[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Blackout curtains + thick beanie pulled down over my eyes.

Tried white noise, pink noise, brown noise, ocean, special soft binaural sleep headphones, etc.---didn't work for me. (Maybe I should have tried purring cat noise (music!)?... if my cat wouldn't have objected....)

[Malankazooie]

I'm not a vampire, so blackout curtains can fuck off and are useless to me. In fact, when we have a full moon coupled with a fresh blanket of snow, that magical light coming through the windows has me sleeping like a baby. (fuck blackout anything, full stop) Ambient / white noise on the other hand - yuppers, when I have a fan running or a humidifier turned on, that drone has a sleep effect on me.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

 Malankazooie, on 16 March 2022 - 12:35 AM, said:

I'm not a vampire, so blackout curtains can fuck off and are useless to me. In fact, when we have a full moon coupled with a fresh blanket of snow, that magical light coming through the windows has me sleeping like a baby. (fuck blackout anything, full stop) Ambient / white noise on the other hand - yuppers, when I have a fan running or a humidifier turned on, that drone has a sleep effect on me.

'Close the blinds during sleep to protect your health

Even moderate light exposure during sleep harms heart health and increases insulin resistance




[...] "The results from this study demonstrate that just a single night of exposure to moderate room lighting during sleep can impair glucose and cardiovascular regulation, which are risk factors for heart disease, diabetes and metabolic syndrome," [...] "It's important for people to avoid or minimize the amount of light exposure during sleep."

[...] "We showed your heart rate increases when you sleep in a moderately lit room," [...] "Even though you are asleep, your autonomic nervous system is activated. That's bad. [...]"

[...] "It acts like the brain of somebody whose sleep is light and fragmented. The sleep physiology is not resting the way it's supposed to."

[...] An earlier study [...] looked at a large population of healthy people who had exposure to light during sleep. They were more overweight and obese[...]

"Now we are showing a mechanism that might be fundamental to explain why this happens," [...] "We show it's affecting your ability to regulate glucose."

[...] Amber or a red/orange light is less stimulating for the brain. Don't use white or blue light and keep it far away from the sleeping person.

[...] Blackout shades or eye masks are good if you can't control the outdoor light. Move your bed so the outdoor light isn't shining on your face.'

Close the blinds during sleep to protect your health: Even moderate light exposure during sleep harms heart health and increases insulin resistance -- ScienceDaily

In happier news, those of you in the US have probably already read that the Senate unanimously voted to make Daylight Savings Time permanent. If it passes into law I'll miss the next Fall Back, but it seems worth getting rid of all the future Spring forwards (can't we just have an infinite fall back?... oh well).

This post has been edited by Azath Vitr (D'ivers: 16 March 2022 - 02:14 AM

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

Though when I was a child I preferred to sleep with the lights on... but under my bed (with my stuffed tigers, etc...).

[LinearPhilosopher]

 Malankazooie, on 11 March 2022 - 01:37 AM, said:

Do those weighted blankets work? I think it might be ruse to make people open their wallets, but I now and again see them being touted as beneficial to sleep.

I use them. They don't make falling asleep easier but they make staying asleep easier.

[Malankazooie]

 LinearPhilosopher, on 21 March 2022 - 10:56 AM, said:

 Malankazooie, on 11 March 2022 - 01:37 AM, said:

Do those weighted blankets work? I think it might be ruse to make people open their wallets, but I now and again see them being touted as beneficial to sleep.

I use them. They don't make falling asleep easier but they make staying asleep easier.

I guess maybe they are sorta like swaddling is for new born babies? They tap into some comfort our bodies remember from being in the womb? Might be something like that. I'll have to try it out. I know when I've been sick with fever and taking it easy in bed, layering on the blankets has that effect, so possibly there is something to it.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

 Malankazooie, on 21 March 2022 - 05:40 PM, said:

 LinearPhilosopher, on 21 March 2022 - 10:56 AM, said:

 Malankazooie, on 11 March 2022 - 01:37 AM, said:

Do those weighted blankets work? I think it might be ruse to make people open their wallets, but I now and again see them being touted as beneficial to sleep.

I use them. They don't make falling asleep easier but they make staying asleep easier.

I guess maybe they are sorta like swaddling is for new born babies? They tap into some comfort our bodies remember from being in the womb? Might be something like that. I'll have to try it out. I know when I've been sick with fever and taking it easy in bed, layering on the blankets has that effect, so possibly there is something to it.

Could try sleeping in a float / sensory deprivation tank... preferably a warm one. Inside a mech that stomps around, lies down, rolls around in its sleep....

Or sleeping a warm jacuzzi, with some sort of flotation device to keep from drowning... or add your own concentrated Epsom salt to make drowning much less likely (unless the cats jump on your head and drown on top of you... which seems unlikely...). Perhaps the biggest risk would be going face-first and not waking up---maybe wear a flotation-mask that leaves enough space between you and the water to breathe comfortably?

[LinearPhilosopher]

 Azath Vitr (D, on 21 March 2022 - 06:28 PM, said:

 Malankazooie, on 21 March 2022 - 05:40 PM, said:

 LinearPhilosopher, on 21 March 2022 - 10:56 AM, said:

 Malankazooie, on 11 March 2022 - 01:37 AM, said:

Do those weighted blankets work? I think it might be ruse to make people open their wallets, but I now and again see them being touted as beneficial to sleep.

I use them. They don't make falling asleep easier but they make staying asleep easier.

I guess maybe they are sorta like swaddling is for new born babies? They tap into some comfort our bodies remember from being in the womb? Might be something like that. I'll have to try it out. I know when I've been sick with fever and taking it easy in bed, layering on the blankets has that effect, so possibly there is something to it.

Could try sleeping in a float / sensory deprivation tank... preferably a warm one. Inside a mech that stomps around, lies down, rolls around in its sleep....

Or sleeping a warm jacuzzi, with some sort of flotation device to keep from drowning... or add your own concentrated Epsom salt to make drowning much less likely (unless the cats jump on your head and drown on top of you... which seems unlikely...). Perhaps the biggest risk would be going face-first and not waking up---maybe wear a flotation-mask that leaves enough space between you and the water to breathe comfortably?

listen im all for the mental picture of sleeping inside a mecha. Power to you if you can make it happen.

If you can't make it happen though I don't know a single person that regrets buying one. (weighted blanket) As quite a few people i know swear by it.

The big thing to keep in mind, is the kind of weighted blanket.

I prefer the "cool" blankets as the normal weighted blankets are too hot and turn my bed into a sauna. But for some people the warm blanket is just what the doctor ordered. So keep that in mind. I know Hush is the flagship brand but there's plenty of options on bed bath and beyond that aren't as pricy and more reliable in terms of delivery. But i can't speak to your budget.

This post has been edited by LinearPhilosopher: 22 March 2022 - 12:35 AM

[D'rek]

I've stopped doing the blackout curtains. Great for falling asleep, but it was making it hard to wake up/get up in the darkness and I was sleeping through alarms more easily with it. Not sure how I feel overall so far, but the light coming in through the window does seem to be helping me get up for now.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

 D, on 11 April 2022 - 06:10 PM, said:

I've stopped doing the blackout curtains. Great for falling asleep, but it was making it hard to wake up/get up in the darkness and I was sleeping through alarms more easily with it. Not sure how I feel overall so far, but the light coming in through the window does seem to be helping me get up for now.

Can get best of both with SAD lamp alarm clock or (color-changing) 'sunrise' alarm clock. Gradually gets brighter.

[D'rek]

That would take quite a lot of rewiring the bedroom lighting... but it's not a bad idea. Worth some thought if this doesn't work.

[Macros]

Nah no rewiring required with modern smart lamps

[D'rek]

I don't think a single lamp is going to match THE POWER OF THE SUN

[Whisperzzzzzzz]

You can get automatic opening blackout curtains: https://www.ikea.com...c-blinds-44531/

Or a dingus like this to open existing ones: https://www.switch-b...itchbot-curtain

This post has been edited by Whisperzzzzzzz: 12 April 2022 - 02:22 PM

[D'rek]

 Whisperzzzzzzz, on 12 April 2022 - 02:19 PM, said:

You can get automatic opening blackout curtains: https://www.ikea.com...c-blinds-44531/

Or a dingus like this to open existing ones: https://www.switch-b...itchbot-curtain

A "switch bitchbot" eh

[amphibian]

 D, on 12 April 2022 - 01:09 PM, said:

I don't think a single lamp is going to match THE POWER OF THE SUN

You'd be surprised what your asleep body can do with going from blackout to increasing amounts of light. Try it out. It seems cheap enough.

[Azath Vitr (D'ivers]

If setting your Circadian rhythm is the main concern, a SAD lamp or sunrise lamp should be sufficient. And unlike the sun they'll (almost) never be covered by clouds (or smoke, etc...).

[Malankazooie]

huh, in my Farmer's Almanac Everyday Calendar (which has a potpourri of information and helpful advice/tips), the following was posted for May 20:

When you open your eyes in a completely dark room, the color you see is called "Eigengrau."

[Nicodimas]

Another thing that is great is Yoga. I do hot yoga 6/7 days a week going on 10+ years.over 1k sessions actually now.

Makes you a much more peaceful ..less anxious person who is really in tune with others at a emotional level.

Also get into nature as that helps with dopamine/serotonin

This post has been edited by Nicodimas: 26 May 2022 - 03:50 AM

[Lady Bliss]

I’ve had chronic insomnia for 20 years now, so I can’t offer much hope. Mine is due in combination to waking up for babies and being on call. Both mean that I have to wake up fast at a small noise. I’ve seen a sleep therapist and been diagnosed with having a hard time falling asleep, staying asleep, and a fear of being able to sleep. I’ve tried lots of things over the years, and the best my psychiatrist has come up with is a powerful knockout cocktail of Ambien and Trazadone, but even that doesn’t work sometimes. At this rate I doubt the insomnia will stop for me.