At some point in my 40s I started doing that medieval “first sleep” and “second sleep” thing where my eyes just blast wide awake at 2am. I don’t have to pee, I’m not uncomfortable, I just wake up. I read, take the dog out, brush my teeth again… After awhile I go back to sleep and wake up at the normal time.
I guess it is kind of nice to do a patrol around and make sure everything is cool, and the dog loves it. It’s just kind of weird.
Long ago, when humans lived by daylight, we likely lived this way, with a “hole” in the middle of sleep, where people would wake up, putter around, chat and tell stories, have something to eat, and then go back to sleep. There was a lot less going on back then, people didn’t have access even to books and candles were costly anyway so there was no reason to stay up late. I’ve had the same issue myself although these days, it’s just the 2 times to pee.
Strange to imagine not having much to do.
Same. I’m over 50, and my wake up time is about 3:30am. I will read, or catchup on email, or play an hour or two of a PC game. Then go back to bed tired and get snuggled, and wake up at 8 for work.
I think my neighbours are like this
I recently learned (while staying up late trying to shoot a rat in my backyard) that they go to bed around 8-10 pm, then are up for an hour or so sometime around 1-2am, and it is fairly consistent
I’ve been doing that as well, there is periods where I’m just awake in the middle of the night.
Amateur! Wait till you hit 65. I’m slowly becoming Darth Vader. Machines to make me breathe, eyes that can’t see, ears that can’t hear and teeth that shatter on the softest food. Luckily they haven’t started replacing any of the inside bits… yet.
PS: this is just the short list of stuff.
I describe adulthood as an ever-increasing amount of rituals to maintain normal.
After 40? Lmfao. People, just take the time to care for yourself. Eat balanced meals, don’t over eat, stop watching TV all the time and go for a walk.
Take it from someone nearing 50 who took gluttony to the max by 35. I feel better today, than I ever did in my younger adult years because I stopped being a typical american.
The reason this post connects with people is that it validates a very well understood connection between aging and difficulty sleeping
Turning around and invalidating people in response and telling people its their own fault is frankly silly. Just because you resolved your sleep/health issues by taking better care of yourself doesn’t mean everyone else struggling with sleep is just an unhealthy bum who should do better
Aging tends to bring with it sleep problems that aren’t caused by lifestyle factors associated with poorer health, and even in cases where someones health issues are because theyre not taking good enough care of themselves, telling those people its their own fault generally overlooks socioeconomic factors- it usually amounts to blaming people for being poor, or mentally unwell
Source: I have a severe sleep disorder and at 27, I’ve seen a multitude of sleep doctors (and am still searching for a Dr who is knowlegable enough about my condition to try and help me beyond what I’m already doing) and spent a fair chunk of my life at this point sitting across from one discussing sleep issues
I’m sixty, and I agree. The best time to start taking better care of yourself is when you hit 18. The second-best time is right now.
For the past 16 years, I’ve steadily improved my diet and exercise habits. I feel pretty good, compared to what I hear others complain about. I sleep about seven solid hours per night, typically waking up once around 3AM. I’d like to get more, but I’ve accepted that ~seven is all I need, because I can’t sleep longer.
I think when you hit 45, you need to make a choice. You can choose to put in the effort or not. No one can do it for you, and no one else really cares whether you do. In fact, some people will actively discourage you, sadly enough.
Preach
1000% agree.
If you’re in your 20s, start building good habits now. Your future self will thank you.
Yeah well,
I exercise, eat healthy and am not American.
My sleep is still fuck.
Take your high horse and ride it into the sunset.
I am at the stage where I either sleep 4 hours or sleep 12 hours
Yea my sleep schedule is destroyed
And the best part is you don’t know which one you’ll get when you go to bed.
Barely standing awake at 10 fighting to keep your eyes open when you finally go to bed? Wide awake at 1 in the morning.
Browsing the internet at midnight because you are clearly not tired? You open your eyes and it’s mid afternoon.
Doesn’t help that I live too far north that it’s just always dark or cloudy
I wake up and it could be any time of the day until I check my clock
at 35 I need the ear plugs, the right temperature, to feel clean, the eye mask if there’s any light source at all, and to lay on my left side with a 7cm thick pillow at just the right angle so my head rests without touching the occipital area
I sleep in the pod of goo that Neo left, it’s alright
It’s late here and I’m tired so I first read “I sleep in the poo of god” and thought about it for a while before reading the rest of the sentence and then reading the whole thing again…
Poo of god is kind of an interesting analogy for the matrix.
I just read it as sleeping in neo’s goo. Thinking they must be intimately involved with Keanu Reeves.
As far as goo pods go, it’s not the worst you could do.
What does it smell like?
a Crocs store
Well, a pack of batteries, more precisely.
Cinnamon
Cinnamon the person or Cinnamon the spice?
The desktop environment
The horse
I sleep in a big bed with my wife
Barley husk pillows are the bomb.
Ultra firm but able to squish with your head. Stay cool too
Not gluten-free though
Is there a particular brand you recommend?
The one I got was from a place called ComfyComfy
I don’t know if they are still around
Thank you!
So my only major issue is my normal brand of shoes changed thier foot bed insert and it wholly fucked up my back and knee after a week.
I thought I just needed to break them in, I’ve had to buy a new pair of shoes that don’t maim me instead now, which is a new experience at 38.
But have you tried 3 or 4 beers?
That causes me to fall asleep quickly and then wake up 2 to 3 hours later feeling exhausted
Then it messes with my sleep the rest of the week…
You gotta stick with it to see results
right after work with no food?
Pretty much my wife since 35. Good news is she no longer gets mad at me for sleeping like a rock with little effort.
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Can confirm. I need 14 hours in bed to get 6 hours of sleep.
It’s good to reevaluate your habits now and then. Because with time, they always accumulate. And changing them is good for mental flexibility and against neurodegenerative diseases in higher age too.
45: $20,000 in sinus surgery so you aren’t halfway suffocating while you sleep.
