Something's wrong.

[Reeducation]

nothing obvious going on

just spinning my wheels. 

nothing's really happening. 

But I'm feeling like it's all the same-- just grey, empty space in my head.

There it is! Your "problem".

This isn't about your job, dad of anything outside yourself, so you really can't find the solution from anywhere.
The problem is that you don't really have a problem and what you are starting to feel is actually emptiness, freedom from problems.

Now you have to be fast and find a new problem or you might end up calm!
Hurry up!

And don't forget to feel anxious for not knowing everything. It's important!
Learn from other people. Almost everybody has amazing problems everywhere, you can just pick the best ones.
They are all tested on humans.

And basically, you should do something stupid, because that usually helps people to get into problems.
I don't know, like drink stuff and vomit on something.

[LMNO]

Well, I just got seven hours of sleep for the first time in about two weeks.  I may have located a big part of the problem.

[Elder Iptuous]

Well, I just got seven hours of sleep for the first time in about two weeks.  I may have located a big part of the problem.

bear in mind that it can take a couple weeks of solid sleep to fully recover from the effects of sleep deprivation...

[Cardinal Pizza Deliverance.]

Well, I just got seven hours of sleep for the first time in about two weeks.  I may have located a big part of the problem.

Sleep well, sleep often!

[Nephew Twiddleton]

Well, I just got seven hours of sleep for the first time in about two weeks.  I may have located a big part of the problem.

Sleep well, sleep often!

I'd concur but, looking at the clock....

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Well, I just got seven hours of sleep for the first time in about two weeks.  I may have located a big part of the problem.

bear in mind that it can take a couple weeks of solid sleep to fully recover from the effects of sleep deprivation...

OH GOD I HAVE TO DO THE THING

FORGIVE ME

Actually, even severe sleep deprivation can usually be fully recovered from with just a few nights of normal sleep. Many people make the mistake of thinking that you need to "catch up", but this is actually counterproductive, because oversleeping has very similar effects on the body as undersleeping.

[Cardinal Pizza Deliverance.]

Yeah, you never catch up. The best you can do is get a regular schedule going of however many solid hours you need, six to eight-ish.

[P3nT4gR4m]

Well, I just got seven hours of sleep for the first time in about two weeks.  I may have located a big part of the problem.

bear in mind that it can take a couple weeks of solid sleep to fully recover from the effects of sleep deprivation...

OH GOD I HAVE TO DO THE THING

FORGIVE ME

Actually, even severe sleep deprivation can usually be fully recovered from with just a few nights of normal sleep. Many people make the mistake of thinking that you need to "catch up", but this is actually counterproductive, because oversleeping has very similar effects on the body as undersleeping.

HAH, I fucking knew it! This is why "early nights" suck for me 

[Bebek Sincap Ratatosk]

Well, I just got seven hours of sleep for the first time in about two weeks.  I may have located a big part of the problem.

bear in mind that it can take a couple weeks of solid sleep to fully recover from the effects of sleep deprivation...

OH GOD I HAVE TO DO THE THING

FORGIVE ME

Actually, even severe sleep deprivation can usually be fully recovered from with just a few nights of normal sleep. Many people make the mistake of thinking that you need to "catch up", but this is actually counterproductive, because oversleeping has very similar effects on the body as undersleeping.

QFT and you beat me to it :P

[Elder Iptuous]

Well, I just got seven hours of sleep for the first time in about two weeks.  I may have located a big part of the problem.

bear in mind that it can take a couple weeks of solid sleep to fully recover from the effects of sleep deprivation...

OH GOD I HAVE TO DO THE THING

FORGIVE ME

Actually, even severe sleep deprivation can usually be fully recovered from with just a few nights of normal sleep. Many people make the mistake of thinking that you need to "catch up", but this is actually counterproductive, because oversleeping has very similar effects on the body as undersleeping.

I don't have any expertise, but i was just parroting what my dad's doctor told him who is a .... somnologist (?).
he did indeed say that you shouldn't 'catch up' by sleeping for long periods.  that just further screws up your rhythms.
you should sleep what you should have been sleeping all along.  he said you will feel better quickly, but the effects of sleep deprivation can linger for a couple weeks before they are no longer significant enough to be measurable.
of course, i'm not an expert, so take that with a grain of salt.  i'm certainly not the smartest guy in the forum.
perhaps 'solid sleep' was taken to mean 'a shitload of sleep'?  i guess i could have phrased that better...

[P3nT4gR4m]

Also - alcohol =/= sleeping-pills substitute

Something about you don't sleep properly when drunk to the point where it practically counts as not sleeping at all

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Well, I just got seven hours of sleep for the first time in about two weeks.  I may have located a big part of the problem.

bear in mind that it can take a couple weeks of solid sleep to fully recover from the effects of sleep deprivation...

OH GOD I HAVE TO DO THE THING

FORGIVE ME

Actually, even severe sleep deprivation can usually be fully recovered from with just a few nights of normal sleep. Many people make the mistake of thinking that you need to "catch up", but this is actually counterproductive, because oversleeping has very similar effects on the body as undersleeping.

I don't have any expertise, but i was just parroting what my dad's doctor told him who is a .... somnologist (?).
he did indeed say that you shouldn't 'catch up' by sleeping for long periods.  that just further screws up your rhythms.
you should sleep what you should have been sleeping all along.  he said you will feel better quickly, but the effects of sleep deprivation can linger for a couple weeks before they are no longer significant enough to be measurable.
of course, i'm not an expert, so take that with a grain of salt.  i'm certainly not the smartest guy in the forum.
perhaps 'solid sleep' was taken to mean 'a shitload of sleep'?  i guess i could have phrased that better...

Yeah, I took "solid sleep" to mean "extended sleep", particularly because that is the common impression people have of recovering from sleep debt.

I can't address what your dad's sleep specialist said about recovery time or resetting your sleep schedule, because that's going to be unique to each person's situation. However, neurologically speaking, if you are looking at mild chronic sleep debt which is what LMNO describes, it really shouldn't take more than two or three nights of adequate sleep for his neurocognitive functioning to be restored to normal. It might take a little longer for his immune system to catch up, but I'd be surprised.

Keep in mind that almost all studies done on recovery sleep are done under circumstances of controlled acute sleep deprivation, and those data may be useful but can also be misleading if applied to mild chronic sleep dept.

[Cainad (dec.)]

While we're talking about the sleep issue: Hey LMNO, do you still own an iPhone? I recently downloaded an app for a buck called Sleep Cycle that so far seems to work really well. It uses the iPhone's motion sensor to detect what part of the sleep cycle you're in, and sets the alarm off when you're the most "awake" already (i.e. not in REM sleep).

I'm no expert, but from what I understand the mornings where it feels the absolute shittiest to even move (other than hangovers), much less get out of bed, are when a person is woken out of REM sleep.

[Anna Mae Bollocks]

Hey, does anybody have any insights on this?

If I sleep about 7 hours straight through, I'm good. If I sleep a few hours, get fully awakened for some reason, go back to sleep after that and sleep the remaining hours, I still feel like I had a four hour night the next day. My brain doesn't work right. I start to say things and forget the fucking point I was trying to make, even if I slept 7 or even 8 hours total.

What the fuck is that?

[Cainad (dec.)]

Hey, does anybody have any insights on this?

If I sleep about 7 hours straight through, I'm good. If I sleep a few hours, get fully awakened for some reason, go back to sleep after that and sleep the remaining hours, I still feel like I had a four hour night the next day. My brain doesn't work right. I start to say things and forget the fucking point I was trying to make, even if I slept 7 or even 8 hours total.

What the fuck is that?

From what I understand, that's also connected to the REM (Rapid Eye Movement, aka dreaming) sleep phase. It takes a few hours for the brain to settle into it, so you're really only getting the "best" part of your sleep from the last few hours of a full night's sleep.

Take that all with a grain of salt, as it's based entirely on "I read a thing once and I think it said..."