# Sleeping too much **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 26, 2005, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927 "2005-06-26T16:23:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Detonation](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/cc9497/32.png) [@Detonation](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Detonation)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2005, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/1 "2005-06-26T16:23:41Z")
Is it actually possible to sleep “too much”? Do our bodies have a certain sleep requirement that needs to be filled, and that’s that, or will they happily just snooze on if that’s what’s offered? I ask because I’ve always considered myself a sort of person who needs a lot of sleep, but now I wonder… am I sleeping because I really need it or am just in the habit? ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2005, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/2 "2005-06-26T16:41:41Z")
It may just be habit, boredom, depression, alcohol, medications, or illicit drugs. Or maybe you need a lot of sleep. Best check with your doctor who can assess your individual situation, if it’s causing you problems or concern. The amount of sleep people need changes over time, and also depends upon specific circumstances, such as level of activity, stress, diet, degree of exposure to sunlight, and so on and so on. good info here: [http://www.stanford.edu/~dement/](http://www.stanford.edu/~dement/) and here: [http://www.sleepfoundation.org/](http://www.sleepfoundation.org/) ---
**Author:** ![MelCthefirst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@MelCthefirst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MelCthefirst)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2005, 10:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/3 "2005-06-26T22:25:58Z")
At a conference I went to, the plenary session was this Australian guy who used to be a biochemist. His main message was on how to get the most out of your body energy in order to be an effective person, worker etc. He had this nifty little questionnaire in order to work out what body drug of choice everyone had. Apparently nearly everyone has a preference for either: seratonin, melatonin, adreneline, insulin or can’t remember the last one even though we all need all of them. Anyhow, I turned out to be melatonin - ie I need a lot of sleep (81/2 - 9 hours a day) to be full of energy and to perform the best. So, maybe you are a fellow melatonin junky? ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2005, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/4 "2005-06-26T22:55:45Z")
Mel: This sounds like the next great internet quiz. Can you remember the guy’s name? Can you find any info about the questionnaire? FWIW, I need 8 to 9 hours a day. ---
**Author:** ![MelCthefirst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@MelCthefirst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MelCthefirst)\ **Post date:** [June 26, 2005, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/5 "2005-06-26T23:15:36Z")
His name is Matt Church and this is his website: > **[Matt Church](https://www.mattchurch.com/)** > > Motivational Speaker, Australia, Leadership Expert, Public Speaking I’m pretty sure you can’t get hold of his little questionnaire without paying for it, but I haven’t had a thorough look on his web site. ---
**Author:** ![tremorviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e47774/32.png) [@tremorviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tremorviolet)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/6 "2005-06-27T01:57:47Z")
Well, there has been some recently published [research](http://www.nova.edu/~hobby/downloads/dontsleep) that suggests people who average 6-7 hours tend to live longer than those who sleep more. But there were lots of flaws with the study which relied on self-reported data and didn’t exclude factors such as illness. ---
**Author:** ![dnooman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/839c29/32.png) [@dnooman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dnooman)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/7 "2005-06-27T04:12:29Z")
> [@MelCthefirst](#): > > His name is Matt Church and this is his website: > > [http://www.mattchurch.com.au/](http://www.mattchurch.com.au/) > > I’m pretty sure you can’t get hold of his little questionnaire without paying for it, but I haven’t had a thorough look on his web site. Is [url=]this it? ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/8 "2005-06-27T04:45:59Z")
> [@dnooman](#): > > Is [url=]this it? You should get some rest. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![MelCthefirst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@MelCthefirst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MelCthefirst)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/9 "2005-06-27T20:27:00Z")
> [@dnooman](#): > > Is [url=]this it? The link doesn’t work for me. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [June 27, 2005, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sleeping-too-much/309927/10 "2005-06-27T21:12:58Z")
> [@MelCthefirst](#): > > At a conference I went to, the plenary session was this Australian guy who used to be a biochemist. His main message was on how to get the most out of your body energy in order to be an effective person, worker etc. > He had this nifty little questionnaire in order to work out what body drug of choice everyone had. Apparently nearly everyone has a preference for either: seratonin, melatonin, adreneline, insulin or can’t remember the last one even though we all need all of them. > Anyhow, I turned out to be melatonin - ie I need a lot of sleep (81/2 - 9 hours a day) to be full of energy and to perform the best. > So, maybe you are a fellow melatonin junky? I know you are referring to someone else but that sounds similiar to the views of Edge Effect. [http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1402712057/ref=pd\_sxp\_f/104-1943844-7638368?v=glance&s=books](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1402712057/ref=pd_sxp_f/104-1943844-7638368?v=glance&s=books)