Sleep habits... with a poll!

[Valka D'Ur]

Not saying doing things in bed is not beautiful and relaxing, it's just not good for your sleep at all. You say that doing crosswords, for example helps you sleep. However, this is a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy: Maybe, if you used your bed only for sleeping, you wouldn't even need an aide for falling asleep. But because you do it and it gets you tired, you think it 'works'.

Now that I'm older and no longer subject to a parent/grandparent-mandated bedtime, I don't go to bed unless I'm already tired. But being tired doesn't mean relaxed, and I need to be relaxed in order to fall asleep. Reading or some other book-related thing is what relaxes me.

Books have been part of my bedtime ritual ever since I was at least 3 and able to look at the pictures; it was another year before I actually started learning to read. So my bedtime included the requisite stuffed animals and a stack of books - Disney, nursery rhymes, and my mother's old school atlas. That atlas is partly responsible for my being on this forum; I had a fascination with maps even before I could read what they said. The Civ game is all about maps, so that's quite a journey from my toddler-self in 1966 to now.

My mother would keep the night light on for awhile so I could look at the books, then it was lights out. I recall Bambi giving me nightmares (just from the pictures). I've never been able to force myself to watch the actual movie.

But as time went on and I did learn to read, it became a normal part of life to read for awhile before going to bed (or sleep, if I was already in bed). I've tried other methods of relaxation - music, for example, but it's not always reliable.

I occasionally read in bed, too, because it's just so comfy. If your sleep is good anyway it can be very soothing occasionally, especially on rainy or snowy days.

Yep, a rainy or snowy day, a book, and a cat is the perfect way to relax.

 

[Camikaze]

How many hours of sleep do you usually get?
7

What time do you go to sleep and what time do you wake up?
10:45pm - 5:45am. I'm kinda surprised no-one else has said they wake up that early.

How much variation is in your sleep schedule (ie days off vs work nights)?
I'll go to bed at different times depending on what I'm doing, but I gotta wake up at the same time every weekday regardless. 90% of Sunday-Thursday nights I'll be asleep sometime between 10:30 & 11. I usually push everything back an hour or so on weekends, and when I wake up on Saturday & Sunday I just stay in bed for a while. But I can't deal with massive variation - if I go to bed at, say, 2am, I'll still end up waking between 7-8am.

Do you take naps?
Never.

How many times do you wake up during sleep or have it interrupted?
Only very briefly. Enough to check the time. I'll often wake up about half an hour before my alarm, and then half sleep.

How would you rate the quality of your sleep (ignoring duration, quality only)?
Great. I'm a very solid sleeper.

Are you satisfied with the amount of time you sleep?
I'd like an extra hour, but that's in the sense that I'd like an extra hour in the day, or an hour less commuting. For a 24 hour day, 7 hours of sleep keeps me happy and awake.

Are you satisfied with the quality of your sleep?
Yes


I always read when I go to bed, just for 15 or so minutes. It's partly because it's the only time I get to read, but also because I found I go to sleep pretty much immediately if I've been reading, but don't if I haven't. I think that's because reading winds down my brain after having been watching a video or playing a game or thinking about work. Certainly if I'm doing something more stimulating, e.g. using my phone, that'll, make it harder to immediately sleep.

 

[Lemon Merchant]

How many hours of sleep do you usually get?
5 to 6

What time do you go to sleep and what time do you wake up?
1:00 AM to 6:00 or 7:00 AM depending what I have going on in the day

How much variation is in your sleep schedule (ie days off vs work nights)?
I stay up til 3:00 or 4:00 AM on Fridays and Saturdays playing video games. I usually sleep until 11:00 AM or noon the following day

Do you take naps?
Every chance I get.

How many times do you wake up during sleep or have it interrupted?
Not often, unless I've had a little too much to drink before bed, (and it's not necessarily alcoholic beverages either), and I have to stumble to the bathroom at night.

How would you rate the quality of your sleep (ignoring duration, quality only)?
I frequently don't sleep for hours in bed. I may go to bed at 1:00 AM, but it's nothing for me to still be awake at 3:00, tossing and turning.

Are you satisfied with the amount of time you sleep?
No, but I have too much to do during the day. I guess if I spent a little less time on forums or playing games I might get more sleep, huh?

Are you satisfied with the quality of your sleep?
Yes. I sleep like a brick when I actually sleep. Dynamite wouldn't wake me up.

 

[Hygro]

I'm winning the poll!

 

[BenitoChavez]

How many hours of sleep do you usually get?
6-7

What time do you go to sleep and what time do you wake up?
Weekdays 12pm-6:30am. Weekends roughly 1am to 10am.

How much variation is in your sleep schedule (ie days off vs work nights)?
During the week, I may go to bed maybe an hour earlier or later some nights but pretty much always have to wake at 6:30am. On the weekends it varies quite a bit depending on how sleep deprived I am from the week.

Do you take naps?
Rarely but when I do I always regret it. I usually overdo the nap and sleep 2-3 hours which isn't enough to really feel rested but enough to screw up when I actually fall asleep at night.

How many times do you wake up during sleep or have it interrupted?
I travel a lot for my job and when I'm in the hotel I can wake up several times a night. When I'm at home I usually sleep uninterrupted.

How would you rate the quality of your sleep (ignoring duration, quality only)?
At hotels my sleep is mediocre. I wake up in the middle of the night and in the mornings I sometimes wake with a stiff neck.

Are you satisfied with the amount of time you sleep?
No. I'd like to get 8-9 hours each night but usually only have time for that on the weekends.

Are you satisfied with the quality of your sleep?
At hotels no. At home yes.

 

[FriendlyFire]

8+ Hours per nite normally but often get less then 8hrs on work days
Then I sleep like 12hrs on the weekends

I need to reset my sleep clock, dammit was sick and stopped my sleep patten which was cardio, shower, music then bed
Ideally I need around 9hours per night every night.

 

[The_J]

How many hours of sleep do you usually get?
I try 9, but most often 8.

What time do you go to sleep and what time do you wake up?
11 PM - 7.45 AM. If possible. At the weekend I go to bed whenever, and set the alarm for 9 hours later. I don't wake up without alarm.

Do you take naps?
I sometimes do at work if I'm too tired to be productive.

How many times do you wake up during sleep or have it interrupted?
1. Drink too much beforehand.

How would you rate the quality of your sleep (ignoring duration, quality only)?
Relatively bad. I need to change my matress, it's too old and I normally wake up with muscle pain.

Are you satisfied with the amount of time you sleep?
If I manage, then actually yes.

What time do you go to sleep and what time do you wake up?

Weekdays: Go to sleep at ~3AM, get up at ~10:30
Weekend: Go to sleep at ~5:30, get up at ~11 or 12

What job do you have that allows this o_O?

I'm winning the poll!

More losing life time, sadly .

 

[civvver]

Reading makes me very sleepy so yes I'll do it in bed so I can just roll over and turn out the light after.

Watching tv doesn't make me tired or not tired, it does help me unwind and stop thinking about work or other stresses though to prep for sleep but I don't do it in bed.

Video games... ARGHHH these wake me up like none other which is the biggest detriment to my sleep. I'll be tired but get on for one dota game or a couple civ turns, adrenaline starts going and then I'm up til midnight.