The Myth of the eight-hour sleep

Originally posted by N3k9Ni

I find that sleeping 3 to 4 hours at a time works for me. The problem, as you noted, comes in when people are forced to work 8 or more hours a day, which is also unnatural, particularly if those hours are late night/early morning. Worse yet are those jobs that run rotating shifts which significantly interfere with the body's natural rhythms and cause physical and emotional complications.

edit on 5-3-2012 by N3k9Ni because: typo

I work the 3 shifts in weekly rotation and don't have many problems with it. Actually, I declined a dayjob promotion a few years back, just to keep my shifts. I wouldn't have it any other way.

The trick is to copy your routine (waking up - breakfast - going to work - going home - do stuff there.) and paste it onto your shift. Now if you have a family to run, you might have a problem. They remain static where you need to revolve.

Trying to remain a daycreature with rotating work hours will cause troubles. That's when the unhealthyl part kicks in. The shifts itself are not.

I can't stand the overcrowded kindergarten-shift with those whining daycreatures for more than a week. They are the cause of the physical and emotional complications. The other two shifts are pure heaven.

Originally posted by Mizzijr
I usually sleep 6 hours, sometimes 5 and feel completely fine for 18 hours.

Actually when I was in high school there was a study that stated 6 hours could possibly be better for the body rather than 8 hours.

My 5-6 hours is plentiful.

I usually sleep about 9.5 hours, sometimes 11-13 and then will feel wide awake and fine for the entire day into the night.

I found that 8 hours just isn't enough for me. I can make it through the day on 8, but getting 8 consistently just makes me more and more groggy until friday where it just feels as if I haven't slept at all overnight.

For example I had about 7.5 hours from thursday to friday, woke up at 9am. By 3pm I was just falling asleep all over myself.


I actually did a self-study one time when I was free from disturbances from anyone for a 2 week period.
Basically the rule was go to bed when tired, wake up when I wake up. No alarms. No regard for what time of day it was.

The results were pretty interesting.

I'd find myself staying up about 18-20 hours on average then sleeping for about 10. Effectively putting me on a 30~ hour a day schedule. I have to say though that it was awesome. I was never tired. Except I would be waking up at odd hours of the day/night.

Say go to bed at midnight..
12AM->10AM then stay up for 20 hours .. go to bed
6AM->4PM.. stay up to 12
12PM->10PM... yeah it got weird after the 3rd day. Some days i'd be going to bed at 8pm other days waking up around 9pm heh.

reply to post by LOLZebra

That's what happens to me when I'm on vacation. Don't you just love it?

Great thread. I've been thinking about sleep a lot lately. I LOVE to sleep, and as I get older I'm feeling that I can sleep at any time anywhere. Though I am waking up a lot lately and reading for an hour or two in the middle of the night before dropping off again. Maybe you're right and the 8 hours is a myth?

What I wonder about mostly though is WHY do we need sleep. Everything that's alive (as far as I know) needs sleep. Even trees and plants like a sleep, don't they? Is it something to do with the universe, the solar system, outer space, or is it an innerspace thing? It has to be a clock of some sort but I'm buggered if I can work it out. Why do we sleep?

I thought this was natural and thats why I do it. others complain they are tired no wonder. lol

Well its 4.03am Partner in bed I'm up still.

wish I had that pill that was on American Dad, Have the night time to yourself and have have a day life.