Apparently I DO Need Sleep
I’ve never been a good sleeper. Well, as far as I can remember. We’ll have to ask my mom about babyhood, but from about five on, I hated bedtime and it wasn’t because I was just defiant or wanted to stay up. I dreaded going to bed because I couldn’t fall asleep.
Having kids has cured me a lot, though I do still have some nights where I am up for hours. Mostly I can’t turn my mind off — you think I talk a lot here? You wouldn’t believe what goes on in my brain all day long.
I started that crazy running-at-6am-thing a few months ago and for the first time in my life, I am actually pretty consistently getting enough sleep. Having to get up at 5:30 in the morning pretty much forced me into bed by 10 or 10:30. Previous to this, I had this goal every night of my life since the beginning of college to go to bed by midnight, and I think I maybe accomplished it a handful of times in the past ten years.
But now I am doing it most of the time. (Even though we’ve really slacked on the running thing over the last month or so.) I’m still getting up fairly early and managing to get to bed at a decent hour.
There are days when I don’t get enough sleep, and I have noticed something that should be obvious: I am highly irritable, weepy, and extra-clumsy (Hello sewing machine needle: Meet my finger.)
I never realized this before because I never had anything to compare “not enough sleep” to. I just assumed I didn’t need that much sleep. (Well, I guess I did begin to notice some problems related to little sleep a while back.)
But man! The difference is striking.
The thing is, I don’t actually feel tired, which is part of why I haven’t noticed, and why I am often pulling my hair out trying to figure out why I am feeling so darn sad about all these little nothings all day, before I finally realize: Oh, I went to bed late last night. Or, Oh, Mary nursed ALL FLIPPIN’ NIGHT. This may have something to do with it!
Ick, though, this is awful. I have no reason to feel so down, but boy do I! I am going to be vigilant about getting enough sleep now. I do NOT want to continue feeling like this. Good NIGHT.
Filed in: just life • self-reflection | January 12, 2010
grannie
I feel for you, Kate. I have trouble shutting of f my mind every night. Poppop puts his head on the pillow and he’s gone…I lay there for an hour and sleep doesn’t come.Too many concerns, worries, etc. I think a new water system and a new bathroom would help tremendously…but I don’t have ANY cooperation.
Katie
I don’t lie awake and worry, but like you, my mind is going non stop and I sometimes can’t fall asleep for hours. This only started about 3 years ago when I started staying up until 1, 2, or 3 am. Before that I was out instantly. So my situation may be a little different than yours.
But anyway, I realized that I *always* fell asleep listening to my Hypnobirthing CDs. So I downloaded a sleep meditation that I found on the internet. I have listened to it many times to fall asleep. It is 15 minutes long, and I have NEVER heard the whole thing. I listened to it once while I was awake and didn’t recognize more than the first 3-4 minutes of it!
The one I got is by Peter Tongue.
Simply Mother
Grannie, Matt read that and is now plotting a way to get out there and remodel your bathroom for you. What exactly is wrong with your water system, he wants to know. We’ll call you in the morning.
That sounds awesome Katie, I might look into that. Think it would work for my kids too? Sariah sometimes has a hard time falling asleep.
Katie
It would probably work for kids, or maybe they have kids ones out there. You’d probably want to listen to it through first and see if it said anything you disagree with. I don’t even remember what mine says, but it says something about Michael the archangel being a protector during the night. I was OK with that since my baby Michael sleeps next to me and protects me :-D
Nicole
It’s so hard when your brain won’t shut down. A part of my (still current) insomnia is not wanting to miss anything. Even when everyone’s in bed and the lights are off, I somehow worry that something will happen and I won’t see it. It’s so cool that you are able to keep such a good schedule. You never cease to amaze. :)
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