Due to a hectic schedule my sleep routine has been anything but routine. I can see why people end up going back to monophasic sleeping. There have been days where it just isn't possible to get away for 20 minutes to sleep. Many days it may by possible, but just not convenient. I have had to teach a class that demanded all my time during the day. The company I work for recently moved in a whirlwind weekend which didn't really accommodate nap times. I have had to travel to teach.
My sweet wife is very supportive, so my 9pm nap time is almost always available. The only problem is that when I haven't taken my other naps during the day, my 20 minute nap tends to become a long night's sleep. I hate that! I think I will just skip my 9pm when I haven't gotten the other naps.
The last 10 days have been extremely inconsistent. My sleep is haphazard. I hope that the coming weeks will settle down and I can get a routine back.
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Polyphasic Sleep Log: Days 25-30
This week was not very accommodating to a polyphasic sleep schedule. A couple things threw me off. First of all, I was teaching a computer security class that took every spare moment of class time to cover all of the material. That made the 4pm nap impossible. My lunch naps were thrown out the window when my car started having problems on Tuesday. If it sits in the cold for too long it has a hard time starting. So I spent my lunches trying to work on the car.
I ended up going to bed at the same time as the kids a couple times this week. That was the whole reason I started this new sleep schedule was to be able to stay up later than my kids! So, this coming week looks much more accommodating to polyphasic sleeping. I am up early now. If I get my naps today I will be able to stay up until 1am again and get back on track. I guess I like the flexibility that I have with my sleeping now. Sleeping used to dictate to me when it happened. Now I can take control of when I sleep (depending on my schedule).
I ended up going to bed at the same time as the kids a couple times this week. That was the whole reason I started this new sleep schedule was to be able to stay up later than my kids! So, this coming week looks much more accommodating to polyphasic sleeping. I am up early now. If I get my naps today I will be able to stay up until 1am again and get back on track. I guess I like the flexibility that I have with my sleeping now. Sleeping used to dictate to me when it happened. Now I can take control of when I sleep (depending on my schedule).
Monday, February 9, 2009
Polyphasic Sleep Log: Days 22-24
Well I would like to say I have been a dedicated polyphasic sleeper, but this weekend was about the most monophasic I have slept since I started this adventure.
Thursday night I got to bed a 1ish and then didn't wake up until the sun had started to rise. I opened my eyes and realized it was getting light. AAAH! That meant I probably was late to teach seminary! Sure enough, it was already 7am and I totally missed seminary. That also meant that I slept for 6 hours. And it meant that I was even late for my work meeting! Once again I don't remember any alarm going off. I think I've grown accustomed to my alarm and must be sleeping through it?
Friday's naps didn't work too well either (maybe because I got 6 hours sleep the night before) I think my noon nap worked OK, but I didn't get my 4pm nap at all. I didn't get out of work early, and when I finally got out and tried to take a little nap, I felt like I should just go home. So I did. the 9pm nap didn't quite happen either. I did lay down for it, but I didn't fall asleep very much (if at all). So Friday night I ended up sleeping through my alarm again and didn't wake up until sunrise again. I think I got about 7 hours of sleep.
Saturday I didn't take any naps. I didn't take an 8am nap because I had barely woken up by 8am. My noon and 4pm naps didn't happen because I was just enjoying my Saturday with the fam. Friends came over in the evening and we played until midnight, so the 9pm nap didn't happen either. I was sooo tired by midnight that I didn't make it until 1am for my normal core sleep phase. Then when I woke up Sunday morning it was 9am. I got 8 hours sleep. I pretty much ended up with a "normal" sleep schedule for those couple of days.
I miss the extra time I had when I was dedicated. So, Sunday I made sure to take all my naps. They were slightly off schedule, but I got all 3 naps in. I didn't take my 8am nap, because I was still asleep :). I got a 1:30pm, a 4:30pm, and a 9:15pm nap. So I made it to 1am without much of a problem. I decided to try to get a 3 hour core, but slept through the alarm, or turned it off in my sleep or something. I woke up naturally at 5:15ish, for a 4 hour core sleep. Now I'm up writing this blog post! I'm going to have to do my morning nap at 7am instead of 8am because of work.
Thursday night I got to bed a 1ish and then didn't wake up until the sun had started to rise. I opened my eyes and realized it was getting light. AAAH! That meant I probably was late to teach seminary! Sure enough, it was already 7am and I totally missed seminary. That also meant that I slept for 6 hours. And it meant that I was even late for my work meeting! Once again I don't remember any alarm going off. I think I've grown accustomed to my alarm and must be sleeping through it?
Friday's naps didn't work too well either (maybe because I got 6 hours sleep the night before) I think my noon nap worked OK, but I didn't get my 4pm nap at all. I didn't get out of work early, and when I finally got out and tried to take a little nap, I felt like I should just go home. So I did. the 9pm nap didn't quite happen either. I did lay down for it, but I didn't fall asleep very much (if at all). So Friday night I ended up sleeping through my alarm again and didn't wake up until sunrise again. I think I got about 7 hours of sleep.
Saturday I didn't take any naps. I didn't take an 8am nap because I had barely woken up by 8am. My noon and 4pm naps didn't happen because I was just enjoying my Saturday with the fam. Friends came over in the evening and we played until midnight, so the 9pm nap didn't happen either. I was sooo tired by midnight that I didn't make it until 1am for my normal core sleep phase. Then when I woke up Sunday morning it was 9am. I got 8 hours sleep. I pretty much ended up with a "normal" sleep schedule for those couple of days.
I miss the extra time I had when I was dedicated. So, Sunday I made sure to take all my naps. They were slightly off schedule, but I got all 3 naps in. I didn't take my 8am nap, because I was still asleep :). I got a 1:30pm, a 4:30pm, and a 9:15pm nap. So I made it to 1am without much of a problem. I decided to try to get a 3 hour core, but slept through the alarm, or turned it off in my sleep or something. I woke up naturally at 5:15ish, for a 4 hour core sleep. Now I'm up writing this blog post! I'm going to have to do my morning nap at 7am instead of 8am because of work.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Polyphasic Sleep Log: Days 19-21
My thought of reducing my core sleep hasn't happened. I did the one night where I got 1 1/2 hours of core sleep and one extra nap. The next night I had a headache. I don't know for sure that it was related, but I have had it happen before, when I get a little sleep deprived. So, I've kept my normal schedule of 3-5 hours core sleep and 4 naps fairly well until last night.
I'm not sure what happened but my 9pm nap turned into a core sleep phase. I didn't really get down until after 9:30. I think I didn't get the alarm reset. I woke up at about 2:30am. I figured that was 5 hours and I would get up and stay up. I have my hardest times when it's before the dawn. It's dark and everyone is asleep, so my body just says, "what in the world are you doing up at this time of day?" I stayed up for a little over an hour preparing a seminary lesson before going back down for another hour and a half nap. I was pretty tired after the nap, but I had to go teach seminary (from 6:00-6:45). I was prepared but tired. After seminary I drove home and pulled the car into the garage, laid the seat back and got a 10min nap. When I woke up I felt really good. I woke up without the alarm, it was fairly dark in the garage, and I felt like I had just gotten a nice night's sleep. I am wondering if I would have felt better for seminary with a shorter nap.
I am learning that I do pretty good with only 10 minutes nap when I wake up naturally. I don't always take the full 20 minutes. I have not been very strict with my naps. I kind of go with the flow and just sleep when I want to. I sometimes sleep longer than I want to, but I will usually sleep when I feel tired. I wonder if the lack of discipline is what derails me sometimes.
For the most part, I don't feel like this is a big experiment anymore. It's just normal for me. It feels like I've been doing this for a lot longer than 21 days.
I'm not sure what happened but my 9pm nap turned into a core sleep phase. I didn't really get down until after 9:30. I think I didn't get the alarm reset. I woke up at about 2:30am. I figured that was 5 hours and I would get up and stay up. I have my hardest times when it's before the dawn. It's dark and everyone is asleep, so my body just says, "what in the world are you doing up at this time of day?" I stayed up for a little over an hour preparing a seminary lesson before going back down for another hour and a half nap. I was pretty tired after the nap, but I had to go teach seminary (from 6:00-6:45). I was prepared but tired. After seminary I drove home and pulled the car into the garage, laid the seat back and got a 10min nap. When I woke up I felt really good. I woke up without the alarm, it was fairly dark in the garage, and I felt like I had just gotten a nice night's sleep. I am wondering if I would have felt better for seminary with a shorter nap.
I am learning that I do pretty good with only 10 minutes nap when I wake up naturally. I don't always take the full 20 minutes. I have not been very strict with my naps. I kind of go with the flow and just sleep when I want to. I sometimes sleep longer than I want to, but I will usually sleep when I feel tired. I wonder if the lack of discipline is what derails me sometimes.
For the most part, I don't feel like this is a big experiment anymore. It's just normal for me. It feels like I've been doing this for a lot longer than 21 days.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Polyphasic Sleep Log: Days 16-18
Once again, I am going to merge several days into one blog entry. I actually do have something that isn't just the same old stuff this time.
Friday was a normal polyphasic day. Naps on schedule all day long, no problems falling asleep, and no sleepiness throughout the day. I feel like I have totally adjusted to my nap schedule.
Friday night's core sleep was a feeble attempt at reducing my hours of sleep. I ended up "sleeping in" until about 7am. Needless to say, I didn't take my 8am nap. A 6 hour core sleep actually turned out to be an OK thing. The weekends are not as structured as weekdays, so my schedule gets pushed around. Saturday we went to visit Grandma during what normally would have been my 12pm nap. Driving home at 1:30pm after not getting my nap was a drowsy, sleepy ride (it's only a 15 minute drive, but I was ready to sleep). I finally got down for my nap at around 2pm... and decided not to worry about keeping it short. I think I slept for an hour or so. We had my niece's baptism at 4:00pm, so I got up, got ready and got going. After the baptism we were invited to spend time with the family, and stayed until about 9pm. I did get another nap after we got home. So, it turned out to be pretty much impossible to take my naps at the normal times. I only got 2 naps, instead of 4 (with one nap being extended to 1 hour).
At 1am I went down for my core sleep with the idea that I would try to keep it a little shorter... 7 hours later I was waking up at 8am. I have pretty much decided that on the weekends I am going to not worry about it too much. Weekends would seem to be the better time to get less sleep, since I don't exactly have to be mentally sharp. Due to the lack of normal nap times it turns out to be a good time to grab the extra recharge sleep phases. Church runs right through my 12pm nap time, and since I got 7 hours of sleep I didn't worry too much about trying to sneak away for a quick nap. I was able to get a nap sometime in the afternoon, and then again at around 9pm. 2 naps instead of 4. I didn't have any noticeable tiredness, until about 11:30pm. I had recorded the Super Bowl and decided to watch it then, and have a snack to keep me up during the game. I watched until half time which lined up perfectly with my 1am core sleep. BUT... I decided to take a 15 minute nap and get up to watch the rest. I was actually able to get up! Normally, I don't have the motivation to get up, but now I actually had something to give me that extra incentive (the second half!) I was pretty tired for a while after waking up, but once I got awake enough, I was OK until about 3:30am. Then I got a shortened core sleep of 1 1/2 hours. Woke up around 5am and got ready to teach seminary. For those of you who may scratch your head at that, it's an early morning Scripture study class for high-school kids. They are studying the New Testament this year, and I am substituting pretty regularly these days. We are in Romans and learned about Grace. So, that is another motivator to get less sleep.
We'll see how I do this week. Maybe I will actually shift to a shorter core sleep this week.
Friday was a normal polyphasic day. Naps on schedule all day long, no problems falling asleep, and no sleepiness throughout the day. I feel like I have totally adjusted to my nap schedule.
Friday night's core sleep was a feeble attempt at reducing my hours of sleep. I ended up "sleeping in" until about 7am. Needless to say, I didn't take my 8am nap. A 6 hour core sleep actually turned out to be an OK thing. The weekends are not as structured as weekdays, so my schedule gets pushed around. Saturday we went to visit Grandma during what normally would have been my 12pm nap. Driving home at 1:30pm after not getting my nap was a drowsy, sleepy ride (it's only a 15 minute drive, but I was ready to sleep). I finally got down for my nap at around 2pm... and decided not to worry about keeping it short. I think I slept for an hour or so. We had my niece's baptism at 4:00pm, so I got up, got ready and got going. After the baptism we were invited to spend time with the family, and stayed until about 9pm. I did get another nap after we got home. So, it turned out to be pretty much impossible to take my naps at the normal times. I only got 2 naps, instead of 4 (with one nap being extended to 1 hour).
At 1am I went down for my core sleep with the idea that I would try to keep it a little shorter... 7 hours later I was waking up at 8am. I have pretty much decided that on the weekends I am going to not worry about it too much. Weekends would seem to be the better time to get less sleep, since I don't exactly have to be mentally sharp. Due to the lack of normal nap times it turns out to be a good time to grab the extra recharge sleep phases. Church runs right through my 12pm nap time, and since I got 7 hours of sleep I didn't worry too much about trying to sneak away for a quick nap. I was able to get a nap sometime in the afternoon, and then again at around 9pm. 2 naps instead of 4. I didn't have any noticeable tiredness, until about 11:30pm. I had recorded the Super Bowl and decided to watch it then, and have a snack to keep me up during the game. I watched until half time which lined up perfectly with my 1am core sleep. BUT... I decided to take a 15 minute nap and get up to watch the rest. I was actually able to get up! Normally, I don't have the motivation to get up, but now I actually had something to give me that extra incentive (the second half!) I was pretty tired for a while after waking up, but once I got awake enough, I was OK until about 3:30am. Then I got a shortened core sleep of 1 1/2 hours. Woke up around 5am and got ready to teach seminary. For those of you who may scratch your head at that, it's an early morning Scripture study class for high-school kids. They are studying the New Testament this year, and I am substituting pretty regularly these days. We are in Romans and learned about Grace. So, that is another motivator to get less sleep.
We'll see how I do this week. Maybe I will actually shift to a shorter core sleep this week.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Polyphasic Sleep Log: Days 13-15
My sleeping schedule has become "normal" to me. It's hard to get excited about blogging "normal" daily stuff. So, I will probably not report every day on my latest news. I remember reading other blogs and wishing they didn't stop blogging when they did. Now that I am in the situation, I can totally see why the blog entries slowly trailed off and eventually stopped. I can see myself doing the same thing. If you blogged every day about what time YOU went to bed and woke up, and how you hit snooze, or stayed up later than you normally like to, or slept in one day: I bet it wouldn't seem like a very interesting blog to you. Are you still interested? I guess I could use my witty charm to make anything more interesting. That's it, I'm starting a daily blog about the gravel in our front yard! I guess this blog may be slightly more interesting than gravel.
Day 13's (Tuesday) naps went fine. I've really grown accustomed to my 12pm and 4pm naps in the car. I just lean the seat back, grab the stuffed animal pillow that my kids left in the car, and I'm usually rested in less than 20 minutes. That stuffed dog has the perfect size and shape. It's almost like one of those neck pillows. I park behind work to avoid too much foot traffic, but there's a parking lot for a pool hall there. The occasional person that sees me sleeping with my stuffed animal at the same time every day will just have to deal with it.
My 9pm naps are harder than sleeping in the car. The car is isolated and quiet. Laying down with the kids isn't always very quiet or peaceful. There have been several times that I never fell asleep at the 9pm nap.
My core sleep is all over the place. I have absolutely no consistency going on there. I have been in the 4-6 hours of sleep range there. Last night I was really tired by the time 1am rolled around, and ended up falling asleep without even setting an alarm! I woke up with the sun, around 7am. Just in time to get ready. In the past, I probably would have slept in till 9 and been late for work. So at least my "sleeping-in" is when I get 6 hours of sleep and wake up at 7. I decided not to take my 8am nap, seeing as how I just woke up an hour ago.
Overall, I don't keep as rigid a night schedule. My day schedule is pretty regular. Staying up until 1am every night has become normal, where I used to struggle to make it till 11pm. I like that aspect of it. Sometimes the naps are inconvenient, but overall it's worth it. I planned on doing all sorts of great things with all my extra time so I still want to work on my core sleep. If I can get it down to a consistent 3 hours, I can do some of the other things I want to do. I would like to start a blog with video tutorials on computer topics. I think that it could make me some money eventually. Right now, I choose to use my available time on other things. So, I either need more available time or to change the way I use my time.
Adding the little ad links to this blog has actually generated a few dollars. If I had a blog that naturally tied itself to computer products, I could maybe get rich and .... Probably not. But it's fun to think about.
Day 13's (Tuesday) naps went fine. I've really grown accustomed to my 12pm and 4pm naps in the car. I just lean the seat back, grab the stuffed animal pillow that my kids left in the car, and I'm usually rested in less than 20 minutes. That stuffed dog has the perfect size and shape. It's almost like one of those neck pillows. I park behind work to avoid too much foot traffic, but there's a parking lot for a pool hall there. The occasional person that sees me sleeping with my stuffed animal at the same time every day will just have to deal with it.
My 9pm naps are harder than sleeping in the car. The car is isolated and quiet. Laying down with the kids isn't always very quiet or peaceful. There have been several times that I never fell asleep at the 9pm nap.
My core sleep is all over the place. I have absolutely no consistency going on there. I have been in the 4-6 hours of sleep range there. Last night I was really tired by the time 1am rolled around, and ended up falling asleep without even setting an alarm! I woke up with the sun, around 7am. Just in time to get ready. In the past, I probably would have slept in till 9 and been late for work. So at least my "sleeping-in" is when I get 6 hours of sleep and wake up at 7. I decided not to take my 8am nap, seeing as how I just woke up an hour ago.
Overall, I don't keep as rigid a night schedule. My day schedule is pretty regular. Staying up until 1am every night has become normal, where I used to struggle to make it till 11pm. I like that aspect of it. Sometimes the naps are inconvenient, but overall it's worth it. I planned on doing all sorts of great things with all my extra time so I still want to work on my core sleep. If I can get it down to a consistent 3 hours, I can do some of the other things I want to do. I would like to start a blog with video tutorials on computer topics. I think that it could make me some money eventually. Right now, I choose to use my available time on other things. So, I either need more available time or to change the way I use my time.
Adding the little ad links to this blog has actually generated a few dollars. If I had a blog that naturally tied itself to computer products, I could maybe get rich and .... Probably not. But it's fun to think about.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Polyphasic Sleep Log: Day 12
As I reported I missed my 8am nap yesterday, but that's OK because I got over 7 hours of sleep going into that morning. I was able to take my 12pm and 4pm naps, but the afternoon nap was shortened because of time constraints.
My 9pm nap didn't work at all. I was not able to fall asleep. I laid there for 20 minutes and got up. I started getting yawny around midnight but managed to stay up until 1am for my core sleep. I've got to get back into my routine.
I tried to get a 3 hour core sleep, so I would have some time to do my taxes. My alarm went off at 4am but next thing I knew it was 5am and I was waking up with no alarm. Normally I have been waking up at 5:30 naturally, now it was 5:00. I had been trying to sleep in 1.5 hour increments because that's the typical sleep cycle. From 1am to 5am doesn't quite fit that, but the fact that I woke up on my own seems to indicate that I was between sleep cycles. It is now 6:45 and I feel alright. I was a little tired in the early morning hours, but I guess taxes are exciting enough to keep me going.
My 9pm nap didn't work at all. I was not able to fall asleep. I laid there for 20 minutes and got up. I started getting yawny around midnight but managed to stay up until 1am for my core sleep. I've got to get back into my routine.
I tried to get a 3 hour core sleep, so I would have some time to do my taxes. My alarm went off at 4am but next thing I knew it was 5am and I was waking up with no alarm. Normally I have been waking up at 5:30 naturally, now it was 5:00. I had been trying to sleep in 1.5 hour increments because that's the typical sleep cycle. From 1am to 5am doesn't quite fit that, but the fact that I woke up on my own seems to indicate that I was between sleep cycles. It is now 6:45 and I feel alright. I was a little tired in the early morning hours, but I guess taxes are exciting enough to keep me going.
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