New Poll: How much sleep do you get (on average) each night? I was inspired by this Ask MetaFilter thread about getting to bed on time. The Snook and I always plan to hit the sack at 10:30, but in reality that’s only when we begin our bedtime ritual. (First comes a bit of Internet, then taking vitamins, then putting away whatever laundry’s on the bed, then cleaning our teeth, blah blah blah…) And then inevitably I have insomnia anyway, which is only alleviated by the Snook reading me some Winnie-the-Pooh. (I’m not kidding. He does the voices really well. I should make an MP3 sometime.) So I probably really only get to sleep by midnight, which means I average about seven hours a night during the week. Invariably I sleep way later on the weekend, though the Snook seems to keep his regular hours. (I assume this means I need more than seven hours, but it’s sufficient for him.) So what do you guys get? Any other tips to help me establish a better bedtime ritual?
21 responses
I like to get a good eight hours but usually take more. In fact, so cat-like am I that I would rather stay in bed all day, and only the sinking feeling that I’m wasting my life compels me to hurl off the blankets once in a while. Especially in Winter.
As for bedtime, you’ve got me there. I’m supposed to be in bed now myself.
I try to get at least a solid seven hours on weekdays, so bedtime depends on when I have class (and what’s on Adult Swim). Usually I’m out by midnight to 2 a.m.
I sleep 7 to 7.5 hours a night, although I invariably wake up two or three times during the night. I usually get the same on weekends, unless I’ve been out boozing, in which case I tack on an extra hour or two to alleviate the hangover. In college, I only got around 5 hours and was always exhausted and falling alseep during classes. Now I hardly ever feel tired during the day, so 7.5 seems to be the magic number for me.
i need my sleep. 8-9 hours is preferable. i can get by with less provided i can top up at the weekends, or if i can take naps. i used to not be able to nap during the day, but now i loooooooove a little snooze in the afternoon.
I also need at least 8 hours to be able to fully function throughout the whole day. If I get less, I tend to hit a wall sometime in the afternoon. The time I go to bed depends on the time I need to be up the next day (classes, work, etc), but currently I’m trying to get to bed before midnight and up before 10AM. I, too, invariably wake up once or twice during the night (bathroom, etc) but I don’t usually find it difficult to get back to sleep.
Generally, the only time I have difficulty falling asleep is when I’m feeling anxious about something. This often occurs when I know I have to be up very early the next morning (i.e. around 6AM) and also, not surprisingly, around exam time. Unfortunately, I haven’t yet found a good remedy for insomnia, but I’ll let you know if I do!
i’m lucky if i get about six. it really starts to catch up with you though so you get a lot more tired as the week goes on. but i am a night owl, and as soon as the sun comes up so do i unfortunately!
I’ve had sporadic (and sometimes occasional) bouts with insomnia, but I’ve found something that helps me a great deal — a sound machine. Mine has several sounds to choose from, and the one I’ve found that works best is ocean sounds. My machine has a variable volume control and has settings to run for 30, 60, or 90 minutes (or continuously). The cool thing about the ocean sounds setting is that it is programmed to actually SLOW DOWN the sound rhythms as it gets further into the cycle. I have mine set at 90 minutes, and after using this now for over a year, I can remember only one time where I’ve remained awake until the end of the cycle. I do a lot less tossing and turning trying to get to sleep than I used to.
Since I moved a few months ago, I haven’t been sleeping that well. I happen to have neighbors that don’t understand common courtesy. But before I moved, I didn’t have a problem getting to sleep and waking up at a reasonable time. I found that having a set bedtime ritual really helps me out. I had a set time to have the bed cleaned off, showered, wearing night clothes, computer turned off, dogs have been outside. I’d also do it in the same order every night. Once done, that would give me a chance to relax with a book or work on a collage in bed. At the beginning, I would get sleepy after an hour or so, but after a few months, I could fall asleep in less than 20 minutes, and I could wake up without an alarm clock.
I’ve often thought about getting one of those, Ron, since I always sleep well with white noise. We were running the air conditioner last week and it conks me out within ten minutes.
I can’t sleep without a fan running. Without the white noise my own thoughts are too loud for me sleep.
I generally try to get around 6-8 hours a night, but I usually get a little less than 6. We’re forever staying up late to watch something interesting on the History Channel, or even Howard Stern’s E! Show if he has an interesting guest or event. The Miss Amputee Pageant was riveting (and not nearly as bad as it sounds, though it had its moments). 😉
The dude with the stump fetish creeped me out. Not because he was into amputee stumps, but because of how MUCH he was into them. *shudders*
Heh! Was that Chauncey Hayden or Double A? I forget. They’re both pretty darn creepy guys. Chauncey’s the worst, though.
I always hated the idea of bedtime when I was little. Now, I’ve worked evenings for several years, and became quite a night owl. When I switched to days, first, it was 3-4 hours a night, now it’s about 6…but never really plan a specific time that I am going to go to bed.
It was Chauncey – I caught the update tonight. He pimped her out to Entertainment Tonight – creeeeeeeepy!
I have no idea what you guys are talking about…
Seriously, Kris…. if you knew, you would laugh your damn ass off.
Heh! Sorry, Kris. You probably don’t want to know. It’s all Howard Stern-related.
Stern had a Miss Amputee Beauty Contest (sponsored by the movie Saw, natch) wherein a half dozen women with amuptations came in and were judged for their beauty and the severity of their amputations. The girl who won was the prettiest of the bunch, though she performed an unmentionable act that probably helped her clinch the win. Howard offered to buy a new prostetic limb for another girl (she was going to buy a new limb with the $10K cash prize), and then a guy called up and donated limbs to two of the girls, free of charge.
The guy Lindsey and I referred to, Chauncey, is the editor and publisher of Stepping Out magazine. I consider him one of Howard’s “Wack Pack” members, he’s so creepy. Anyway, he has some sort of stump fetish, and so Howard had him on for the Pageant to judge the women. The way he was staring at the womens’ stumps when they’d take off their prostetics… *shudders*
I think the only person that creeps me out more than Chauncey is Jeff the Drunk. He’s so…….. NASTY! But the whole show is just beyond hilarious. Only in New York could you find all these creepazoids…
I like how this post has gone from Snook reading Winnie the Pooh with voices to Jeff the Drunk and Chauncey.
Yes, Kris has some weird friends eh?
Midwestern girls are the BEST. 🙂