I am in college, and lately I have noticed that my sleeping/energy patterns are all screwed up. I usually wake up at about 8 - 8:30, get really tired and “crash” at around 11AM (though I am in class, so I can’t take a nap), 2PM (again, in class, so no napping), 8PM (can’t sleep… too many people making noise in dorms, plus too early), and then I don’t get tired again till 2AM, when I can finally go to bed. But this seems like it would be really hard on my body, only getting 6 hours of sleep a night. But if I attempt to go to bed at a reasonable hour, like 11 or 12, then I just lay in bed staring at my lava lamp for 2 hours because I can’t sleep. If I try to take a midday nap at 3, 4, 5, I can’t because my body is very much awake at that time.
So, I guess my GQs are: Why is my body like this? Does it hate me? Is this unhealthy, or bad for me? And what could I do to remedy the situation?
it’s perfectly natural for people to get drowsy at midday. That’s why much of the world takes an afternoon siesta. Our culture just doesn’t really allow for it.
what are you eating for breakfast? a carbohydrate-heavy meal (or no breakfast at all!) can cause many people to crash afterwards–i.e., “food coma.” This could exacerbate your post-lunch drowsiness, as well.
boring classes? Lord knows I regularly dozed off in a few really dull classes.
you could be dozing off b/c you’re tired. (stay with me) At some point, you got yourself onto your current weird sleeping/waking pattern. If you got to sleep at a decent hour (ha!) and slept straight through 'til 8:30, you might find you wouldn’t get as drowsy during the day (when you’re desperately tired body may be trying to catch up on its sleep deficit). And remember, adolescents and postadolescents need tons of sleep. Try blocking out a good 10 hours each night for a week, and see how you feel. You might have trouble switching from a 2AM bedtime to a 10-10:30 bedtime, but I’m sure if you just bring a boring textbook to bed with you, you’ll doze off in no time.
You do have a day or two when you can sleep in, right (Saturdays, perhaps?)? What happens on those days? Do you wake up at 8:30 anyway, or sleep through to noon?
Get the movie REAL GENIUS, then go out and rent a floor sander?
But seriously, there was an article within the last month that suggests that too much sleep will shorten your lifespan. I don’t recall any articles that say too little sleep does the same.
“For any medical research announcement, there is always an equal and opposite medical research announcement.”