Image of hand punching up from the snow after an avalanche
Greetings, everyone! Sorry about the period of silence - "Second Winter" in Boston brought me a pretty nasty cold, and as you may know, since I don't get sick often, I can be a real wimp when I am. Specifically this lingering cough has me cursing and whining something fierce. *sigh* I just haven't been taking fantastic care of myself lately, and that's how we get colds (and have them last 2 weeks instead of just a few days like usual).
(The degree to which I've not been taking good care of myself really deserves more time…specifically I feel like I should ask for advice on how to fix my sugar-screwy, over-carby diet…but, another time.)
I've got a ton of email to answer (sorry!) and several BIG projects that want my attention (some of which are pretty exciting, sleep-wise! I'll talk about them as soon as I can), but since I owe a post so badly, how about it be useful? In spite of not making much progress on my long-term goal to tighten up my schedule (I don't like to restrict my sleep at all while I'm sick, for what I feel are "duh" reasons), I have been paying close attention to my sleep habits and patterns lately - partly thanks to the Slack chat! <3 - and I think I've learned a few interesting things:
- I wake up easily between 4-5am compared to 5-6am. If I hit snooze a bit after 4, it's ok (I usually don't actually go back to sleep, just lay and be comfy); but I'd better be out of bed before 5, 5:15.
- The space between my core and my morning nap shouldn't be more than 4h. I'll start thinking about a nap at about 3h, and feel sleepy at 3.5 - that's the sweet spot. As I wait longer than that, I sleep less well and have more inertia getting up (though generally my sleep-inertia in the late-morning is low anyway). If I push it too far, towards 9am, then I'll sleep deeply / well but not sleep as well for my lunch nap.
- In-between my core and my morning nap is a great spot to get exercise! So is right after my evening nap. I'm not sure how much of the ease of those spots are related to their being my default already - those are the time-slots in my life when classes, lessons and the like are apt to happen. Since I've been financially restricted lately though, I've been having to plan my workouts myself rather than go to classes and trainings, and I've totally noticed that timing. (It's tricky sometimes, because there are other things I like to do then, too. Que sera.)
- This one's a repeat, but: Post-nasal drip is the DEVIL. That was true for me monophasically too, but just, omg, repeated waves of needing to cough keep me awake in a particularly fierce and annoying way. And most medicines for simple cold-cough either don't work or have icky side-effects for me. GAH. (Told you I was whiny.)
I promise I'll post more soon! People keep giving me great ideas for material, and then I keep not having the energy to make it happen. But I'm feeling pretty positive about this time: The cold will be over soon, the weather will start getting lovely EVENTUALLY, and it seems like other things that have been stuck and unfavorable are starting to rumble loose, too. :D
Originally published at counterclockwise. You can comment here or there.