Sleep Deprivation

escargot said:
When I'm on lates I don't want to be woken by sunlight at dawn. My ploy for avoiding this is wearing a sleep mask, like you have on long haul flights. Works perfectly.

It's also good for falling asleep last thing, when I listen to youtube videos and podcasts on the laptop beside my bed. Blocks out the light from the screen.

My current sleep mask is an exotic leopardskin-effect affair, but you don't need anything as luxurious as that. Worth a try.
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Blackout curtains are popular with nightshift particularly if you don't like having your eyes covered up.
 
Naughty_Felid said:
Blackout curtains are popular with nightshift particularly if you don't like having your eyes covered up.
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Yup, I know all about windows. Used to have black blinds when I did regular nights. Picked'em up cheap somewhere. I can manage well with the masks for the amount of time I need them.

On a mid today then lates, curses.
 
Hm...I've just more-or-less got back to sleeping normally after 6-8 months of sciatica and back pains, which in the end was a mattress, one of they 'soft layer on top' types. After spending months in chronic pain and thinking that was 'the rest of my life', I've now got a very very firm mattress and sleep really very well. Added bonus is that to accommodate different requisitions, Mrs Cola and I share a massive timber six-foot bed with two 3-foot mattresses in it. All good.
 
Coal said:
Hm...I've just more-or-less got back to sleeping normally after 6-8 months of sciatica and back pains, which in the end was a mattress, one of they 'soft layer on top' types. After spending months in chronic pain and thinking that was 'the rest of my life', I've now got a very very firm mattress and sleep really very well. Added bonus is that to accommodate different requisitions, Mrs Cola and I share a massive timber six-foot bed with two 3-foot mattresses in it. All good.
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Yep, soft and spongy mattresses are very bad for backs. I struggle to sleep on the 'jelly soft' spare bed at my Mum's place.
 
Since my early twenties I've had nights when I simply cannot get to sleep. My body is tired, but my brain is fully awake and just won't switch off. I used to try to get answers from my GP but they couldn't see past the "traditional" ways of getting to sleep. "No drinks 2 hours before bedtime?" Check. "No watching television in the bedroom?" Check. "Make sure you get up at the same time each day?" Check.

What it actually is, is adrenaline. Same reason I suffer from anxiety. Root cause: my old friend EDS. I only discovered this in recent years.

Of course, having an explanation doesn't make it any easier when you're lying there at 2am completely and utterly unable to fall asleep.

Does make me wonder how many other people's sleep problems have a root cause of an undiagnosed illness (or as in my case diagnosed, but still no one puts two and two together). And all the while the poor hapless patient is being issued Government guidelines on how to get to sleep, which in his/her case won't help one jot.
 
Sleep deprivation affects the brain's ability to generate essential proteins employed in neural functions ...
Sleep Deprivation Shuts Down Production of Essential Brain Proteins

A deficit arises in molecules needed for neurons to communicate efficiently

Most of us could use more sleep. We feel it in our urge for an extra cup of coffee and in a slipping cognitive grasp as a busy day grinds on. And sleep has been strongly tied to our thinking, sharpening it when we get enough and blunting it when we get too little.

What produces these effects are familiar to neuroscientists: external light and dark signals that help set our daily, or circadian, rhythms, “clock” genes that act as internal timekeepers, and neurons that signal to one another through connections called synapses. But how these factors interact to freshen a brain once we do sleep has remained enigmatic.

Findings published on October 10 in two papers in Science place synapses at center stage. These nodes of neuronal communication, researchers show, are where internal preparations for sleep and the effects of our sleep-related behaviors converge. Cellular timekeepers rhythmically prep areas around the synapses in anticipation of building synaptic proteins during slumber. But the new findings indicate neurons don’t end up building these critical proteins in the absence of sleep. ...
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FULL STORY: https://www.scientificamerican.com/...-down-production-of-essential-brain-proteins/
 
New survey research suggests adequate / insufficient amounts of sleep affect emotional health and self-perceived well-being.
Not Getting Enough Sleep Really Does Suck The Joy Out of Life, Research Confirms

Most of us know first-hand that lack of sleep has a profound effect on how we function day to day. From irritability and increased clumsiness to greater susceptibility to colds and chronic diseases, there's ample research to back this up. Now, a large new study also confirms that being sleep deprived really can suck the joy out of life.

"Even minor night-to-night fluctuations in sleep duration can have consequences in how people respond to events in their daily lives," said psychologist Nancy Sin from The University of British Columbia.

Sin and colleagues used survey data from almost 2,000 adults between the ages of 33-84. After assessing their baseline conditions, participants were asked for eight consecutive days about their sleep duration, daily stresses, and experiences of positive and negative events.

"When people experience something positive, such as getting a hug or spending time in nature, they typically feel happier that day," explained Sin.

"But we found that when a person sleeps less than their usual amount, they don't have as much of a boost in positive emotions from their positive events."

Luckily, this effect also goes the other way. Longer sleep makes positive events seem even better, and protects against the effects of daily stress. The team found these effects are even greater on those with chronic health problems, such as chronic pain. ...
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FULL STORY: https://www.sciencealert.com/no-you...cks-the-joy-out-of-even-your-favourite-things
 
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This newly published research provides insights into how sleep deprivation contributes to emotional stress and instability, with a focus on intruding unwanted / unpleasant thoughts.
Study reveals role of sleep deprivation in unwanted thoughts

Lack of sleep significantly impairs our ability to stop unwanted and unpleasant thoughts from entering our mind, a new study reveals.

Lack of sleep significantly impairs our ability to stop unwanted and unpleasant thoughts from entering our mind, a new study reveals.

The authors of the study say the findings could have implications for people suffering from psychiatric conditions associated with unwanted thoughts - such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and schizophrenia.

The study, from the University of York, tested the ability of participants to suppress intrusive thoughts when they were either sleep deprived or well rested. Sleep deprived participants suffered an increase in unwanted thoughts of nearly 50% compared to those who had a good night's sleep.

Lead author of the study, Dr Marcus Harrington, from the Department of Psychology at the University of York, said: "In everyday life, mundane encounters can remind us of unpleasant experiences. For example, a car driving too fast on the motorway might cause us to retrieve unwanted memories from a car accident many years ago. For most people, thought intrusions pass quickly, but for those suffering with psychiatric conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, they can be repetitive, uncontrollable, and distressing.

"It is clear that the ability to suppress unwanted thoughts varies dramatically between individuals, but until now the factors that drive this variability have been mysterious. Our study suggests sleep loss has a considerable impact on our ability to keep unwanted thoughts out of our minds." ...
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FULL STORY:
https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2020-10/uoy-srr102020.php

PUBLISHED REPORT:
Losing Control: Sleep Deprivation Impairs the Suppression of Unwanted Thoughts
Marcus O. Harrington, Jennifer E. Ashton, Subbulakshmi Sankarasubramanian, ...
First Published October 15, 2020
https://doi.org/10.1177/2167702620951511

Full Text Accessible At:
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2167702620951511
 
Science Advances publication and the University of Washington claim that on the night of the full moon, people sleep 46 to 58 minutes less.

Also people with bipolar seem to cycle with the full moon.

This publication claims one should wait an hour before going to bed to offset the full moon effect of less sleep.
 
I feel for you Victory !

I also did for a few years of every changing shift work.

It paid the bills and put food on the tablet, but it was a crap way of life.
 
I'm wondering if trolling, the general rise of internet-hysteria, and the belief in QAnon-like conspiracy theories are affected by poor sleep?



Sleep Disturbance and Emotion Dysregulation as Transdiagnostic Processes in a Comorbid Sample

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3774794/#:~:text=On the one hand, sleep,et al., 2011).

"On the one hand, sleep disturbance appears to worsen mood and decrease one’s ability to effectively regulate emotions, and on the other hand, impaired emotion regulation leads to increased negative affect and arousal, thus disrupting the subsequent night’s sleep (Harvey et al., 2011)".

Lack of Resilience Is Related to Stress-Related Sleep Reactivity, Hyperarousal, and Emotion Dysregulation in Insomnia Disorder

https://jcsm.aasm.org/doi/10.5664/jcsm.7100

"Subjects with insomnia showed low resilience, which was related to high stress-related sleep reactivity, emotional dysregulation, and hyperarousal. If resilience helps to minimize the extent of pathogenesis in the developmental process, an early identification of vulnerable candidates should be useful for preventing insomnia development and maintenance."
 
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maximus otter said:
We're all saved! Nanny State is soon going to tell all of us hapless, dependent sheeple how much sleep we need:

Government to issue 'sleep hygiene' guidance

Your tax pound at work: Doubleplus good!

maximus otter
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For an ex-traffic policeman, you must have seen enough death from drivers who have fallen asleep at the wheel? This is from the USA.

https://www.cdc.gov/sleep/features/drowsy-driving.html#:~:text=Did You Know?,in the previous 30 days.&text=The National Highway Traffic Safety,and 800 deaths in 2013.

  • "An estimated 1 in 25 adult drivers (aged 18 or older) report having fallen asleep while driving in the previous 30 days.
  • The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that drowsy driving was responsible for 72,000 crashes, 44,000 injuries, and 800 deaths in 2013.3 However, these numbers are underestimated, and up to 6,000 fatal crashes each year may be caused by drowsy drivers"

There's mounting evidence that poor sleep or not enough sleep is causing many life-threatening conditions also.

https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/sleep-and-tiredness/why-lack-of-sleep-is-bad-for-your-health/#:~:text=Regular poor sleep puts you,a long and healthy life.
 
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PeniG said:
As a lifelong insomniac, I say it's time and past time that sleep deprivation got taken seriously as a disorder, and part of that is good solid scientific studies on why it happens and what its effects are.
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Some places are:
https://www.hrmagazine.co.uk/conten...t-cancer-receive-compensation-from-government

"Danish women, who developed breast cancer after working nightshift, have been awarded compensation by their government following research from the World Health Organisation showing disrupted sleep patterns were linked to cancer.

A United Nations ruling followed stating women on nightshifts were more likely to get cancer and the Danish government has, so far, paid out to 40 women - although those who have a history of cancer in their family are not eligible for compensation.

It is thought 3.5 million people in the UK work nights and the Health and Safety Executive is to carry out a two-year survey to ascertain the effects of sleep deprivation on cancer."

Sad this is almost 12 years old and yet few other places have followed suit.
 
I too have poor sleep and often feel tired. So of course I have my own thoughts about sleep deprivation and insomnia. I suspect that some sleep difficulties may be hereditary, as well as, some learned

I do know that I can function one day with no sleep. Not well, but I can function. So I no longer get worked up about having one night with absolutely no sleep. I also have as little light as possible in my room, I wear earplugs to bed, I cover up my alarm clock so that I don't know what time it is, etc. I often get out of bed to do a few yoga poses to loosen my muscles as I am often physically tense and it interferes with me falling asleep. I get up to make myself tea (even if it is 0130 and I have to get up at 0630.

I have read that there are different types of rest that do have benefits even if it they are not the stereotypical 8 hours of actual sleep.

There is a conscious state referred to as yogic sleep or yoga nidra which "is a state of consciousness between waking and sleeping, like the "going-to-sleep" stage, typically induced by a guided meditation.

There is evidence that yoga nidra helps relieve stress. An ancient technique from India, it has now spread worldwide and is also being applied by the US Army to assist soldiers to recover from post-traumatic stress disorder." Wikipedia

I have tried a couple of guided yoga nidras that can be found anywhere on internet and have had some success with them as well. They don't always get me to sleep, but this state does give me some restorative rest. Again, my understanding is that it is to be practiced regularly for your body to learn the response, and the more you use it, the quicker you fall into this state of relaxation.


Of course, my best sleep is usually at 0600:( just before my alarm goes off.
 
Can I just remind posters that the topic of this section is sleep depravation. Earlier material was related eg in approaches to approaching sleep deprivation and related areas.

Keep it on sleep deprivation please.
 
gordonrutter said:
Can I just remind posters that the topic of this section is sleep depravation. Earlier material was related eg in approaches to approaching sleep deprivation and related areas.

Keep it on sleep deprivation please.
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Yeah, the off topic stuff made me nod off.
 
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Sleep deprivation makes medical staff as dangerous on the roads as drunk drivers.
Sleep-deprived medical staff ‘pose same danger on roads as drunk drivers’

About half of all hospital doctors and nurses have had accidents or experienced near misses while driving home after a night shift.

The risks they pose to themselves and other road users have been calculated as the same as those posed by drivers who are over the legal alcohol limit, delegates at a European medical conference were told last week.

As a result, health experts have called for doctors and nurses to be allowed to take 20-minute power naps during night shifts. This would make their journeys home safer and would also help to protect patients from mistakes they might make through tiredness when administering drugs or other treatments. ...

Research has shown that fatigue induces spontaneous, uncontrollable sleep lapses, or micro-sleeps, that can be extremely dangerous for machine operators, power plant controllers and drivers. This problem begins to build up after two or more nights of restricted sleep, and it can take at least two nights to recover from this state.

It has also been found that workers who drive home after a 12-hour shift are twice as likely to have a crash as those working eight-hour shifts. ...
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FULL STORY: https://www.theguardian.com/society...ff-pose-same-danger-on-roads-as-drunk-drivers
 
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