I'm developing this new sleep need pattern. I am not sure it will become a problem.

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

I’m developing this new sleep need pattern. I am not sure it will become a problem.

Phase I…a few debilitating yawns scattered throughout the day, couple of days to a week.

Phase II…Yawns increase to where they are annoying. Few day increasingly annoying.

Phase III…I give up and allow myself to fall asleep and sleep for 16-24 hours with an occasional brief half-awake bathroom break.

Phase IV…I feel really good for several days, a few weeks, once five months.

Notes: Old man. Several chronic conditions that may or may not kill me in the next ten years. All the blood tests that Medicare would pay for, and one thyroid test they will not pay for, are consistant with my age, medications etc.

2

How much sleep do you get all the other nights while this is building?

Are you under a lot of stress?

3

7-8 hours and no stress (Except trying to respond here. This is my third attempt.)

4

It’s an odd-sounding pattern, to be sure. What does your primary care doctor say about it?

Do you perhaps live somewhere with a good sleep clinic (as opposed to, say, a neurology or respiratory care practice that opened up a sleep lab to get a piece of the sleep-lab pie)? If so it might be worth paying them a visit.

5

Have you had them test your testosterone hormone levels? My borderline hypogonadism gives me some of the same symptoms as my hypothyroidism - occasional lethargy, excessive need for sleep. Low testosterone levels also come with more depression-like symptoms, though, unlike low thyroid hormone levels.

6

Primary had a tissy fit about the way labs were billing Medicare for thyroid tests, printed something and stormed out. I’ll see my pulmonary spec next week and will ask him about his new sleep program.

My self diagnosis is SAD.

7

I have had downright weird sleep patters since puberty.
I remember being awake at 02:00 in Middle Schiol.

If this pattern does not interfere with your economics or social life, I wouldn’t worry about it.

I’ll second the REAL sleep clinic. I now use a CPAP and fell much better on less sleep.

The apnea was (my guess) keeping me from entering REM and getting in a full night’s worth of dreaming.
Even now, I will develop an intense desire for sleep. If I lay down I will nod off long enough to get in a dream or two (I awaken by entering Lucid dreaming, so I am aware that I am dreaming)/

This is the only way I can get anything resembling sleep without a heavy-duty sleeping pill (temazepam).

An old one, but still good: “If it feels good, do it”.

Age has some benefits - you can sometimes give social norms the finger.