# Sleeping only 4-5 hours a night long term....is it as bad as people say?



## jamesd (Feb 17, 2011)

The last few months I have been sleeping only 4-5 hours a night. I just can't fall asleep. I kind of got used to it. I still feel a bit worn out but am able to function normally for the most part. How long do you think I can keep this up before having negative health consequences? I don't have health insurance right now so I can't afford to see a doctor.


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## King Moonracer (Oct 12, 2010)

Isnt it weird that you dont have to have health insurance but you do have to have car insurance??? weird..

Anywayyy, im doin the same thing. I go to bed at like 3 and wake up at 8 for class. Most days i feel like ****, others arent as bad.

But as far as long term effects go, nobody really knows. Scientists literally dont know how much sleep we are supposed to get each night, they just suggest 6-8.

Its weird because humans are naturally made to go to bed when its dark, wake up when the sun comes up, and nap twice throughout the day, once at 2 another time at 5. So none of us sleep how our bodies are naturally supposed to.

How do you feel in the morning and throughout the day? Do you get tired and doze off sometimes?


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## jamesd (Feb 17, 2011)

King Moonracer said:


> Isnt it weird that you dont have to have health insurance but you do have to have car insurance??? weird..
> 
> Anywayyy, im doin the same thing. I go to bed at like 3 and wake up at 8 for class. Most days i feel like ****, others arent as bad.
> 
> ...


I don't doze off but I feel like crap in the mornings. I usually bounce back around noonish and once I have lunch in me I feel better. Good observation about car insurance. I only had to use it once when someone hit my bumper and ran. But the fact that it carried a $500 deductible it made it pretty worthless. Car insurance is pretty worthless unless you get in a huge wreck. While health insurance is basically a necessity considering how expensive health care is in this country.


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## King Moonracer (Oct 12, 2010)

jamesd said:


> I don't doze off but I feel like crap in the mornings. I usually bounce back around noonish and once I have lunch in me I feel better. Good observation about car insurance. I only had to use it once when someone hit my bumper and ran. But the fact that it carried a $500 deductible it made it pretty worthless. Car insurance is pretty worthless unless you get in a huge wreck. While health insurance is basically a necessity considering how expensive health care is in this country.


****in American healthcare is a JOKE. We are the only civilized nation without government funded healthcare. We are also like 34th on the list of life expectancy and child mortality rate.

In ****in Japan you go to the doctor, pay 20 bucks and your good. The average life expectancy of a japanese person is like 82 years. Americans have 73 years.


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## jamesd (Feb 17, 2011)

Well do you have any tips to sleep better? Has the lack of sleep affected you in anyway? I feel fine now but I still would like to sleep more. Maybe I should take naps.


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## StayingMotivated (Sep 5, 2011)

try taking benedryll to get to sleep or melatonin . i've been suffering from insomnia this past year. i almost attempted suicide a month ago. i do believe it negatively affects health. it's definitely not helping your sa.


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## StayingMotivated (Sep 5, 2011)

deep breathing yoga techniques help me. also getting exercise and sunlight should help some.


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## jamesd (Feb 17, 2011)

I've tried sunlight therapy, vitamin d3, I workout 10+ hours a week, etc. I don't think it has anything to do with the season or physical activity level.



StayingMotivated said:


> try taking benedryll to get to sleep or melatonin . i've been suffering from insomnia this past year. i almost attempted suicide a month ago. i do believe it negatively affects health. it's definitely not helping your sa.


Sorry to hear about that. It's embarrassing to admit I know.


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## seafolly (Jun 17, 2010)

Erm, well take what I say with a grain of salt because I'm no scientist but I did have to read quite a bit on sleep this past summer for a neuroscience course. The author of my textbook did his own experiment (on himself!) and concluded that the 6-8 hour time slot is rather overrated. I think his magic number was 5.5 hours.


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## Tugwahquah (Apr 13, 2011)

I have been an average 6 hour sleeper for about 20 years or more. It is like second nature for me to go to bed at midnight and wake at 6. No need for an alarm clock. Any more or less sleep makes me feel groggy. 
Sleepy time tea helps you fall asleep.


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## LynnNBoys (Jul 13, 2011)

jamesd said:


> The last few months I have been sleeping only 4-5 hours a night. I just can't fall asleep. I kind of got used to it. I still feel a bit worn out but am able to function normally for the most part. How long do you think I can keep this up before having negative health consequences? I don't have health insurance right now so I can't afford to see a doctor.


I've heard and read that less than 6 hours of sleep a night will take years off your life. I'll have to look it up but I think long term it raises your blood pressure.

My body needs about 8-9, but I get about 7 (midnight to 7). I'm trying to go to bed earlier but not always successful.

I'd try melatonin, stopping caffeine by 2-3pm, stopping screen time (TV, computers, etc) an hour or two before bed, wear a bed mask to keep all light out.

My husband gets 5-6 hours a night and I'm worried about long-term effects on him.


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## jamesd (Feb 17, 2011)

Okay then what should I do to improve the quality of sleep? I already tried the typical solutions such as melatonin, keeping my bedroom dark, trying relaxing habits prior to bed, etc. It's only been a few months but I am getting used to sleeping less already. I don't think I need medication for missing out on 1-2 hours of sleep either.


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## BKrakow (Jul 8, 2010)

not getting enough sleep on a regular basis is actually one of the worst things for your health, from what I've read. it's true that some people don't need as much sleep as others, but if you're feeling worn out then you're probably not getting as much as you should be. I'd try to step it up to at least 6 or 7 hours per night. do you use the computer before bed? this can really disrupt your sleep cycle. or if you can't fall asleep because of racing thoughts/anxiety, meditation might be helpful.

check it out: http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/guide/important-sleep-habits


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## Rest or Real? (Apr 1, 2011)

If this is really as bad as it is made out to be, I will be dead very soon. I have been averaging 2-4 hours of sleep per 24 hour cycle for the last few months. With little 10 minute increments peppered in where I am midway in the thick of sleep and wake. I am on xanax and ambien.


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## Mr Blues (Apr 1, 2011)

I used to get no more than 5-6 hours sleep a night. I guess one just gets used to it over time. Now my sleep patterns fluctuate all the time.

It all depends on my anxiety levels I suppose.


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## John316C (May 1, 2011)

way bad been doing it


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## Akane (Jan 2, 2008)

Studies have actually been done on the number of hours to sleep. People who slept 8 hrs turned out to be the healthiest and live the longest in long term studies. Sleeping 10 or more hours or under 6 resulted in many more health problems and shorter lifespans. There are a handful of people though who have a gene which makes them require 2 hrs less sleep than the average person.

Not getting enough sleep will have a huge impact on your mental state. It could even cause anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts. For otc stuff you can take antihistamines, melatonin, and valerian root. The last one actually is the strongest to me. There are also a few pills out there that are mixes of various herbs along with valerian root that might help you get to sleep such as lemon balm, hops, and chamomile but they tend to be moderately expensive in comparison to just buying valerian root.


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## successful (Mar 21, 2009)

5 Hours should be good, 6 would be perfect IMO. I wouldn't worry about heath concerns unless your only sleeping 2 hours a night, Evernight. But I doubt lack of sleep would even affect your physical health at all..It'll **** with your mind if your only sleep 1-2 hours a night after a while but that's probably it. I've came home from work @ 11pm, play the game a hour or 2, go to bed at 2am, wake up at 4am and go back to work @ 5am a lot of days. Nothing happens.

when you go 3+ days without sleep then it's time to worry. 4-5 hours a night is nothing to worry about...at all. Besides Your body would probably naturally shut down & force you to go to sleep/pass out before it allows something bad to happen to your health.


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## LynnNBoys (Jul 13, 2011)

Akane said:


> Studies have actually been done on the number of hours to sleep. People who slept 8 hrs turned out to be the healthiest and live the longest in long term studies. Sleeping 10 or more hours or under 6 resulted in many more health problems and shorter lifespans.


I think there was a recent study about it! I just read about that recently too. 6-8 hours is ideal. Over or under that amount have shorter lifespans.

I guess it's good that I usually get 7. Sometimes I try to sleep later on the weekends, but I just can't sleep more than 8, rare occasions 9 hours.


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## Nogy (Feb 13, 2011)

I've been having a really hard time sleeping lately too, for the past 6 months or so. I was only getting about 3-4 hours of sleep a night, if that. So recently i got fed up of just layn in bed all night tryn to sleep and just said **** it, if i can't sleep then im just gonna stay up. Now i just skip a night of sleep and stay up all night, and then by the next night im exhausted and can sleep well....i'll end up getting a full 8 hours of sleep the next night. I've been doing this for about 3 weeks now. I assume that this is unhealthy, but its the only thing that allows me to get a full nights rest at least some days. I've tried all of the OTC sleeping aids, but none of em work. And my doctor refuses to prescribe me sleeping pills, says im too young


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## millenniumman75 (Feb 4, 2005)

I try to designate one night a week (Friday into Saturday) where I shut off my alarm. It's that bad. But yeah, six hours a night is normal for me.


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## lazy (Nov 19, 2008)

jamesd said:


> Okay then what should I do to improve the quality of sleep? I already tried the typical solutions such as melatonin, keeping my bedroom dark, trying relaxing habits prior to bed, etc. It's only been a few months but I am getting used to sleeping less already. I don't think I need medication for missing out on 1-2 hours of sleep either.


I don't really have sleep-issues (though I sleep later and later each day). I'm the type that twist and turn. L-theanine is another thing to try after. Then maybe Valerian Root if you haven't already. Have you ever felt calm after a cup of tea? It's the theanine.

There are these slumber shades over at http://www.biobrite.com/products.php?category_id=9 But it's 100 bucks, and I haven't tried them. It's supposed to filter out the blue-light spectrum.

Finally, this one is free: http://stereopsis.com/flux/ You let it synchronize to your PC clock, or you manually set it down to 3400K after eating dinner.

As for waking up without that stressful alarm clock, go to the aquarium store, and try to find those light timers. Make it so that a bright lamp will turn on ~15 or so mins before waking.


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## Akane (Jan 2, 2008)

> I doubt lack of sleep would even affect your physical health at all..It'll **** with your mind if your only sleep 1-2 hours a night after a while but that's probably it.


Way off. That I have 8 years of experience with before I started on meds. Sleeping only 2 or so hours a night will have a major impact on your physical health. Sleep is regulated by and impacts the pituitary gland. The pituitary gland contributes in some way to nearly every single process in your body. You burn so many calories you either lose tons of weight or eat a ton from increased appetite which gives some people weight gain. I was eating stuff like ice cream by the gallon bucket weekly and was still 5lbs under weight. It will destroy your immune system. I've hardly been sick a single day since I started on sleeping pills but prior to that I had various bacterial infections often and actually got colds. I haven't had a cold in probably getting close to 8 years now. Every time I fail to get enough sleep for a few days I start getting cold sores and sinus infections again. For females in particular it can throw all your hormones off causing acne, sex drive issues, and again for females menstrual cycle issues that can even be life threatening from the amount of blood lost. It can have negative impacts on digestive tract which is partially regulated by your sleep cycle leading to inflammation and food intolerances in the long term. It also has negative impact on your circulatory system and puts a lot of strain on your heart. My heart would beat with so much force it felt like it was going to knock me over sometimes. I'd actually wobble back and forth in time to my heart beat while sitting.

As secondary problems some people end up with weight gain from the increased appetite and decreased energy to exercise instead of weight loss and that increase their chance of sleep apnea leading to even less sleep and more weight gain. It becomes a bad cycle for some people. Diabetes is much more common in people with sleeping disorders due to the weight issues and insulin resistance it can cause.

I went about 8 years on 1-2 hours of sleep a night and I really don't think my body could handle it now. With a little more age and not as much physical activity to stay in shape I think something would give out within a month or 2 from the physical stress even if I didn't go insane from the mental stress.


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## jamesd (Feb 17, 2011)

I think it's getting worse. I have been sleeping less and less lately. I feel so disconnected with reality when I am wake. I feel like I am not really awake but kind of in a dream like state.


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## mr hoang (Aug 14, 2011)

If you have an iPod, there's an app on there that helps you sleep. It works really well for me.


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## catalinahx (Jun 8, 2010)

Look into (or have someone else look into) low income programs. Heck, before I got insurance, my therapist got me on at some program CVS has that covered my meds. I'm not sure about the details but it's worth looking into if you're insomnia is that bad!


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## jamesd (Feb 17, 2011)

catalinahx said:


> Look into (or have someone else look into) low income programs. Heck, before I got insurance, my therapist got me on at some program CVS has that covered my meds. I'm not sure about the details but it's worth looking into if you're insomnia is that bad!


There is definitely an upside to all of this. I feel like I am living an extra 2-3 hours a day compared to people who sleep a full night. Sleeping just 2 hours less means you have have an entire extra month of living every year. If only I can find something productive to do.


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## jonny neurotic (Jan 20, 2011)

lazy said:


> There are these slumber shades over at http://www.biobrite.com/products.php?category_id=9 But it's 100 bucks, and I haven't tried them. It's supposed to filter out the blue-light spectrum.


Yeah, I had been looking at those a while back. You can also get a blue LED light to wake you up in the morning. I don't know if 100 sheets is really what they are worth though. My grandad's got a pair of yellow glasses for when he is out cycling at night to prevent the car headlights from blinding him. I think they are the same thing. They are meant for building sites so I would imagine they are designed to protect from the glare from welding torches. They cost him £7 odds. That would be about $10. I am planning to get myself a pair when I have some money.

Sitting infront of a computer screen at night is probably going to play havoc with your sleep cycle. I am currently limiting myself to first thing in the morning. My sleeping pattern has been way off but I am recalibrating it by staying up later and waking up later. It is easier than trying to get up earlier and trying to go to sleep when I am not tired. It helps that I am unemployed obviously but I think it is being unemployed that got me into this mess in the first place. I have nothing to get up for. Anyway I got up at 6:15 this morning after sleeping since about 5 pm last night. Thats 13 hours. Way too much. I'd like to trim it down to about 6.

The older we get the less sleep we need. Children will sleep for more than 8 hours. Young adults should be getting 6-8 hours and some old people can get by on 3-4 hours. But that depends on the quality of the sleep. 5 hours of good sleep will be better than 8 hours of crap sleep. Medication may interfere with sleep. Anxiety will definately effect the quality of your sleep.

I am thinking my endocrine system is where I should be focusing now. I think it is out of sync. I woke up at around 9 PM the other day. I was so awake. I felt like I woke up from my belly. As though my adrenal glands had kicked in. In a good way though. I just felt awake and refreshed but it was night time. I had been sleeping since around 10 AM. I wish I could wake up like that in the mornings at least some of the time. I thought maybe that is how it feels for people with healthy sleeping patterns when they wake up. Really refreshed and ready to do stuff. I have never been a morning person. Not since I was very young. I used to sleep till 10 when I was a kid if I got the chance. As an adult I have always felt terrible first thing in the morning whether I have just woken up or been up all night. Even if I wake up at 3 in the morning by the time 7 Oclock comes round I feel like Pfft!(that's not a swear word so put that in your pipe mods ) I always feel more motivated after 8 in the evening, regardless of my sleeping pattern. I think it is my endocrine system. I must research this and figure out what I can do about it.

Melotonin may factor in but I tried it on its own and it done nothing. It may help as part of a wider strategy. I have been thinking that betahistine would be good for in the morning to give the brain a kick start. It disinhibits histamine. I tried chlorpheniramine at night but that only works the first night then the brain adapts to it. A high dose will last way too long. I think it stays in the brain longer than it stays in the rest of the body because the anti allergy effect only lasts about 4 hours for me. Hmmm. I'd like to try some standardised valerian. I got one of those little bottles of tincture with the dropper and it done nothing. Evenetualy I drank a whole bottle to see and nothing! Not a whit. I would have been as well to get some homeopathic nonsense for all the good it did me...


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## trendyfool (Apr 11, 2010)

I know that for me, I can't go with that little sleep longer than two weeks before crapping out. Sleep is absolutely as essential as food or water and if you're not sleeping enough, every aspect of your life is gonna suffer.


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## millenniumman75 (Feb 4, 2005)

After four days of it, I have real trouble. I had a scare a couple of Fridays ago.


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## Marlon (Jun 27, 2011)

Last year I used to sleep every night at 3:00 or 4:00 am and wake up at 6:30 for class. I used to be completely fine.

This semester I have been going to bed around 1:00 and wake up at 6:30.

But now I seem to have reverted. It is now 3:00 am, and I don't think I'm going to sleep any time soon!

I function better on little sleep. 8 hours makes me feel like crap. It's too much.


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## jamesd (Feb 17, 2011)

Marlon said:


> Last year I used to sleep every night at 3:00 or 4:00 am and wake up at 6:30 for class. I used to be completely fine.
> 
> This semester I have been going to bed around 1:00 and wake up at 6:30.
> 
> ...


When I feel unusually tired I will take a nap. I think some people are just wired to sleep less than others.


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## Huk phin (Oct 30, 2011)

Nogy said:


> I've been having a really hard time sleeping lately too, for the past 6 months or so. I was only getting about 3-4 hours of sleep a night, if that. So recently i got fed up of just layn in bed all night tryn to sleep and just said **** it, if i can't sleep then im just gonna stay up. Now i just skip a night of sleep and stay up all night, and then by the next night im exhausted and can sleep well....i'll end up getting a full 8 hours of sleep the next night. I've been doing this for about 3 weeks now. I assume that this is unhealthy, but its the only thing that allows me to get a full nights rest at least some days. I've tried all of the OTC sleeping aids, but none of em work. And my doctor refuses to prescribe me sleeping pills, says im too young


You may want to consider a new doctor.


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## mollym (Nov 25, 2011)

LynnNBoys said:


> I've heard and read that less than 6 hours of sleep a night will take years off your life. I'll have to look it up but I think long term it raises your blood pressure.


If it's a choice, between losing those hours at the end of my life (all at once, as a few years), and losing them now by sleeping, I'll go with the former. I'd much rather have more time awake now, when I'm young and healthy, than an extra few years when I'm unable to walk without a cane. Heck, I don't want to get that old at all.


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## sansd (Mar 22, 2006)

I have been sleeping less than that on average (at least half the time I can't sleep at all and it's very rare that I sleep longer than six hours) for about 14 years. It's been getting harder to deal with.


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## LynnNBoys (Jul 13, 2011)

mollym said:


> If it's a choice, between losing those hours at the end of my life (all at once, as a few years), and losing them now by sleeping, I'll go with the former. I'd much rather have more time awake now, when I'm young and healthy, than an extra few years when I'm unable to walk without a cane. Heck, I don't want to get that old at all.


It's easy to say that when you're young. My husband and his siblings lost their dad when he was 67. He was far from needing a cane to walk. It may sound very old to you, but by modern standards, it's still young. Hubby and his 7 siblings miss him very much. My FIL never got to meet his 4 youngest grandchildren (one of them my younger son). MIL has also passed away (at 71). I know hubby would've wanted those "few extra years" with his parents.

I on the other hand, still have both my parents (68 yrs) and up until this summer, I had both my maternal grandparents (my grandpa was 90--lived 23 years longer than my FIL). My sons have been able to get to know their great grandparents! How many people can say that?

Don't throw away those years just yet.


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## mollym (Nov 25, 2011)

LynnNBoys said:


> It's easy to say that when you're young. My husband and his siblings lost their dad when he was 67. He was far from needing a cane to walk. It may sound very old to you, but by modern standards, it's still young. Hubby and his 7 siblings miss him very much. My FIL never got to meet his 4 youngest grandchildren (one of them my younger son). MIL has also passed away (at 71). I know hubby would've wanted those "few extra years" with his parents.
> 
> I on the other hand, still have both my parents (68 yrs) and up until this summer, I had both my maternal grandparents (my grandpa was 90--lived 23 years longer than my FIL). My sons have been able to get to know their great grandparents! How many people can say that?
> 
> Don't throw away those years just yet.


I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend; my grandfather died in his 50s, I never even met him. If it's the difference between living to 85 and living to 87, yeah, I'll take the hours now. But if it really can take a decade or more off your life, maybe that's something to consider. I guess I just don't have any data.


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## Event Horizon (Feb 23, 2011)

Yes it is. When you do that for a long period of time you can develop depression.


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## GotAnxiety (Oct 14, 2011)

i been sleeping 3-4 hour's a night lately and it been driving me nuts as well i like sleeping at least 6 to 7 hours at least... i feel it unhealthy for the brain your nervous system needs breaks too recoup


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## billphilbertson (Aug 11, 2011)

My sleep improved out of sight after purchasing Dr David Morawetz's "Sleep better without drugs" better sleep guide booklet. It has more than 50 strategies for improving sleep and a relaxation tape.

I had about 20 sleepless nights over a 1.5 year period before I implemented this program and in the 13 years since, if you add sleepless nights to times I've used sleeping medication, it would be slightly less than the 20 sleepless nights I had in a year and a half.


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## Spirit Ninja Yokie (Nov 18, 2011)

It IS as bad as people say.
When i was 10-11, I stayed up untill 1 or 2 in the morning and woke up at 7 or 8. Nothing noticable bad at that piont.

When i was 12-15, i whent to sleep at 12 and woke up a 4. After that, I started to miss school because i just couldn't wake up. I'd get sick very often, my grades went down, my sa got worse during that time, I started to get extremly angry at the world....ect.

When i was 16, the lack of sleep was so bad that the muscles and blood vessels behind my eyes started to expand and contract so quickly that i could see nothing in that area of my eyes for a few hours and i felt extreme pain not only in my eyes, but my entire head.

Now i'm 17 and i need to go to a neurologist for medicines that help with sleep, nuasea, head aches, migrains, allergies, and my immunity.....

Sleep is good..... Get as much of it as possible..... Trust me. Lol!


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## Spirit Ninja Yokie (Nov 18, 2011)

lazy said:


> As for waking up without that stressful alarm clock, go to the aquarium store, and try to find those light timers. Make it so that a bright lamp will turn on ~15 or so mins before waking.


Oh! I have a lot of trouble waking up and i've noticed that light makes it easier.... I think that will help me a lot! Thanks for posting it!


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## Spirit Ninja Yokie (Nov 18, 2011)

Spirit Ninja Yokie said:


> When i was 10-11, I stayed up untill 1 or 2 in the morning and woke up at 7 or 8.
> 
> When i was 12-15, i whent to sleep at 12 and woke up a 4.


Sorry! I mixed up the numbers! It shouldv'e been like this...

10-11: sleep at 3 or 4, wake at 7 or 8
12-15:sleep at 1 or 2, wake at 4 or 5
Now i sleep from 12 to about 6 or 7......

I wasn't watching where i was typing!


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## philosophy (Oct 15, 2010)

jamesd said:


> When I feel unusually tired I will take a nap. *I think some people are just wired to sleep less than others.*


Science would agree with you. Apparently it boils down to a gene mutation. I'd love to have this particular abnormality....:yes

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/14/health/research/14sleep.html


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