal or biphasic sleep. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biphasic_and_polyphasic_sleep Some think it is a more natural sleep pattern. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bolt. Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 I was going to mention (as above) that for most people 'a full night' of sleep has a short waking in the middle. If you know to expect this, your body tends to feel fine about it and go back to sleep easily for another little while. I would be surprised to meet someone who genuinely only needs 6 hours per night -- who isn't sleepy, emotionally drained, or generally worn out during the day as a result. It's possible -- but I think it's much more likely that your hour-six wake up is just the end of your first phase. When I have my usual night waking, I follow a routine of emptying my bladder (in dim light) and starting my soothing audio book (usually a re-run, nothing exciting). I refuse to start thinking on 'daytime topics' and (if necessary) I mentally repeat phrases from the audio book until my brain releases a daytime topic, I no longer feel concerned that being awake is unusual or needs to be solved in any way. (I used to feel that way.) I end up back asleep within 10 minutes the vast majority of nights. I suggest if you are awake after 6 hours, try telling yourself: it's fine that I'm awake, but I'm not going to face the day right now. I'm going to stay cozy and get another few hours of rest -- even if I don't sleep, this is second-best for my needs. Listen to soothing music, meditate, or do audio books so that your brain doesn't quite kick into gear. See what happens. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 My grandparents, parents needed much less sleep as they aged. No minors to exhaust them. I needed much less sleep before kids, probably need much less again when my kids are independent adults. There are people who need less sleep though just as some need more. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted January 4, 2017 Share Posted January 4, 2017 (edited) I came back to refer to something that other people already wrote: the interrupted sleep pattern. In the link that MomatHWTK linked (here), click on interrupted sleep. Interrupted sleep seems to happen about 4 hours after the start of sleep and not 6, but you could be having a variation on that. It's a bit of a pain, though, because you'd have to get to bed early in the night to have time to accommodate a full nights sleep (of 8 hours) PLUS the time you are awake in the middle of it (about 1 hour). Have you tried doing something calm for about an hour after you wake and seeing if you get tired again and fall back asleep? You could go to bed at 10, sleep until 4, read until 5, then sleep until 7. Sleep is tricky. I've found that most of the people I know IRL who have sleep issues will not take any action against them. They'll just drag through the day and complain about how tired they are, but won't do anything to solve the issue. I think they're too tired to think the problem through and just keep muddling along. If you are tired and getting only 6 hours of sleep, and are ready to tackle the problem, there are things you can do. I'd recommend starting with the rock-solid bedtime. Next, if you wake up after 6 hours, do something quiet and see if you can fall back asleep after about an hour--or two. Or three. Per the study on the link, people could stay awake for 2 or 3 hours before falling back asleep. You might be someone who has that interrupted sleep pattern. I'm not sure you can change that, but if you know you have it, you can work around it by accepting it and using that wake time in the middle of the night to get some quiet things done. Maybe paperwork or something. It's a pain, though, because everyone else will be awake while you're still sleeping later into the morning. Edited January 4, 2017 by Garga 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joyofsixreboot Posted January 5, 2017 Author Share Posted January 5, 2017 No, I don't go back to sleep. I go to bed about 10 and get up about 4:00 or a little later. I usually lay there until 4:45 or 5:00 when dh gets up for work. I am definitely ready for bed each night but I feel good when I wake up and don't really get too tired until after supper. I guess I'll just put it on ignore for now. Thanks for all the info and links though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted January 5, 2017 Share Posted January 5, 2017 No, I don't go back to sleep. I go to bed about 10 and get up about 4:00 or a little later. I usually lay there until 4:45 or 5:00 when dh gets up for work. I am definitely ready for bed each night but I feel good when I wake up and don't really get too tired until after supper. I guess I'll just put it on ignore for now. Thanks for all the info and links though. Then I think you're one of the lucky ones. If you feel good when you get up and have energy all day until evening, then it sound like you hit the jackpot. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne in CA Posted January 5, 2017 Share Posted January 5, 2017 My dh has a very hard time sleeping more than 5 1/2 hours unless he is absolutely exhausted. I have to assume that some people simply are not going to get all the sleep that is recommended. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrapbookbuzz Posted January 5, 2017 Share Posted January 5, 2017 I came to the conclusion a long time ago that the ubiquitous "they" who recommended a minimum of 8 hours asleep were NOT parents! I've also realized that not everyone needs the same amount of sleep. Just like there is no blanket curriculum that works for everyone or one method of eating that works for everyone, there is not one amount of sleep that works for everyone. Every body is different and so is what we need to sustain them. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.