SleepFilter: Are there any negative effects of getting too much sleep?

April 3, 2007 5:50 AM

SleepFilter: Are there any negative effects of getting too much sleep?

We all here about what happens to your body when you lack sleep but what about getting too much sleep? Sleeping a good 10 to 12 hours a day regularly?

posted by jek to Health & Fitness (21 answers total)

I do it all the time. Sleep is the best thing in life.

...the only drawback I've found thus far is that sleeping a lot makes me want to sleep even more. Not counting bathroom breaks I can go past 14hrs.
posted by aramaic at 5:55 AM on April 3, 2007

Before we had kids, we would regularly sleep in on weekends. After a couple years, I noticed I always felt sore and crabby when I did that. I'm not sure if it's the extra sleep per se or the extra lying in bed (or the feeling that hours have been wasted) but I didn't enjoy it. Now I get 7-8 per night and I feel fine.
posted by DU at 5:58 AM on April 3, 2007

It's very easy to get horribly dehydrated during big spells of sleep. I work shifts and have been known to clock in 14 and 15 hour catch-up sessions, and afterwards I'm very prunelike. I also wind up wanting another three or four hours and I'm back in bed well before I otherwise would be.

I also recall reading a while back that too much sleep can depress your blood pressure, but I can't find a citation for it.
posted by Jilder at 6:07 AM on April 3, 2007

Many people feel logy when they sleep too much. It's a pretty common reaction.
posted by OmieWise at 6:08 AM on April 3, 2007

I'd imagine it depends of if you've "earned" the rest too. You read of boxer's training routines that have them sleeping twelve hours or more out of 24 interspersed with some tough exercise.
posted by Abiezer at 6:12 AM on April 3, 2007

According to this study, sleeping 9 hours a night or more correlates with increased heart disease risk for women.
posted by hazyjane at 6:33 AM on April 3, 2007

If you feel the need to stay in bed that long, and are not rested after 8-9 hours, there may be something wrong with your sleep.

Before I was diagnosed and started treatment for sleep apnea, I could not sleep enough. I could literally sleep ten hours and then nap another three or four during a weekend day, and still not feel rested. This was because the quality of my sleep was so poor. Now that I am dealing with the apnea, I can put in a solid 7-8 hours and feel GREAT the whole day, with no desire to nap.

If you are really putting in that much sack time regularly, it is not likely to be the cause of a medical problem, but rather the symptom. See a doctor and ask for a sleep study. An otherwise healthy adult should feel rested and ready to go after 8 hours.
posted by BigLankyBastard at 6:44 AM on April 3, 2007

SleepFilter: Are there any negative effects of getting too much sleep?

One of them is that you have less time to do productive stuff, to engage with the world outside your head. But perhaps that’s kind of basic.
posted by Aidan Kehoe at 6:49 AM on April 3, 2007

Well, first I will admit that my sleep schedule is completely screwed up. I sleep 6-7 hours per night during the week (unless I have one of my not-uncommon bouts of insomnia) and then I "catch up" during the weekend by sleeping disgusting amounts - up to 14 hours + a 2 hour nap.

I do think this erratic schedule is no good for me, but I'm having a hell of a time breaking out of it. I love sleep, delicious sleep, more than chocolate-covered sex. Those Saturday and Sunday mornings when I wake up at 7 am, and the birds outside are chirping and there is a nice breeze coming in through the bedroom window and the cats are snuggled up next to me and my husband are the best, when I can just curl back up and go to sleep for another 5 hours or so.

But on sleepy days, I have trouble wanting to do anything, or revving myself up to accomplish a single damn thing until late at night. I often feel the need to take a nap or drink massive amounts of coffee just to do something as difficult as go to the grocery store or straighten up a room.

I also think this makes my body expect ridiculous amounts of sleep, so that during the week when I can only get 7-8 hours tops I feel sleep-deprived and cranky.

I think excessive sleep can not only be a symptom of a different problem, like depression (which has been the case for me), or a sleep disorder or sleep apnea, but I also think it can exacerbate depression and a general feeling of malaise. At least it does for me.
posted by tastybrains at 6:57 AM on April 3, 2007 [1 favorite]

Lack of exercise leading to muscle atrophy?
posted by PenDevil at 7:08 AM on April 3, 2007

BigLankyBastard has something there - I thought sleep apnea when I read your post as well. Of course, there are lots of things that can make you want to sleep more than most folks (e.g. depression, as tastybrains said). But if you feel fatigue during the day, are overweight, are a snorer, and have headaches in the morning (or some combination of these signs and symptoms) you may want to look into talking with a healthcare provider more about the possibility of sleep apnea.

I think maybe the most important thing is the quality of your sleep, and whether you feel rested when you awaken - although needing 10 - 12 hours every night does seem out of the normal range for most people. Pay attention to how you feel during the day - you should feel alert and interested in what you are doing, and falling asleep at night should be easy. Ask your partner if you are restless or snore during sleep. If you feel bad during the day, or your quality of sleep is poor, it's definitely something to bring up with your health care provider. Sleep is something that Americans in particular do not have a proper appreciation for, and poor sleep can definitely affect your health.
posted by tuff at 7:35 AM on April 3, 2007

The dehydration thing is the biggest thing for me. I wake up after 12-14 hours with a wicked dehydration headache that takes a few hours to kick.

Anecdotal is all I got, sorry.
posted by misanthropicsarah at 7:41 AM on April 3, 2007

Sleeping too much causes me to be depressed, but that might be rare. However, it happens often enough with me that I set my alarm clock on the weekends to make sure I don't sleep until noon, because if I do, I'm worthless for about 2 days afterwards.
posted by found dog one eye at 8:05 AM on April 3, 2007

Shorter lifespan, apparently, although keep in mind that that is only a corollary, not necessarily causative.
posted by kisch mokusch at 8:13 AM on April 3, 2007

The only way it can be "too much" sleep is if there are negative effects.
posted by Wolfdog at 8:59 AM on April 3, 2007

Anecdotally, if someone is sleeping much more than normal, it can be a sign of depression or related low-energy problems like anemia or thyroid malfunction. (I mean way more than normal, eg 12-20 hours a day.)
posted by LobsterMitten at 10:53 AM on April 3, 2007

"Long sleepers reported more problems with falling asleep, waking up during the night, awaking too early, feeling "unrefreshed" upon waking up, and feeling sleepy during the day than those who slept seven or eight hours, the researchers found."

And Parkinson's disease, although the causal direction there is less clear...
posted by svenx at 11:07 AM on April 3, 2007

It depends on what kind of sleep you are getting. If it isn't deep healthy sleep than nothing you do will make you feel good. Assuming you are getting that great sleep and you oversleep and wake up feeling groggy it is not only because of dehydration but mainly due to the low blood sugar you get from not eating for all those hours. There are alot of other things that your body can go through from sleeping too long but low blood sugar is the most common and is the cause of headaches and general grogginess.
posted by trishthedish at 11:40 AM on April 3, 2007

Also, seconding the anecdotal reports that sleeping too much seems to make me feel more depressed, although ymmv.
posted by svenx at 12:04 PM on April 3, 2007

Please get screened for atypical depression-that is a very common symptom.

I get headaches when I sleep that long. I used to love to sleep in but I feel so much better when I get just enough sleep.
posted by konolia at 12:13 PM on April 3, 2007

I notice that when I sleep less I'm actually more awake and alert during the day. When I had a busy job I used this to my advantage and strictly rationed my hours under the sheets.

This approach isn't pain-free, however. The main problem is getting out of bed in the first place. Initially I had to fight nausea. There are also issues late in the evening, when sleepiness tends to come along suddenly.

Lots of successful people have advocated only sleeping 6-8 hours a night. British PM Margaret Thatcher was one of them, and she regularly worked through until the early hours.

On the other hand, I've never read about any successful person mentioning they regularly put in 14 hours a night.
posted by humblepigeon at 1:22 PM on April 3, 2007