I don't see how people do it

I've always been blessed with a great sleep cycle.  When I get sleepy, I get into "my spot" and out I go.  I usually sleep between 7 and 7 1/2 hours.

Well, the first two nights of VBS, I crashed hard after doing the music with the kids.  I slept between 10 & 11 hours.  Well, that reversed on Wed. night.  I slept restlessly for about  hours.  Then, last night, I might have had 4 total.  My wife slept even less.  She's always had trouble sleeping, though.

I am exhausted.  I don't see how people go without decent sleep.

Since some time I'm a bad sleeper.
Around 5 or 6 am I'm wide awake and can't get more sleep anymore.

Without a decent sleep you can't do your daily things.
I feel around 2 pm tired.

I usually go to bed between 11:30 PM and midnight (sometimes even later) and get up at 6:00 AM. If I sleep later, I'm sometimes more tired than if I slept less.

There's actually some neurological research out there about sleep cycles and how everyone needs different amounts. It's quite interesting.

My sleep cycles were horrible before I go treated for my sleep apnea.  I now have a machine that helps me not have breathing issues while I sleep and most nights I get a solid 6-1/2 to 7-1/2 hours sleep.

I've been in quite a bit of pain the last few nights so haven't really slept well at all.

I get 7-8 hours a night.  Sometimes I get to bed a little late and only get 6.  I've found that when I'm eating a decent diet I sleep better and don't have to use the bathroom at 5am.  My sleep improved when I started using nasal strips.

I'm like a light switch. On/Off and I am out cold or awake. I seem to get plenty of rest but I wake up way to early, usually around 3:30 or 4 AM. On rare occasions if something is on my mind I might wake up a lot or be restless but for the most part I get plenty of sleep. On weekends I pop 1 Advil PM and can sleep even longer. Those are nice if used properly.

Interesting reading everyone's sleep patterns. My wife is a faithful 9PM to 4AM every day. 

My spinal cord damage causes ridiculous pain that is worse at night, so I don't fall asleep until near midnight - then I wake up to pain every 2 to 3 hours. Takes me about half hour to an hour to get comfortable enough to fall back asleep, then it starts over again.  I can't remember the last time I slept for more than 4 hours straight through. 

Crazy life

Could some of the night time discomfort and pain be attributed to your mattress?  We bought a new super firm mattress last year and my hip and back pain caused by my degenerative disc is almost non-existent.  I know your issues are far worse than mine, but a good firm mattress with some padding on the top to contour to your shape but keep your back/hips aligned is crucial.

I can't imagine going to bed at 9PM... Last night, went to bed about 1 AM and up (like usual) at 6:45 to get ready for work.

ishmael81 wrote:

I can't imagine going to bed at 9PM... Last night, went to bed about 1 AM and up (like usual) at 6:45 to get ready for work.

That changed for me when I hit 40. I remember when my wife and I were young. We said "We will NEVER be our parents! We will not sit down, watch TV and fall asleep before 9 and wake up at 3 or 4 in the morning!". Now what are we???

We are our parents.

ishmael81 wrote:

I can't imagine going to bed at 9PM... Last night, went to bed about 1 AM and up (like usual) at 6:45 to get ready for work.

I absolutely cannot stand staying up that late.  Even with lock-ins or other youth events, I am going to slink off somewhere and catch me some ZZzzzzssss.  I have never been one to stay up late.  I never really had a bedtime when I was a kid because I would usually be asleep before 9 anyway.  As an adult, I usually go to bed between 10 and 10:30 on a work day.  That gives me around 7 hours before time to hit it again.

I try to be in bed by 10:30 so I get enough sleep.  It's usually more like 11.  Later on weekend nights.

MikeInFla wrote:

ishmael81 wrote:

I can't imagine going to bed at 9PM... Last night, went to bed about 1 AM and up (like usual) at 6:45 to get ready for work.

That changed for me when I hit 40. I remember when my wife and I were young. We said "We will NEVER be our parents! We will not sit down, watch TV and fall asleep before 9 and wake up at 3 or 4 in the morning!". Now what are we???

We are our parents.

Lol! It's funny because for years my wife would be up later than me. I would be in bed by 10 or so and she'd come to bed at midnight. We always used to joke because my mom goes to bed early and my dad has always been a night owl.

In the last several months, things have flip-flopped and she's usually in bed by 11 and I'm up later. Just like my parents...

I don't eat or drink anything after 9pm, then I go to bed at about 10.30, and go to sleep about 11.30.  I wake up around 6.00 when my alarm goes BAAHH BAAHH BAHHHHHHH in a most unpleasant tone.  Either that or the kids come and jump on my head at 5ish.
Latest I've been up in the last 8 years is 8.15am.

I just slept 10 hours! 
I haven't done that in more than a decade (maybe two decades).

Of course it might have something to do with the pain killers I have been taking. 

Fundy wrote:

I don't eat or drink anything after 9pm.

This is crucial to a healthy weight. I try my best never to eat after 7:30. Bowls of Lucky Charms are awesome at night but I do my best to avoid anything in the evening hours.

My sleep patterns are inconsistent to the point of driving me nuts.  On Sunday, I feel asleep around 9:00 but woke up at midnight and could not fall back to sleep.  Tossed and turned and tossed and turned until I finally drifted off in the wee hours of the morning (4:30 to 5:00).  Slept right up to my alarm going off (7:15) but surprisingly did not feel bad throughout the day.

Last night I turned in around 8:00 was asleep by 8:30 and then sleep 10 hours straight.

Wish I could get 7 to 8 hours of uninterrupted sleep on a more consistent basis...

MikeInFla wrote:

Fundy wrote:

I don't eat or drink anything after 9pm.

This is crucial to a healthy weight. I try my best never to eat after 7:30. Bowls of Lucky Charms are awesome at night but I do my best to avoid anything in the evening hours.

Dude, let's be honest - bowls of Lucky Charms are awesome any time. But that's way more sugar than my Keto diet allows....

I don't like the squeaky noise the "charms" make against my teeth.

I've never really had great sleep myself. I'm a light sleeper, and it's often taken me an hour to fall asleep, and I often wake up well before I should be awake. Part of it is audiovisual overstimulation before bed. Being on evening shift (3-11) changes things a bit, though.

Some of my friends have legitimate insomnia and often go days without proper sleep (on top of all their other health issues). How they do it, I'm not sure. I guess they're used to it.