# I pit myself and (my) sleep (habits) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 6, 2009, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-myself-and-my-sleep-habits/498922 "2009-06-06T13:47:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2009, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-myself-and-my-sleep-habits/498922/1 "2009-06-06T13:47:55Z")
So I have to get up at 7 am for an all-day training class and a party right after. So what do I do? 11:40 pm: Go to bed (a little late, yes, but I figure I’m still okay). Fall asleep almost at once. 2:40 am: Wake up for the third time. 2:41-6:00: Toss, turn, look at the clock, hum with the music running through my skull, think of random shit, worry, stare at the ceiling, get up and walk around to try to get out some of the nervous energy, mentally compose this post. 6:01: Ironically note that whatever switch got turned on is now off, and that I now feel like it’s _possible_ to sleep. 6:35: Get up, because it’s obviously too late. Early. Whatever. Now I have to pray I can pay attention through my course and drive home from the party without falling asleep. Keen. Of course, this is most likely my fault due to my sleep habits, which I’ve been able to indulge thanks to years of no steady job. Given complete freedom, I sleep around 5 am and wake up around 4 or 5 pm. And whenever I get up, it’s practically always out of a feeling of obligation; I always feel groggy and unrested, like I could sleep even more if I wanted to. That’s probably because I awaken around five to six times a night, if only for a few minutes. The only way for me to sleep through more than a couple of hours at a time is to be completely exhausted when I go to bed. As for the above happenings, well, that usually happens when I have to get up early the next day. Of course. Funnily enough, I don’t have nearly the same problem when I visit home; probably because having others around helps somehow. And so the day starts. Joy. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2009, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-myself-and-my-sleep-habits/498922/2 "2009-06-06T18:16:28Z")
Do you exercise regularly? It’ll do wonders for your ability to sleep the night through. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2009, 6:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-myself-and-my-sleep-habits/498922/3 "2009-06-06T18:26:42Z")
Drugs or booze or both. Problem solved. ---
**Author:** ![descamisado](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e480ec/32.png) [@descamisado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/descamisado)\ **Post date:** [June 6, 2009, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-myself-and-my-sleep-habits/498922/4 "2009-06-06T21:10:14Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > Drugs or booze or both. Problem solved. Actually, no. Booze can be a cause of broken sleep. OP, I sympathize with you. Like a lot of people, weekends are when I can sleep in. However, not only have I, this whole week, woken at 6:00pm when I don’t have to be up until 7:00 (going to bed around midnight), today (Saturday) I did the same thing. I was kind enough not to start calling people until 9:00am; I was out getting breakfast, etc. Almost every one of them exclaimed, “_You’re out already?!?!?_” ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 7, 2009, 1:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-myself-and-my-sleep-habits/498922/5 "2009-06-07T01:56:53Z")
> [@don\_t\_ask](#): > > Drugs or booze or both. Problem solved. As 5-4 notes, alcohol may help put you to sleep, but it also has a “rebound” effect which can wake you up in the middle of the night. ---
**Author:** ![corkboard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@corkboard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/corkboard)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2009, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-myself-and-my-sleep-habits/498922/6 "2009-06-08T20:05:49Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Do you exercise regularly? It’ll do wonders for your ability to sleep the night through. What I came in here to say. I found that if I can manage to force myself to exercise 1st thing in the morning, I’m genuinely sleepy when I go to bed and can sleep throughout the night. The big, dark circles I had under my eyes for about 10 years are less big and slightly less dark now, and I feel rested most of the time. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2009, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-myself-and-my-sleep-habits/498922/7 "2009-06-08T20:12:46Z")
> [@Leaper](#): > > Given complete freedom, I sleep around 5 am and wake up around 4 or 5 pm. You sleep 11-12 hours _a night_? Even if you’re waking up for a few minutes throughout the night, that’s way too much. Have you ever mentioned your sleep problems to a doctor? ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [June 8, 2009, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-pit-myself-and-my-sleep-habits/498922/8 "2009-06-08T23:23:29Z")
I’d see a physician, preferably one who specializes in sleep disorders. My cardiologist recently referred me to one, and it turns out I have sleep apnea. I wake up 25 times an hour from hypoxia. Once my O2 saturation went down to 76%. Later on I tried to duplicate it while awake, holding my breath to try to get the pulse oximeter down that low and couldn’t. I have no idea how long I’d have to hold my breath to get it down to there, but it’s a while. Your symptoms sound a lot like mine. If you have sleep apnea it probably means sleeping in a Darth Vader type mask the rest of your life, but it will improve the quality of your sleep, and your life, immensely. In fact, if someone knows where I could get a mask pimped out like Darth Vader’s let me know.