Less Sleep = More Alert. Why?
June 4, 2008 6:32 PM Subscribe
Why do often feel far more alert when I get less sleep?
I am in my late 30s and I have noticed this for the last 10 years. If I get 6 hours or maybe even a little less I often feel much more alert and quick-witted then when I get 8 hours. Of course I can only do that for so many days in a row and then I just get kind of grouchy. When I can get away with it though, it's like my brain just works faster.
I am in my late 30s and I have noticed this for the last 10 years. If I get 6 hours or maybe even a little less I often feel much more alert and quick-witted then when I get 8 hours. Of course I can only do that for so many days in a row and then I just get kind of grouchy. When I can get away with it though, it's like my brain just works faster.
This post was deleted for the following reason: this exact question was asked a week ago. -- jessamyn
i feel better with 5 hours than 6 hours...i think i've said it in earlier posts, but i think it boils down to whether or not you wake up in the middle of a sleep cycle vs. at the end of one. you always feel better waking up after a complete cycle of sleep. maybe your cycles are three hours long, meaning you feel better after 6 hours because at 8 hours you're in the middle of a cycle. i believe they can vary, though, so if you want to get more than 6 hours of sleep, maybe you need 7 or 9 or even just 8.5 hours.
posted by thinkingwoman at 6:45 PM on June 4, 2008
posted by thinkingwoman at 6:45 PM on June 4, 2008
ditto, someday someone is going to invent an alarm clock that can sense the beginning and end of your sleep cycle then wake you up at then end of one
posted by any major dude at 7:02 PM on June 4, 2008
posted by any major dude at 7:02 PM on June 4, 2008
ditto, someday someone is going to invent an alarm clock that can sense the beginning and end of your sleep cycle then wake you up at then end of one
The future is here!
posted by JimmyJames at 7:14 PM on June 4, 2008
The future is here!
posted by JimmyJames at 7:14 PM on June 4, 2008
thinkingwoman: You should have a look at Steve Pavlina's website (link), specifically the stuff about polyphasic sleep. He talks quite a bit about REM sleep and sleep cycles, and I found it quite illuminating!
posted by ranglin at 7:27 PM on June 4, 2008
posted by ranglin at 7:27 PM on June 4, 2008
When I get less sleep, I drink more coffee. Then I am more alert. Maybe this is happening to you.
posted by drinkcoffee at 7:32 PM on June 4, 2008
posted by drinkcoffee at 7:32 PM on June 4, 2008
I've noticed the loss of sleep, no matter how energetic you feel, will eventually catch up to you. For me, if I sleep less than 4 or 5 hours a night, I'll last maybe a week (though probably less) before my body wants to "catch up" with a long, 12-hour or so sleep. So in other words, you're robbing Peter to pay Paul.
posted by zardoz at 7:59 PM on June 4, 2008
posted by zardoz at 7:59 PM on June 4, 2008
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by prefpara at 6:37 PM on June 4, 2008 [1 favorite]