Sleep Long, Sleep Well
Monday, July 5, 2021
Sleep Habits and Hardships
My FOUND coach this week has asked me to focus on my sleep habits and improving them.
To that end, I’ve had a little think about sleeping, how much I get, when I get it, and so on. I think that, especially now in the summer when I don’t have a set schedule for anything, I have a pretty good grasp on sleeping and getting to sleep. It’s something I’ve had to work on for a while.
See, I have sleep apnea. I know part of this is due to my current weight and health in general, but when I went in for the sleep study, the doctor took one look at my face and told me I likely had it. He asked if one or both of my parents snored badly, and yes, my dad did. He was the one who really sawed the logs to the point that Mom ended up sleeping in a separate room (he wasn’t the type to admit to or go get tested for any hogwash like sleep apnea). The doc said it had to do with my bone structure, and he could tell by looking at me that I had the requisite shape to be an issue. So, I went through with the study and was prescribed a CPAP machine.
Which I HATE. With every fiber of my being. It has caused much strife and heartache in our lives. My husband gets upset when I don’t wear it because I snore, but he gets upset when I do because it’s loud or gets knocked out of place or blows air at his face. I’m kind of damned if I do and damned if I don’t with that one. I think it’s gotten better lately; I’ve found better positions to sleep in, and I’m not beholden to a strict schedule so I am sure that on some level, I’m getting into a deeper, more restful sleep.
I also used to have a lot of trouble both getting to sleep and staying asleep. I feel that’s not as much of a problem any more. Coach Iman sent an article that has some tips and tricks for relaxing before bed, and I have found that I do many of these already. Now, obviously, there are disruptions from my “normal” routine due to sharing a room with someone else who may be on a different sleep schedule for whatever reason, but for the most part, my sleep prep looks like this:
First, A Little Background
My bedroom is large. We have a 65” TV on the wall, and on one side of the room, we have a couch and a table, along with a couple of “rolly” chairs, while on the other, we have the King-size bed, a couple of nightstands, and my husband’s computer desk. The TV is on a swivel mount and can be moved to be seen from either side of the room, or pushed back against the wall to be seen from both. My bedroom—far from being a sanctuary—is almost my whole life. I work at the table on my laptop (I’m typing this from there now), and we typically have meals here. When my best friend and her husband come over, they join us here for watching movies or playing games. It is the place where everything is. We have a full en suite restroom, and we even have a mini-fridge here, so we seldom have to leave for socializing or working. This is both a blessing and a curse.
It can be a curse at bedtime when I am ready to sleep, but my husband is still watching something or playing a game on his computer. We have a solution for when one of us is ready to sleep and the other isn’t. We each have a set of Bluetooth earbuds that is synced to the TV, so one can watch while the other sleeps. This fixes the noise issue, and whoever is up watching will also usually swing the TV toward the couch side of the room, which doesn’t completely fix the light issue, but it does help a lot.
Regular Routines
Frist, I plug in my phone, my smart watch (during the school year, I haven’t been wearing it much over the summer), Bluetooth earbuds, and anything else that needs charging. I straighten up our area—throw away any trash and stack up any dishes used that night and clear away clutter from the table. I use the restroom and set my clothes out on the chair near the door (I often sleep in my birthday suit, but want clothes accessible if I need to run out in an emergency). My husband is usually asleep before me, so if he left his monitors and backlit keyboard turned on, I’ll go turn those off, and I’ll make sure he’s settled in the bed and properly covered.
Then, it’s time for the secret weapon. We have found a video we put on that has a completely black screen (our TV does really good blacks and doesn’t even seem like it’s on when we play this video). It has the sounds of a powerful thunderstorm that plays as background to help us get to and stay asleep. I turn the TV volume to 14 and set the sleep timer to an hour and a half. Then, I make sure all the electronics are put off to the side and close my eyes.
This is the hardest part. Especially if I’m not really super sleepy. I have found that if I try to create a fantasy scenario in my head, almost like I’m planning out a story to write, that I will drift off before I get too far. I’ll be thinking about a character and what they’re wearing and their background leading up to this moment, and considering their motivations for being here, and so on, and I almost never actually get to the scenario itself.
So, yeah… Maybe I have it already.
My sleep routines seem to be working pretty well for me so far. The only real problem I’ve even seen is that now I have somehow conditioned myself that thunderstorms = sleepy time, so when I’m faced with one in real life, it can be a bit disconcerting how much I want to curl up and nap!
The Value of Sleep
But, I think I get that want to nap during a storm somewhat naturally, too. My dad loved sleep. He appreciated sleep. He also loved sleeping in a storm. This man loved thunderstorm naps so much that he bought an old panel van with an open back, put a full on La-Z-Boy recliner in the back, and when it would storm, he’d go park it at the end of the driveway and sit in there listening to the rain hit the metal roof and have a beer and a smoke until he fell asleep. I must have picked up some of that from him because, to this day, I love thunderstorms and rain on rooves and so forth.
It kills me that most of us don’t really understand and appreciate the value of a good nap until we’re too old or too busy to really get to take them often. Think of how much kids protest when being put down for a much-needed nap. Then think of how, when you’re an adult with a regular job and adult responsibilities, you rarely get the opportunity to nap. And further, often, when you do, you are conditioned to feel guilty for “wasting” that time.
Luckily, more and more employers are starting to recognize the value of daytime naps. Forbes had an article about it a few years ago, and many other employers are following suit. I know that, as a teacher, I’m not really supposed to do so, but I’ve been lucky enough to occasionally have a nap during my work day when the need arose.
As I sit at the table in my room writing this entry, I am looking out one of our windows and the sky is darkening and the leaves are being tossed about. The forecast calls for storms today, and I am just peaceful and content and happy. Bring it! I’m ready…. for my nap!