Told You So

[hazelm]

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/12/171214140442.htm?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+sciencedaily%2Ftop_news%2Ftop_science+%28ScienceDaily%3A+Top+Science+News%29

 

I have been saying this for years but nobody listens to the likes of me.  What do I know?  We do not all need eight hours of sleep a night.  And our need for different amounts of sleep changes at different times of our lives.  I sleep far fewer hours now than I did when I was young and I still wake up ready to go into action.  So did my father and so do a lot of other people I know. 

[Maine farmer]

I think the key is to listen to your body.  Modern people spend too much time worrying about what they "should" be doing.

[hazelm]

I think the key is to listen to your body.  Modern people spend too much time worrying about what they "should" be doing.

And getting over-medicated. 

[Maine farmer]

And getting over-medicated. 

I am fortunate enough that I never suffered from insomnia, but I imagine that if I did, I would get out of bed and do something productive rather than pop a pill.  The advertisements for sleep aids list some scary possible side effects! 

[Deepwater6]

I'm sure genes play an important role in human sleep habits, and nothing against fruit fly's, but I think there is more to the story. After I turned 40 or so my sleeping became erratic. In my 30's the only way to advance in my company was to work a position with a grueling rolling shiftwork schedule. Even with the 7shifts of midnight, followed by 7shifts of 4-12, a few days off then 6shifts of daywork, at 30 my body could adjust. Having a young family I even started my own house painting company to earn extra money. I would work midnight shift then go paint a couple of rooms or refinish decks then go to sleep and bounce right back.

 

Today my sleeping schedule is still rather dicey. I think several factors weigh in a little harder than the genes. My professional responsibility has grown significantly from when I was 30, and I think as most people age they tend to earn more money and take on more responsibilities. The weight of those responsibilities can severely affect ones sleeping habits. Some can cope better than others and its hard to compare apples to apples in this arena, what's stressful for me, may be nothing more than a mole hill for you. That being said, I've spent many a night lying awake thinking about problems and solutions for my workplace at 2:30am. Since I'm salary every hour spent being at work or consumed with it mentally at home, means I'm effectively losing money. Making less money per hour spread out over my yearly salary.

 

Although study's like this can be helpful, I don't think the fruit fly suffers the stress from deadlines not met or personnel problems looming they must deal with. There are also other factors to consider as well. When I was 30 I had a lot more waking hours in motion. These days I'm lucky if I can get out from behind my desk more than an hour everyday. I stopped drinking coffee and made some other adjustments but still, it's very difficult for me to have "a good nights sleep".

 

This lack of sleep is believed by my Neurologist to be the catalyst for a series of seizures I experienced 5-6yrs ago. At least that's the only reason they could determine after all other tests they performed. I make sure I get a proper amount of sleep overnight before a workday these days. So far no other issues have come up since then so maybe that was the problem.

 

I do agree with the basic premise that some can run "normally" on 4-5hrs or less a night while others need eight. When I was younger a good friends mother ran several high end stores in an affluent area near where I grew up. She was a very sharp business woman, worked very hard, and did very well for herself and the family. What always amazed me about her was that she would start work at the stores at 6am. Manage the stores until midnight or later depending on payroll, ordering, or other business duties. Then she and her husband would go to an all night diner to have a nice meal and drink coffee well into the early morning. She would get at most 4 hours of sleep a night or sometimes go right back into the store, but even so she was very sharp and shrewd in her daylight hours. She just didn't need 8+ hours a night to function. She died fairly young with heart issues, but she was a mentor to me and a very remarkable woman. 

[hazelm]

I am fortunate enough that I never suffered from insomnia, but I imagine that if I did, I would get out of bed and do something productive rather than pop a pill.  The advertisements for sleep aids list some scary possible side effects! 

Exactly what I do.  Plenty of good books around here to be read.  I sleep when I feel a need to sleep and get up when I wake up or when I find I must have turned in  too soon.

 

Pills?  No way!  A cup of hot cocoa does a better job.