It has been a few days since I stopped polyphasic sleeping, and I am facing some consequences from suddenly changing back to monophasic when the adaption was significantly in progress.
I've been waking up late, and not staying up that late. Today I slept 12 hours, from 1am to 1pm. This must be the third day of not sleeping polyphasically and I am still sleeping hours longer than I should to make up for lack of sleep, which continuing the naps would have done.
There are 2 paths, one straight ahead to polyphasic, and one turning off to monophasic. I was forced to take the monophasic path. Both would do the same thing, make up for lack of sleep, however one would obviously bring you out on polyphasic and the other on monophasic.
So by taking the monophasic path, I've been sleeping 3-4.5 hours longer than I normally would to make up for lost sleep. Even now, I am still tired and had difficulty getting out of bed. Actually I always have difficulty getting out of bed, one of the reasons I wanted to sleep polyphasically.
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Polyphasic sleep - End results
Overall on this sleep schedule I did okay. Other than 2 oversleeps and a few missed naps, I was going fine. Right now I am estimating it would have been another 2-3 days of flawless polyphasing until things got better. Actually, the night that I stopped I was like a zombie. Which means I had just entered the hardest part, and the part before becoming adapted.
That actually looks like a poor performance, but I'll explain some of the stuff. Day 1 we can just ignore, because I wasn't actually polyphasically sleeping there. Day 2 was good because The first nap was skipped because I was no where near tired enough(I later decided it is better to just lie there than completely skip).
Day 3 was the first day that I actually stuffed up. That was the day I slept from nap 2 through to nap 3. I had to skip nap 5 3 times in a row because at that time I was unable to nap, but that was okay, having overslept twice there wasn't really much lost from that.
It starts on day 2, I oversleep day 3. It picks up on day 4 and I oversleep day 5. It then picks back up on day 6... Do I oversleep on day 7? Maybe.. Maybe not. Day 6 went a lot better than day 4, and day 4 went a lot better than day 2, so chances are that I wouldn't have overslept. Even if I did, I'd make it through day 9. From my experience here, 6 hours oversleep = 2 days pushed back on the adaption.
I think I was pretty close and I know that a lot of 15 year olds wouldn't be able to pull that off. I'll DEFINITELY try again as soon as I move out of home. I won't base my schedule around monophasic sleep then convert to polyphasic, instead I'll base my schedule around polyphasic and say "I can't do that, I have to nap then". Rather than "I can't nap then, I have to do that". It may take serious dedication and a lot of effort, but I think it is worth it.
Well it was coming up to my 2:30am nap and then I don't remember what happened. All I know was nearly an hour later I was sitting up at my computer. Did I fall asleep? Perhaps lightly, but I was still sitting in my chair, so it's also likely that I was just in a zombie like state staring at the ground.
After I snapped out of that I could have kept going but knowing that come morning my parents would say "You are tired go to sleep". They obviously don't know how it works and I can picture them saying something a few days later like, "See, 9 hours of sleep a day and you are totally better." They didn't actually say that though, so I won't make accusations just assuming what I think they would do based on what I've seen. That would really annoy me though.
Anyway, here are the results of my sleep on a poorly drawn table in paint.
That actually looks like a poor performance, but I'll explain some of the stuff. Day 1 we can just ignore, because I wasn't actually polyphasically sleeping there. Day 2 was good because The first nap was skipped because I was no where near tired enough(I later decided it is better to just lie there than completely skip).
Day 3 was the first day that I actually stuffed up. That was the day I slept from nap 2 through to nap 3. I had to skip nap 5 3 times in a row because at that time I was unable to nap, but that was okay, having overslept twice there wasn't really much lost from that.
It starts on day 2, I oversleep day 3. It picks up on day 4 and I oversleep day 5. It then picks back up on day 6... Do I oversleep on day 7? Maybe.. Maybe not. Day 6 went a lot better than day 4, and day 4 went a lot better than day 2, so chances are that I wouldn't have overslept. Even if I did, I'd make it through day 9. From my experience here, 6 hours oversleep = 2 days pushed back on the adaption.
There were also 2 things here that was changing. At the start I was bad at napping. At the end I was getting much better at napping, so that would definitely have had a significant effect on the increase in adaption, even though I overslept. It really can be a complicated thing and varies from person to person.
I think I was pretty close and I know that a lot of 15 year olds wouldn't be able to pull that off. I'll DEFINITELY try again as soon as I move out of home. I won't base my schedule around monophasic sleep then convert to polyphasic, instead I'll base my schedule around polyphasic and say "I can't do that, I have to nap then". Rather than "I can't nap then, I have to do that". It may take serious dedication and a lot of effort, but I think it is worth it.
Sunday, December 7, 2008
That's it - It's over
All my effort towards this has gone to waste.
It was about 3am when I stopped caring. If I had kept going, tonight I'd face grumpy parents and be forced to go to bed at 11pm again. What's the big deal anyway? Why can't I just try it? Whatever, they got what they wanted. An unhappy son and their way.
I woke up at about midday to mum telling me to sleep at normal times. My back feels a bit stressed on the lower part, my eyes have twice the black around them as they did yesterday(returned to normal) and I don't feel like I've had a refreshing sleep. I can already feel the negative effects of monophasic sleep. Infact I felt exhausted when I woke up, probably because the sudden change in sleep patterns.
It's like a healthy vegetarian suddenly starts eating meat and junkfood.
It looks like I am going to return to the original sleep deprived, part time insomniac when school starts again. Why? Because seniors start at 8am for most of the days. I'll struggle to wake up every day, I'll struggle to get to sleep early enough every night.
I was pretty close. In a few days from now if I'd have kept going I'd be adapted enough that I wouldn't need to worry about oversleeping. In a few years when I don't live here anymore I'll be able to sleep when I want and then I'll show them that it is definitely possible. Right now the decision has been made for me and I've been forced to apply someone elses beliefs. It sounds like being forced to go to church.
Now, think about this question. Is it possible for teenagers to live up to their parents expectations?
It was about 3am when I stopped caring. If I had kept going, tonight I'd face grumpy parents and be forced to go to bed at 11pm again. What's the big deal anyway? Why can't I just try it? Whatever, they got what they wanted. An unhappy son and their way.
I woke up at about midday to mum telling me to sleep at normal times. My back feels a bit stressed on the lower part, my eyes have twice the black around them as they did yesterday(returned to normal) and I don't feel like I've had a refreshing sleep. I can already feel the negative effects of monophasic sleep. Infact I felt exhausted when I woke up, probably because the sudden change in sleep patterns.
It's like a healthy vegetarian suddenly starts eating meat and junkfood.
It looks like I am going to return to the original sleep deprived, part time insomniac when school starts again. Why? Because seniors start at 8am for most of the days. I'll struggle to wake up every day, I'll struggle to get to sleep early enough every night.
I was pretty close. In a few days from now if I'd have kept going I'd be adapted enough that I wouldn't need to worry about oversleeping. In a few years when I don't live here anymore I'll be able to sleep when I want and then I'll show them that it is definitely possible. Right now the decision has been made for me and I've been forced to apply someone elses beliefs. It sounds like being forced to go to church.
Now, think about this question. Is it possible for teenagers to live up to their parents expectations?
Saturday, December 6, 2008
Polyphasic sleep - Day 6 good/bad news
Well the good news is that I am sleeping well for most of my naps and some of them feel like they went for at least an hour. I had a nap, I think it was the 6:30am one, in which I'm sure I had a dream in. I don't remember the details, and it wasn't a strong dream but it was there. So, if I keep this up without anymore oversleeps/missed naps (that's the plan) then I should start dreaming soon. That means I'll be getting all of the sleep cycle in one nap, which is the intention on this, and as soon as that happens I am just about adapted. That must be the turning point, the part at which the sleep deprivation stops and tapers off instead of increases.
I took all of my naps successfully today except I didn't sleep for the last one, but lying there with the eyes closed almost sleeping is better than nothing like I've said before. I expect to make it through this night, which will be a break through for me as if I set a pattern, I'd be oversleeping tonight. I feel a bit better than I did the other nights, probably because I am getting better at napping, though tomorrow will probably be difficult.
This morning between 10:30am and about 12:30pm I had difficulty staying awake. I managed to get rid of that and keep going. Tomorrow will be like that but harder, and more frequent. The next day perhaps it will start getting easier, and soon after I can call myself an uberman.
Wait -- what was I saying about bad news?
Dad is trying to stop me again. This is what I have to say about it and other people who show their unsupport.
No, short term sleep deprivation is not serious and will not cause long term damage. Polyphasic sleep DOES work and people have done it. It is nothing like how people claim they can live off air and water with no food, saying that won't make me believe that everything on the internet is false. No I won't injure myself or end up with brain damage. We don't have to believe what we were brought up believing and there is no evidence to suggest long term damage from polyphasic sleep. All successful polyphasic bloggers aren't liars and there is no need to be so skeptical about polyphasic sleep. Let's not be pessimistic and let's not make up excuses to why polyphasic sleep is bad.
That said, I appreciate the concern but I am ready to make my own choice.
Also, I don't think I covered last night's naps. Wow, you really do lose track of the days when you sleep polyphasically. I'm sure it was last night we also went out so I had to skip the 6:30 nap, but I took the 10:30 nap okay. So I've done 7 naps In a row not too bad.
I took all of my naps successfully today except I didn't sleep for the last one, but lying there with the eyes closed almost sleeping is better than nothing like I've said before. I expect to make it through this night, which will be a break through for me as if I set a pattern, I'd be oversleeping tonight. I feel a bit better than I did the other nights, probably because I am getting better at napping, though tomorrow will probably be difficult.
This morning between 10:30am and about 12:30pm I had difficulty staying awake. I managed to get rid of that and keep going. Tomorrow will be like that but harder, and more frequent. The next day perhaps it will start getting easier, and soon after I can call myself an uberman.
Wait -- what was I saying about bad news?
Dad is trying to stop me again. This is what I have to say about it and other people who show their unsupport.
No, short term sleep deprivation is not serious and will not cause long term damage. Polyphasic sleep DOES work and people have done it. It is nothing like how people claim they can live off air and water with no food, saying that won't make me believe that everything on the internet is false. No I won't injure myself or end up with brain damage. We don't have to believe what we were brought up believing and there is no evidence to suggest long term damage from polyphasic sleep. All successful polyphasic bloggers aren't liars and there is no need to be so skeptical about polyphasic sleep. Let's not be pessimistic and let's not make up excuses to why polyphasic sleep is bad.
That said, I appreciate the concern but I am ready to make my own choice.
Also, I don't think I covered last night's naps. Wow, you really do lose track of the days when you sleep polyphasically. I'm sure it was last night we also went out so I had to skip the 6:30 nap, but I took the 10:30 nap okay. So I've done 7 naps In a row not too bad.
Friday, December 5, 2008
Day 5 of polyphasic sleep
Argh. I am an idiot(don't quote me saying that in the future). So, took my 2:30am nap perfectly. It was good but not really refreshing. Not enough to keep me up until 6:30 anyway. This is the hardest stretch. At about 4am I started feeling VERY tired. I couldn't sit down and play a game I'd just drop off. If I wanted to I'd have to stand up and move around. And yeah, I got sick of that fast but looks like next time I'll have to do it.
My stupid extremely tired brain decided it would be a good idea if I took an extra nap, just to keep me going. Actually that was a good idea, better than oversleeping, and the nap went fine. I think it kept me awake for 10 minutes after that. And, what? I decide to take a nap again.. about 20 minutes later. Sure I did but I don't remember waking up until 11:30am.
6 hours of oversleep every second day isn't going to help me adapt to this. I really need a second alarm but I don't have one. It looks like I am going to just have to keep trying until I can make it through the night. Luckily, I have plenty of time to do this and this seems to be the only thing standing in the way of my adaption.
As for further naps today, I'll try to sleep them and if I can, I am still a bit ahead of when I last overslept. If I just lie there for the nap then I've been damaged quite a bit from this.
My stupid extremely tired brain decided it would be a good idea if I took an extra nap, just to keep me going. Actually that was a good idea, better than oversleeping, and the nap went fine. I think it kept me awake for 10 minutes after that. And, what? I decide to take a nap again.. about 20 minutes later. Sure I did but I don't remember waking up until 11:30am.
6 hours of oversleep every second day isn't going to help me adapt to this. I really need a second alarm but I don't have one. It looks like I am going to just have to keep trying until I can make it through the night. Luckily, I have plenty of time to do this and this seems to be the only thing standing in the way of my adaption.
As for further naps today, I'll try to sleep them and if I can, I am still a bit ahead of when I last overslept. If I just lie there for the nap then I've been damaged quite a bit from this.
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Polyphasic sleep, Day 4
This would be the day that is the most tired and the worst day of the adaption. Not for me, I didn't nap the first day and overslept the third, so day 6 and 7 will probably be my bad days. If I make it through that, the chance of me failiing is very small(exciting thought, remember I'm only 15).
Dad found out this morning that I am doing polyphasic sleep. He asked why I am up at 3am and 8am. He doesn't like the idea but hasn't stopped me yet. I should get away with it.
Anyway the naps have all been similiar. I lie there semi concious, and remember waking up, but I don't remember really going to sleep. I haven't stuffed up again so I am doing well since yesterday. Surprisingly awake, but I did get the 6 hours oversleep yesterday. Though still surprising because with this amount of sleep I wouldn't usually be this awake - I must be adapted enough to gain something from naps(probably a small amount).
This morning I took my nap at 6:30am like planned but I ended up getting up later somehow. I don't remember what happened, probably overslept but barely, maybe 10 minutes. Now that I think about it I took the nap a little later maybe about 15 minutes late, 25 minutes napping then lying there for a bit. I remember setting my alarm just incase I went back to sleep. That's what happens when you nap with a blanket on, but only a minor oversleep anyway, I just ignored it.
So later this evening I couldn't take my 6:30pm nap (again) we went out (again). Third time lucky tomorrow? Aslong as I get atleast 3 days full uberman with no missing naps or oversleep I should be fine. After that well I guess I'll find out how my body takes to skipping naps... it really varies on the person. If I can't skip a nap, it may create problems in the future as it is unlikely that doing stuff will accomodate for such sleep pattern.
10:30pm - I could say this is my best nap since the 2:30am one I had before I overslept. I must have recovered from that oversleep now or even further than I was before it. That nap was great though I was a bit confused as to whether or not I had actually napped when I woke up, but I soon remembered. Not particularly restoring, but I slept well.
Today definitely made progression. Though I skipped a nap, I didn't go backwards. Soon I'll be full uberman.
Dad found out this morning that I am doing polyphasic sleep. He asked why I am up at 3am and 8am. He doesn't like the idea but hasn't stopped me yet. I should get away with it.
Anyway the naps have all been similiar. I lie there semi concious, and remember waking up, but I don't remember really going to sleep. I haven't stuffed up again so I am doing well since yesterday. Surprisingly awake, but I did get the 6 hours oversleep yesterday. Though still surprising because with this amount of sleep I wouldn't usually be this awake - I must be adapted enough to gain something from naps(probably a small amount).
This morning I took my nap at 6:30am like planned but I ended up getting up later somehow. I don't remember what happened, probably overslept but barely, maybe 10 minutes. Now that I think about it I took the nap a little later maybe about 15 minutes late, 25 minutes napping then lying there for a bit. I remember setting my alarm just incase I went back to sleep. That's what happens when you nap with a blanket on, but only a minor oversleep anyway, I just ignored it.
So later this evening I couldn't take my 6:30pm nap (again) we went out (again). Third time lucky tomorrow? Aslong as I get atleast 3 days full uberman with no missing naps or oversleep I should be fine. After that well I guess I'll find out how my body takes to skipping naps... it really varies on the person. If I can't skip a nap, it may create problems in the future as it is unlikely that doing stuff will accomodate for such sleep pattern.
10:30pm - I could say this is my best nap since the 2:30am one I had before I overslept. I must have recovered from that oversleep now or even further than I was before it. That nap was great though I was a bit confused as to whether or not I had actually napped when I woke up, but I soon remembered. Not particularly restoring, but I slept well.
Today definitely made progression. Though I skipped a nap, I didn't go backwards. Soon I'll be full uberman.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Day 3
My 2:30am nap has been my best nap so far. Though it was really weird when I woke up. I thought I had overslept. There was a strange beeping noise and I didn't know what to do. I turned off the xbox 360 and the tv (which I left running so it was good to go when I woke up) but the noise didn't stop. I hardly remember doing this I was barely conscious. I then woke up more and realised it was the alarm clock and I kept pressing buttons to find the turn off button. After that when I remembered when I had napped I worked out I didn't oversleep, and I felt awake enough. For the next hour anyway...
Then came the 6:30am nap. Actually it was more like 5:30am nap. I told myself I can nap twice, because I was really tired. So I set my alarm, put it on the bed right next to me and went to sleep. Then I felt like hitting myself... 12pm. I slept through 2 naps, and one alarm clock. Big red crosses on the table I have.
It is almost 5pm while I am writing this and I expect that by the end of tonight I'll be back up to where I was before I overslept -- no big deal. 2:30pm went smoothly except I barely got to sleep, just lie there and get lost in my thoughts then realise it is time to get up. That is okay, I lied there the whole time and at the right time. It would have been better than ignoring it completely.
Unfortunately at 6:30pm I'll have to skip a nap as mum decided to tell me about 15 minutes ago we are going for a barbecue. Perhaps I should let them know I am sleeping polyphasic? Well they will find out soon enough anyway.
I'll be back on track at 10:30pm and I feel I have learnt something today and it better happened earlier than later. I was blaming my alarm clock for not being loud enough to wake me up. It is, but I set it too far away. I think I set it for 30 minutes, that would have given me time to fall in to a deep sleep and be difficult to wake up. Even if I did wake up, I wouldn't remember, which is also possible. So from now on, even if I think I'll take 5 minutes to get to sleep, I am always setting my alarm clock to 24 minutes. Also, I'll place it right beside my head to make sure it wakes me up, and I'll nap on my bed so I know where I am when I wake up(I slept on the mattress at 2:30am, woke up confused).
Then came the 6:30am nap. Actually it was more like 5:30am nap. I told myself I can nap twice, because I was really tired. So I set my alarm, put it on the bed right next to me and went to sleep. Then I felt like hitting myself... 12pm. I slept through 2 naps, and one alarm clock. Big red crosses on the table I have.
It is almost 5pm while I am writing this and I expect that by the end of tonight I'll be back up to where I was before I overslept -- no big deal. 2:30pm went smoothly except I barely got to sleep, just lie there and get lost in my thoughts then realise it is time to get up. That is okay, I lied there the whole time and at the right time. It would have been better than ignoring it completely.
Unfortunately at 6:30pm I'll have to skip a nap as mum decided to tell me about 15 minutes ago we are going for a barbecue. Perhaps I should let them know I am sleeping polyphasic? Well they will find out soon enough anyway.
I'll be back on track at 10:30pm and I feel I have learnt something today and it better happened earlier than later. I was blaming my alarm clock for not being loud enough to wake me up. It is, but I set it too far away. I think I set it for 30 minutes, that would have given me time to fall in to a deep sleep and be difficult to wake up. Even if I did wake up, I wouldn't remember, which is also possible. So from now on, even if I think I'll take 5 minutes to get to sleep, I am always setting my alarm clock to 24 minutes. Also, I'll place it right beside my head to make sure it wakes me up, and I'll nap on my bed so I know where I am when I wake up(I slept on the mattress at 2:30am, woke up confused).
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Day 2 - Actual start
Nap 1 - skipped
Nap 2
This morning I napped successfully at 6:30am. I skipped the 2:30am nap, but I probably could have taken it if I'd wanted to(unnecessary risk involved). I was eager to take a nap, and already I am doing far better than I did last time I tried. It was interesting, I am lying there unable to get the thoughts to stop in my head and the next thing I know I am wondering what that beeping noise is and time has moved forward 20 minutes suddenly. I almost went back to sleep, but I had my alarm nice and close to make sure I don't.
Before the nap I opened paint and drew up a table with 6 naps, and about 12 days to put crosses and ticks in successful and unsuccessful naps. For day 1 I already put red crosses on the naps because Day 1 was yesterday. I believe this is a form of motivation. The green ticks look nice. It's like a strike in bowling, boosts your confidence and makes you happier. Though the strike in this case is actually a fail and the tick is the pass.
I don't believe I have mentioned yet but it is summer in Australia right now and last time I tried it was winter. Seriously, it makes a big difference. Back then I'd wake up '"ohh my bed is so nice and warm and its cold and boring and tired out there I know I'll just relax for a few minutes crap its midday instead of 7". Not happening here.
I am also writing this post as I go. After each nap I am writing a few paragraphs. I think it's a good way to do it and gives me something to do. Well, let's see how I go on future napping.
Nap 4
I shouldn't have eaten that icecream, but I have been hungry today. I felt slightly sick before but I think that's because of the orange I ate(wasn't the best) and then a few glasses of water(sometimes gives off the weird feeling). So about an hour after that, I microwaved some 2 minute noodles and ate a small amount of icecream. That was at around 1pm. I didn't realise that I napped so close to that until I was writing this just now but I napped a bit early at 2pm instead of 2:30pm. Well, meditate. I think the icecream didn't let me sleep but I've felt surprisingly awake in the last few hours.
Apparently we are having dinner a bit earlier tonight so I have to be prepared to nap early which is why I tried to nap earlier here to make it more even. I think I'll nap at 5:50pm instead of 6:30pm. Not too bad to do once while adapting.
Anyway, even though I didn't actually get to sleep for this nap, I still put in a green tick. It wasn't an oversleep or a complete fail. Lying down for a nap and not sleeping is better than ignoring it completely. So, 3 in a row. I slept on the mattress again because it is easier to wake up from. I believe I will sleep on the mattress again at 2:30am otherwise I'd say there is a good chance I'd just decide to stay in bed and ruin my day. It is so frustrating when you over sleep.
Imagine it as whenever you nap successfully, you gain a small percentage towards being adapted. When you oversleep a large percentage is deducted like you'll go from 40% adapted to 10% in 6 hours oversleep. I am just guessing those numbers, but it sounds like the reason why most fail.
Nap 5
I napped right after I ate dinner. Generally you aren't supposed to nap right after eating, but the other option was just to skip, which wouldn't have been as good. It was about 6:35pm when I set the alarm for 7:03pm. I was just lying there then like usual I fell in to a light sleep. Maybe only for a few minutes, and I woke up about 9 minutes before the alarm went off. I still marked this off as a tick in my sleep table, which I will post later, but I suspect that tomorrow napping will contain better quality sleep, and that I'll be more tired during the day.
Nap 6
This is the final nap of the day at 10:30pm. It was really weird actually. I was probably nearly asleep for the most of it but I still couldn't get completely asleep. At one point my body felt numb and tingling and I felt like something really weird was happening. First thing that popped in to my mind was astral projection, but nope, that wasn't it.
Tomorrow hopefully my post won't be so long and I expect to see a further increase in my adaption and I doubt I'll oversleep. I think that for the first day of actually sleeping like this, I've done pretty well.
Nap 2
This morning I napped successfully at 6:30am. I skipped the 2:30am nap, but I probably could have taken it if I'd wanted to(unnecessary risk involved). I was eager to take a nap, and already I am doing far better than I did last time I tried. It was interesting, I am lying there unable to get the thoughts to stop in my head and the next thing I know I am wondering what that beeping noise is and time has moved forward 20 minutes suddenly. I almost went back to sleep, but I had my alarm nice and close to make sure I don't.
Before the nap I opened paint and drew up a table with 6 naps, and about 12 days to put crosses and ticks in successful and unsuccessful naps. For day 1 I already put red crosses on the naps because Day 1 was yesterday. I believe this is a form of motivation. The green ticks look nice. It's like a strike in bowling, boosts your confidence and makes you happier. Though the strike in this case is actually a fail and the tick is the pass.
Nap 3
Later on, I napped for the second time today. I now have 2 successive ticks on the table. I've worked out the trick here - place the alarm clock as close to you as possible so you won't sleep past it. I used to go putting the alarm clock around the room so I'd have to get up and find it. I usually just slept through it. For this nap I slept on a mattress on the floor, and awoke with the same mild sleep deprivation I've had all day.
I don't believe I have mentioned yet but it is summer in Australia right now and last time I tried it was winter. Seriously, it makes a big difference. Back then I'd wake up '"ohh my bed is so nice and warm and its cold and boring and tired out there I know I'll just relax for a few minutes crap its midday instead of 7". Not happening here.
I am also writing this post as I go. After each nap I am writing a few paragraphs. I think it's a good way to do it and gives me something to do. Well, let's see how I go on future napping.
Nap 4
I shouldn't have eaten that icecream, but I have been hungry today. I felt slightly sick before but I think that's because of the orange I ate(wasn't the best) and then a few glasses of water(sometimes gives off the weird feeling). So about an hour after that, I microwaved some 2 minute noodles and ate a small amount of icecream. That was at around 1pm. I didn't realise that I napped so close to that until I was writing this just now but I napped a bit early at 2pm instead of 2:30pm. Well, meditate. I think the icecream didn't let me sleep but I've felt surprisingly awake in the last few hours.
Apparently we are having dinner a bit earlier tonight so I have to be prepared to nap early which is why I tried to nap earlier here to make it more even. I think I'll nap at 5:50pm instead of 6:30pm. Not too bad to do once while adapting.
Anyway, even though I didn't actually get to sleep for this nap, I still put in a green tick. It wasn't an oversleep or a complete fail. Lying down for a nap and not sleeping is better than ignoring it completely. So, 3 in a row. I slept on the mattress again because it is easier to wake up from. I believe I will sleep on the mattress again at 2:30am otherwise I'd say there is a good chance I'd just decide to stay in bed and ruin my day. It is so frustrating when you over sleep.
Imagine it as whenever you nap successfully, you gain a small percentage towards being adapted. When you oversleep a large percentage is deducted like you'll go from 40% adapted to 10% in 6 hours oversleep. I am just guessing those numbers, but it sounds like the reason why most fail.
Nap 5
I napped right after I ate dinner. Generally you aren't supposed to nap right after eating, but the other option was just to skip, which wouldn't have been as good. It was about 6:35pm when I set the alarm for 7:03pm. I was just lying there then like usual I fell in to a light sleep. Maybe only for a few minutes, and I woke up about 9 minutes before the alarm went off. I still marked this off as a tick in my sleep table, which I will post later, but I suspect that tomorrow napping will contain better quality sleep, and that I'll be more tired during the day.
Nap 6
This is the final nap of the day at 10:30pm. It was really weird actually. I was probably nearly asleep for the most of it but I still couldn't get completely asleep. At one point my body felt numb and tingling and I felt like something really weird was happening. First thing that popped in to my mind was astral projection, but nope, that wasn't it.
Tomorrow hopefully my post won't be so long and I expect to see a further increase in my adaption and I doubt I'll oversleep. I think that for the first day of actually sleeping like this, I've done pretty well.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Polyphasic sleep - Day 1
I am going to have to make this clear. It is not day 1 of the sleep schedule - merely day 1 of actually trying to start it. Preparation I suppose.
So like I had planned I would completely circumvent sleeping for one night. I did. Well it was morning when I went to sleep. Not what I had planned. It started getting light at 4:30am. It is really quite satisfying being awake while it slowly grows lighter. Unfortunately my mind at this point told me to go lie down for a while. I suppose I felt guilty.
Guilty of what? Well I have a doubt in my mind as to whether my parents will agree with letting me try this sleep schedule. I only slept for about 6 hours. Surprisingly I managed to lie on my bed for over an hour before I went to sleep. Now imagine if my alarm had gone off 3 hours in to sleeping. Would I have gotten up? I somehow doubt it. Can I really wake up after sleeping for only 3 hours? Perhaps not while adapting, but after that sure. Trouble is adapting.
Especially at 3am. If I had 3 hours of sleep and woke at 10am sure. That just isn't going to happen though. I am starting to think that I should circumvent sleeping again for tonight, but tomorrow I'll start uberman. It definitely won't work for school - but let's not get carried away. Will I really still be on this schedule in 2 months? Nope. I am going to switch back to everyman towards the end of the holidays.
So my new plan is to take most of the naps without anyone noticing(Read on for nap times). This will slow any suspicion as it may take them several days to catch on I am doing this. That's exactly what I need. At least a few days to say "I am going fine, don't stop me now".
Like I said earlier, I can't wake up from sleeping less than half of what I'd usually do, especially at 3am. I'd be a fool to even try. Uberman may be more intensive, but I won't have a high chance of oversleeping every night. I've experienced before that naps are far easier to wake up from than core sleep. I even felt more refreshed after naps and really tired after core. That is probably due to bad timing as I may have been in a deep phase of sleep but not REM or light phase whenever I woke up from a 3 hour sleep.
Core = bad.
Nap = good.
So what are my new nap times?
2:30am
6:30am
10:30am
2:30pm
6:30pm
10:30pm
Except for the weekend, 5/6 of those times no one will even know I am napping. If I go to sleep at 6:30am, I'll wake up just before 7 and that sometimes happens to me anyway, so that won't generate much suspicion. The only real problem is 6:30pm, however there is a good chance that no one will even walk past my room. My siblings won't care, but as long as my parents don't walk past my room at this time I'll be fine.
Following this, a week later they might decide "Hey is he napping". I can then say "Yep, 2 hours a day and I feel better than before". Once I've actually shown it can be done, there should be a lot less problem with me being able to do this.
Only one thing really stands in the way. Adapting.
Video games are a great way to keep yourself awake for the night. Seriously, get hooked on one you could skip sleeping for 2 nights no problem. Just this morning I was sitting here, doing nothing in particular. Starting feeling the need to sleep. That was about 2am right. It carried on for a while, but eventually I just logged on to World of Warcraft and for the next few hours I was awake.
As nerdy as you might think it is, it is definitely a good method. I can nap at my computer if I wanted and wake up good to go.
Actually I created a new character to level just to keep myself occupied. There is easily over a week of in game time before reaching the highest level. This will sound extremely nerdy - but I'll probably be on for over 16 hours a day. Just while adapting. I'll do more productive things when I've adapted but I am counting on this to keep me awake.
I've been constantly spewing out this blog post for a while now so I am going to draw it to a conclusion. I still feel there is a lot more I can write about though. Like how I may add in a nap at 4:30am for a few days.
This uberman sleep schedule is the master of all polyphasic sleep. It is a larger accomplishment than everyman. Not just because many seem to think its harder(maybe, I don't think it is), but because most can't juggle their schedules around this sleep pattern.
I think I've done a good job at planning, but now to prove I am not all talk and actually do it. Goodluck.
So like I had planned I would completely circumvent sleeping for one night. I did. Well it was morning when I went to sleep. Not what I had planned. It started getting light at 4:30am. It is really quite satisfying being awake while it slowly grows lighter. Unfortunately my mind at this point told me to go lie down for a while. I suppose I felt guilty.
Guilty of what? Well I have a doubt in my mind as to whether my parents will agree with letting me try this sleep schedule. I only slept for about 6 hours. Surprisingly I managed to lie on my bed for over an hour before I went to sleep. Now imagine if my alarm had gone off 3 hours in to sleeping. Would I have gotten up? I somehow doubt it. Can I really wake up after sleeping for only 3 hours? Perhaps not while adapting, but after that sure. Trouble is adapting.
Especially at 3am. If I had 3 hours of sleep and woke at 10am sure. That just isn't going to happen though. I am starting to think that I should circumvent sleeping again for tonight, but tomorrow I'll start uberman. It definitely won't work for school - but let's not get carried away. Will I really still be on this schedule in 2 months? Nope. I am going to switch back to everyman towards the end of the holidays.
So my new plan is to take most of the naps without anyone noticing(Read on for nap times). This will slow any suspicion as it may take them several days to catch on I am doing this. That's exactly what I need. At least a few days to say "I am going fine, don't stop me now".
Like I said earlier, I can't wake up from sleeping less than half of what I'd usually do, especially at 3am. I'd be a fool to even try. Uberman may be more intensive, but I won't have a high chance of oversleeping every night. I've experienced before that naps are far easier to wake up from than core sleep. I even felt more refreshed after naps and really tired after core. That is probably due to bad timing as I may have been in a deep phase of sleep but not REM or light phase whenever I woke up from a 3 hour sleep.
Core = bad.
Nap = good.
So what are my new nap times?
2:30am
6:30am
10:30am
2:30pm
6:30pm
10:30pm
Except for the weekend, 5/6 of those times no one will even know I am napping. If I go to sleep at 6:30am, I'll wake up just before 7 and that sometimes happens to me anyway, so that won't generate much suspicion. The only real problem is 6:30pm, however there is a good chance that no one will even walk past my room. My siblings won't care, but as long as my parents don't walk past my room at this time I'll be fine.
Following this, a week later they might decide "Hey is he napping". I can then say "Yep, 2 hours a day and I feel better than before". Once I've actually shown it can be done, there should be a lot less problem with me being able to do this.
Only one thing really stands in the way. Adapting.
Video games are a great way to keep yourself awake for the night. Seriously, get hooked on one you could skip sleeping for 2 nights no problem. Just this morning I was sitting here, doing nothing in particular. Starting feeling the need to sleep. That was about 2am right. It carried on for a while, but eventually I just logged on to World of Warcraft and for the next few hours I was awake.
As nerdy as you might think it is, it is definitely a good method. I can nap at my computer if I wanted and wake up good to go.
Actually I created a new character to level just to keep myself occupied. There is easily over a week of in game time before reaching the highest level. This will sound extremely nerdy - but I'll probably be on for over 16 hours a day. Just while adapting. I'll do more productive things when I've adapted but I am counting on this to keep me awake.
I've been constantly spewing out this blog post for a while now so I am going to draw it to a conclusion. I still feel there is a lot more I can write about though. Like how I may add in a nap at 4:30am for a few days.
This uberman sleep schedule is the master of all polyphasic sleep. It is a larger accomplishment than everyman. Not just because many seem to think its harder(maybe, I don't think it is), but because most can't juggle their schedules around this sleep pattern.
I think I've done a good job at planning, but now to prove I am not all talk and actually do it. Goodluck.
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