Wednesday, March 24, 2010

I CAN SLEEP WHEN I DIE!

I wrote that once in a cover letter (umm, yeah), and I landed the job. Now, it was the same job I got fired from, but that's besides the point. I'm an extremely hard worker, which I'm sure will pay off at some point, but unfortunately my I-will-do-whatever-it-takes-to-make-it attitude isn't conducive to a lot of sleep. Lately I've been getting about five to six hours a night during the week, which might not seem so bad, but I'm definitely an eight hours of sleep kind of girl. Some people thrive on little Zzz's—I am not one of them. 

Diddy doesn't get much pillow time—or so he says. How does he do it? He has so many assistants, maybe he's devised a way to have someone sleep for him. That would be sweet. 

Anyway, this am, my alarm went off at 6am and I was so incredibly tired. I felt like it would be impossible to wake up, but after five minutes, I talked myself out of bed. I had some blog-related things to get done early because I have a busy late afternoon/evening. I had such a hard time keeping my eyes open, that after two hours, I crawled back into bed to take a 30-minute power nap. I didn't wake up feeling totally refreshed, but it helped a little. I think. (But P.S. I fell asleep on the subway today—like full-on REM mode. Scary.)

I'm starting to worry that my lack of sleep will interfere with my productivity. So tell me: How much sleep do YOU get? Is it a priority in your life?

8 comments:

  1. Aww I hope you get to catch up on your ZzZs soon! I, like you, need my eight hours. I haven't been getting it and have been relying on caffeine to the point that I've developed immunity against it. Under both pressure AND lack of sleep, I do tend to thrive. It's like I realize I need to give my 110% so that the sleep deficit doesn't interfere.

    http://haliwoodsaywhat.blogspot.com

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  2. YES! Sleep is a huge priority for me! I get between 7.5 and 8 hours during the week and at least 8 or 9 on the weekends! I love my sleep and I NEED IT!

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  3. Ellen, your power naps always amazed me... you never even have to set an alarm, you just somehow knew that you could only sleep 30 minutes and then all of a sudden you would just wake up? I lived with you for a year and I still don't get it?!?

    I too am an 8 hr a night gal. My husband doesn't need nearly that much and it makes me so angry as I head off to sleep and he plays on the internet :(

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  4. there's not enough hours in a work day to get 8 hrs of sleep. i normally get about 6 or 6.5 and it is a struggle to do that.

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  5. Sleep isn't so much a priority in my life, mostly because i stay up ridiculously late every nite, oversleep every morning, and go into work shamelessly late every day. but that's because i hate my job, and nobody bats an eyelash at me strolling in at "really effin late a.m." when i'm not miserable, i think 7 hours is good for me.
    now from my m.s. in health promotion standpoint:
    everyone should get 7-9 hours of sleep at night. anything less affects everything from productivity, metabolic processes (including your appetite and digestion), mental acuity, etc.
    in other words ellen, you should get more sleep, its good for you :)

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  6. I function fine 7 but 8 is ideal. I don't get 8 very often. I'm more impacted by how long I've been working. It is very clear that at the end of a 10 hour work day I can't make the same quick and accurate decisions that I can in the morning. If I'm designing something complex late in the work day, sometimes I have to walk away and come back to it in the morning when I'm fresh.

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  7. Haha, I know, Aim! One of my many talents I guess!!

    I'm with ya SC...I always feel like there's something MORE to do. I have a hard time peeling myself away from the computer.

    I know I need more sleep, Nadette, I WANT it. I got 7 hours last night :)

    I'm the same, G...sometimes my brain just doesn't work after 7pm.

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  8. Ahhhh I cringed when I read you fell asleep on the subway! I can't sleep in public without practically sitting on my purse because I'm so scared someone will take it. Definitely 8+ hours or you can forget about me functioning.

    PS: Love your blog! :)

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