The Science of Sleep
I had kind of forgotten what it feels like to be sleep deprived. I'd gone a good long while without getting one of those intermittent doses of transient insomnia. It's gotten better than it used to be for a couple of reasons. Regular exercise, better diet, yoga/meditation, and making a sleep a priority have improved things a lot for me this year.
But here it is again. I think it was triggered by a combination of midterms stress and the major disruption of my sleep schedule that was the Watchmen midnight showing last Thursday. I lie down and turn off all the lights but my brain won't shut off. I turn the clock to face the wall so that I don't have to see all of that precious time ticking away.
And then in the morning my alarm goes off and I have to drag my sorry ass out of bed so that I can go do the things that I'm supposed to be doing.
Things get weird for me when I don't get enough a sleep. I become emotional and mildly depressed. I feel like I'm experiencing reality through a sheet of water. Time blurs. I don't recognize people as quickly as I should. I propel myself forward, but I don't seem to actually move.
In essence, my waking like becomes dreamy and vague.
Meanwhile, my shortened dreams become frantic and hyper-vivid. They get clearer.
My consciousness reverses itself. It's one of those things that might be sort of fun and interesting if I had any control of it.
Going to the gym today helped. It seemed to balance out my endorphin levels. As I was gallumphing away on the elliptical machine and listening to Bikini Kill I was smiling. A pinkish gazelle man running on the treadmill behind me looked at me through the plate mirror and seemed confused.
I might try cutting myself off from caffeine. Cold turkey. It will hurt initially, but it may help get me back on track.
But here it is again. I think it was triggered by a combination of midterms stress and the major disruption of my sleep schedule that was the Watchmen midnight showing last Thursday. I lie down and turn off all the lights but my brain won't shut off. I turn the clock to face the wall so that I don't have to see all of that precious time ticking away.
And then in the morning my alarm goes off and I have to drag my sorry ass out of bed so that I can go do the things that I'm supposed to be doing.
Things get weird for me when I don't get enough a sleep. I become emotional and mildly depressed. I feel like I'm experiencing reality through a sheet of water. Time blurs. I don't recognize people as quickly as I should. I propel myself forward, but I don't seem to actually move.
In essence, my waking like becomes dreamy and vague.
Meanwhile, my shortened dreams become frantic and hyper-vivid. They get clearer.
My consciousness reverses itself. It's one of those things that might be sort of fun and interesting if I had any control of it.
Going to the gym today helped. It seemed to balance out my endorphin levels. As I was gallumphing away on the elliptical machine and listening to Bikini Kill I was smiling. A pinkish gazelle man running on the treadmill behind me looked at me through the plate mirror and seemed confused.
I might try cutting myself off from caffeine. Cold turkey. It will hurt initially, but it may help get me back on track.