Insomnia

[ron_swanson]

Who here has dealt with insomnia?  Or at least is dealing with it?

 

Before moving across this little country last month my life was moving at 100 mph.  Living in one of the largest cities, I was attracted to late-night parties.  I was always a part of a group of friends in some downtown bar and the only thing that balanced my life was me training for a half marathon and the frequent use of sleeping pills to give me much needed rest.  Now I live in a little suburb that's more than a 30 minute walk to the nearest nightlife.  I also left my entire social group thousands of miles away.  My goal was to enter grad school for early admission and start research to become acclimated, establish myself, and pump the brakes on my bad habits.  In some sense it's working.  I've made my name known in the department, am circling a new publication through the collaboration here, and already feel settled.  Problem is the lack of intensity and things to do here.  Now I find myself getting 4-5 hours of sleep.  Even if I try to get more rest, I can't seem to.  When do I start my own fight club?

[TakeruK]

I think you can look forward to more of the types of events you're seeking once the summer is over and school-wide grad events get into gear. Maybe it will not quite live up to your previous life, but it will certainly be a lot more active than what it's like now. I might have more information for you if you'd like to send me a PM.

 

However, you are also not limited by school events Many students find form social groups and make friends outside of academia because sometimes it's a lot more fun to hang out with non-grad students after spending all day with grad students! There are things like meetup.com, or maybe through your college's alumni network, and other social groups in your city. Some of my friends purposely sought out non-grad student roommates (mostly other young professionals though) in order to expand their social network and make more connections.

[ERR_Alpha]

Is your lack of sleep affecting you negatively or can you function fine? Some (lucky) people can get 4-5 hours and be just fine.

[ron_swanson]

I think you can look forward to more of the types of events you're seeking once the summer is over and school-wide grad events get into gear. Maybe it will not quite live up to your previous life, but it will certainly be a lot more active than what it's like now. I might have more information for you if you'd like to send me a PM.

 

However, you are also not limited by school events Many students find form social groups and make friends outside of academia because sometimes it's a lot more fun to hang out with non-grad students after spending all day with grad students! There are things like meetup.com, or maybe through your college's alumni network, and other social groups in your city. Some of my friends purposely sought out non-grad student roommates (mostly other young professionals though) in order to expand their social network and make more connections.

 

Yeah, perhaps it's just the rapid transition for me.  It is summer, so that might be a factor in the low student population and loneliness.  I'll also need to expand my network here (it's only been three weeks).

 

 

Is your lack of sleep affecting you negatively or can you function fine? Some (lucky) people can get 4-5 hours and be just fine.

 

No negativity just yet.  I do get a bit exhausted by 3 pm (more so than usual).  It's just annoyance with lieing in bed for up to two hours before popping open netflix to go through several episodes of scrubs/mad men/etc.

[random_grad]

Have you considered sleeping in the middle of the day? Apparently humans have different ideal sleep patterns. I am currently experimenting with that to find my ideal sleep-productivity pattern and 2h sleep mid-day seems to work well.

[Cheshire_Cat]

Excercise!  Go running or find some cardio on youtube. That always helps.  What random_grad says is true though.  Some people have different sleep patterns.  I think I will take naps when I'm in grad school because those really help me.  I could just sleep 1-4 am and 1-4 pm and be fine, but even if I get 9-10 hours at night, I'm still sleepy by 1-2pm.

[ERR_Alpha]

It's been quite an adjustment for me. In undergrad I would sleep 6-8 hours, and then take an afternoon "nap" (or just lay in bed for a bit) to relax and prepare for my busy nights. That kind of schedule isn't feasible for graduate school. For the first semester I would come home from lab around 6pm and been completely exhausted. This compounded with health issues and pre-existing parasomnias and I'm still struggling with my sleep

 

Things I can suggest:

- As Cheshire_Cat stated, exercise is great. For me, I can work out right before bed, but others need 2-3 hours of buffer between exercise and bed time.

- Go to bed and wake up at the same time every weekday. It's better to do this every day, but I like to sleep in on weekends. I find taking melatonin on Sunday night works fine for me. I'm always in bed 11pm-7:30am (sleeping or on my phone, oops!)

- Know what relaxes you. I always took showers right before bed- but I found they actually woke me up instead of relaxing me. I try to take my showers in the earlier evening now or in the morning.

 

Also if all else fails, go see a sleep specialist. (I'm seeing one in two weeks, will report back on how that goes) They may be able to help your particular situation.

[ron_swanson]

Have you considered sleeping in the middle of the day? Apparently humans have different ideal sleep patterns. I am currently experimenting with that to find my ideal sleep-productivity pattern and 2h sleep mid-day seems to work well.

 

No, I just zone out for a good 10 minutes daydreaming about what life would be like if I did this or that differently years ago... then suddenly an entire alternate reality plays out in my head.  Suddenly I snap out of it and forget where I am and where the keys to my mercedes and why my wife hasn't called... then I realize I have neither.

 

 

Excercise!  Go running or find some cardio on youtube. That always helps.  What random_grad says is true though.  Some people have different sleep patterns.  I think I will take naps when I'm in grad school because those really help me.  I could just sleep 1-4 am and 1-4 pm and be fine, but even if I get 9-10 hours at night, I'm still sleepy by 1-2pm.

 

Yeah, I am definitely not doing my 20+ miles per week anymore.  I just did a 10k and injured my ankle... not sure if I give the credit of tonight's rest to the run or the painkillers.

 

 

 

 

Things I can suggest:

- As Cheshire_Cat stated, exercise is great. For me, I can work out right before bed, but others need 2-3 hours of buffer between exercise and bed time.

- Go to bed and wake up at the same time every weekday. It's better to do this every day, but I like to sleep in on weekends. I find taking melatonin on Sunday night works fine for me. I'm always in bed 11pm-7:30am (sleeping or on my phone, oops!)

- Know what relaxes you. I always took showers right before bed- but I found they actually woke me up instead of relaxing me. I try to take my showers in the earlier evening now or in the morning.

 

I think my issue is relaxation.  It's a struggle to slow my life down.  Right now I'm trying to build a routine that doesn't involve bar hopping and/or parties.  One thing I found out is reading my kindle for 30+ minutes a night puts me out.

[maelia8]

I sleep all the way through the night, but I also nap - I'm just a person who needs a lot of sleep. You may not be, but that does't mean that an afternoon nap couldn't help! Have you tried taking a nap at 2 or 3pm, when according to you you're most exhausted? Sleeping in the heat of the day can be easier than falling asleep at night for some people. 

[dani8023]

I think my issue is relaxation.  It's a struggle to slow my life down.  Right now I'm trying to build a routine that doesn't involve bar hopping and/or parties.  One thing I found out is reading my kindle for 30+ minutes a night puts me out.

 

I have problems with the exact same thing. Hamster-wheel brain syndrome! Can't stop thinking!

 

This may not work for you, but I've had success (even more so than with reading books) with audio books. I turn it down really low, put one earbud in, and that gives my brain something to focus on without requiring too much investment in staying awake. It's gotten to the point where I pretty much never go to bed without it. 

[ron_swanson]

I sleep all the way through the night, but I also nap - I'm just a person who needs a lot of sleep. You may not be, but that does't mean that an afternoon nap couldn't help! Have you tried taking a nap at 2 or 3pm, when according to you you're most exhausted? Sleeping in the heat of the day can be easier than falling asleep at night for some people. 

 

Maybe I'll break out one of Griffiths books and lie down on the lawn outside my office at 3 pm.  That'll surely get me some rest.

 

 

I have problems with the exact same thing. Hamster-wheel brain syndrome! Can't stop thinking!

 

This may not work for you, but I've had success (even more so than with reading books) with audio books. I turn it down really low, put one earbud in, and that gives my brain something to focus on without requiring too much investment in staying awake. It's gotten to the point where I pretty much never go to bed without it. 

 

Maybe I'll get one of Griffiths books put on my iphone and listen to it once my head hits the pillow.  Who doesn't want Griffiths whispering in their ears at night?

[Marcella698]

On 7/29/2015 at 3:46 PM, ron_swanson said:

Who here has dealt with insomnia?  Or at least is dealing with it?

 

Before moving across this little country last month my life was moving at 100 mph.  Living in one of the largest cities, I was attracted to late-night parties.  I was always a part of a group of friends in some downtown bar and the only thing that balanced my life was me training for a half marathon and the frequent use of sleeping pills to give me much needed rest.  Now I live in a little suburb that's more than a 30 minute walk to the nearest nightlife.  I also left my entire social group thousands of miles away.  My goal was to enter grad school for early admission and start research to become acclimated, establish myself, and pump the brakes on my bad habits.  In some sense it's working.  I've made my name known in the department, am circling a new publication through the collaboration here, and already feel settled.  Problem is the lack of intensity and things to do here.  Now I find myself getting 4-5 hours of sleep.  Even if I try to get more rest, I can't seem to.  When do I start my own fight club?

I recently got to read in an article about a scientifically validated psychological treatment that can relieve symptoms of insomnia which is known as CBT-I. They provide cognitive strategies for coping with your sleep concerns and establish a foundation for long-term improvements in sleep quality. Hope it helps you to relieve the symptoms of insomnia and restore your poor sleep quality. To know more about the treatment, just go through the article.

http://www.cbtassociates.com/blog/insomnia/can-cbt-relieve-symptoms-insomnia/

[patterson]

On 30.07.2015 at 3:55 PM, Cheshire_Cat said:

Excercise!  Go running or find some cardio on youtube. That always helps.  What random_grad says is true though.  Some people have different sleep patterns.  I think I will take naps when I'm in grad school because those really help me.  I could just sleep 1-4 am and 1-4 pm and be fine, but even if I get 9-10 hours at night, I'm still sleepy by 1-2pm.

 

Getting tired physically helps me fall asleep faster as well. It's a great advice!

[Arny]

I have troubles with sleep too. Reading a good book in the night helps me to fall asleep faster