I woke up at 7pm today. Tomorrow I'll probably get up at 9pm. Around this time next week, I'll be waking up at 7am.
This is normal for me. I have a rare-ish circadian rhythm disorder known as #Non24. My sleep cycle doesn't track with the sun. It's not at all rare amongst people who are blind, but it's rare amongst sighted people.
I also suspect it's actually more common than believed & there are people out there reputed to be lazy, immature, or erratic when they just can't sleep normally.
@poppacalypse there’s also delayed sleep phase syndrome, which is known to be much more common and similar to #Non24, so also look into that.
When I was in college I was known as they guy who could fall asleep anywhere. My friends were amazed when I fell asleep at a rock concert.
I was also awake at any given time too. I spent my college years as a paradox of this guy who everyone saw asleep at unusual times, but also was someone who slept far less than anyone else because I just couldn’t sleep when I tried to.
I survived by sleeping 30-90 minutes here and there… cafes, library, benches, the subway train… everywhere. I slept so much on the train I developed a sixth sense for when to wake up and get off the train. I rarely missed my stop.
These days I have more control over my schedule so I get more sleep, but it’s still difficult to manage. If I ever had to work a normal job again it might be a problem.
@sysop408 so after this discussion, i stopped forcing myself to sleep and wake at certain times. just sort of let things happen naturally and here's what i found -
i seem to get sleepy at about 2AM-ish. So i go to bed, no alarms set, and will naturally wake at about 8 or 9AM. so far so good! i've been feeling a lot more rested and happier!
there are nights when i don't get sleepy by 2AM and i just let it be. i'll sleep eventually at 3 or 5AM and i don't be too hard on myself about it anymore.
@poppacalypse hey that’s great! I’ve always had like 10 alarms to wake me up and it’s just like your story once I’m able to find my natural sleep times. I just wake up naturally 7-8 hours afterwards. Unfortunately it’s hard to figure out when that natural time should be on any given day when it always creeps forward.
Even when I can’t find it, it’s easier for me to just go to bed 2 hours later every day because that’s like establishing a normal bedtime even if it’s not the ideal bedtime.
Trying to get up at the same time every day for me is like trying to get up 2 hours earlier every day. You can’t do it for long without consequences.
Sheldon
Carl Poppa 🛸