Carol:
Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep
Sleep disorders are on the rise; over 69% of the population have experienced insomnia. Studies are showing that sleep apnea—which causes people to start and stop breathing repeatedly during the night—can be a symptom of more serious medical conditions and leave people in a chronic state of “sleep debt.” (source: Floyd Memorial Hospital website). Even our local newspaper The Prescott Daily Courier now includes a regular column by a local physician called “Ask the Sleep Doctor.”
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| After lunch ZZZZ |
The sleep-related idiosyncrasies in my immediate family could probably keep the Sleep Doctor’s column filled for weeks. We are sort of a Goldlilocks and the Three Bears bedtime story: one goes to bed too early, one goes to bed too late, one moans and chases rabbits in his sleep (no, it’s not Marc), and one never quite makes it to bed at all. That would be me.
It isn’t that I actually have ever had trouble sleeping. Ask Clarice and Mike, my friends from college days, whom I pressured into driving all the way to beautiful downtown San Bernardino in 1971 to see my favorite French actor Jean Paul-Belmondo in Borsalino. Five minutes into the movie I fell asleep and woke up for the closing credits. They were not pleased. Or ask Marc about the time I dozed off during an afternoon performance at the Old Town Theater in San Diego, known for its theater-in-the-round intimacy. I was sleeping within arm’s length of the actors. Marc was not pleased. Ever heard of the 1949 Kirk Douglas movie A Letter to Three Wives? I have seen it four times on Turner Classic Movies, and I have slept through the ending all four times—so which husband did Addie Rose run away with?
I also don’t have a problem sleeping on trips. As a seasoned traveler on a tight budget, I rarely get a room to myself. So, whether attending a professional conference with a colleague or vacationing with friends, I have my bag of sleep aids: ear plugs, trashy paperback, miniature reading light, and Lone Ranger-style eye mask. I get my seven hours’ sleep, wake up alert and don’t need a nap.
The problem seems to be my own bedroom in my own home. There, I turn into the Princess and the Pea. Too hot or too cold, can’t sleep. Marc snores, can’t sleep. Trashy novel, can’t put it down.. Mostly, I end up falling asleep on a couch in front of the TV, a bad habit that started when I had my first apartment in college. My roommate had the big bedroom, and I had a little one that was really a doorless alcove that I could only get to by going through her bedroom where she studied late at night. Maybe in a year, I only slept in my bed four times. Aside to Readers—our apartment also had a bathroom that could only be reached by going through the front hall closet, and the bathtub itself was in another doorless alcove off the kitchen. I loved that place.
Okay, so I do compensate for my weird sleep patterns with naps. I love taking little afternoon naps. The new term for adults is “Power Nap.” Not for me. I prefer the old term “Cat Nap” because I like to find a spot in the sun, curl up with a book, and just give in to drowsiness. Luckily, those sleep studies also show that as little as a half-hour afternoon nap lowers blood pressure, decreases stress, and raises productivity.
Hasta la siesta, Baby!
It isn’t that I actually have ever had trouble sleeping. Ask Clarice and Mike, my friends from college days, whom I pressured into driving all the way to beautiful downtown San Bernardino in 1971 to see my favorite French actor Jean Paul-Belmondo in Borsalino. Five minutes into the movie I fell asleep and woke up for the closing credits. They were not pleased. Or ask Marc about the time I dozed off during an afternoon performance at the Old Town Theater in San Diego, known for its theater-in-the-round intimacy. I was sleeping within arm’s length of the actors. Marc was not pleased. Ever heard of the 1949 Kirk Douglas movie A Letter to Three Wives? I have seen it four times on Turner Classic Movies, and I have slept through the ending all four times—so which husband did Addie Rose run away with?
I also don’t have a problem sleeping on trips. As a seasoned traveler on a tight budget, I rarely get a room to myself. So, whether attending a professional conference with a colleague or vacationing with friends, I have my bag of sleep aids: ear plugs, trashy paperback, miniature reading light, and Lone Ranger-style eye mask. I get my seven hours’ sleep, wake up alert and don’t need a nap.
The problem seems to be my own bedroom in my own home. There, I turn into the Princess and the Pea. Too hot or too cold, can’t sleep. Marc snores, can’t sleep. Trashy novel, can’t put it down.. Mostly, I end up falling asleep on a couch in front of the TV, a bad habit that started when I had my first apartment in college. My roommate had the big bedroom, and I had a little one that was really a doorless alcove that I could only get to by going through her bedroom where she studied late at night. Maybe in a year, I only slept in my bed four times. Aside to Readers—our apartment also had a bathroom that could only be reached by going through the front hall closet, and the bathtub itself was in another doorless alcove off the kitchen. I loved that place.
Okay, so I do compensate for my weird sleep patterns with naps. I love taking little afternoon naps. The new term for adults is “Power Nap.” Not for me. I prefer the old term “Cat Nap” because I like to find a spot in the sun, curl up with a book, and just give in to drowsiness. Luckily, those sleep studies also show that as little as a half-hour afternoon nap lowers blood pressure, decreases stress, and raises productivity.
Hasta la siesta, Baby!
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| Dog and Catnap |
A note about the images:
1. Carol's son, Marshall. 1984
2. Carol's father, Ed Scott. 1987
Sources:
Sleep Statistics—Floyd Memorial Hospital and Health Services.
On taking naps—Happy Living homepage.
On taking naps—Happy Living homepage.
Megan:
Nightmares
If you google this topic, you’ll find site after site on sleep disorders, and ways to relax and fall asleep. The level of stress in our lives is definitely affecting our ability to sleep well. Counting sheep is a traditional method of falling asleep, but have you ever actually tried it? My mind used to get so caught up in what the fence looked like, how high it was, what the other sheep were doing before they jumped, where they went after etc, it just didn’t work. Then I took a trip to Ireland with my friend and we saw an actual sheep jump a fence. And get tangled in it. So that ruined jumping sheep for me.
After that, I tried counting backwards from 100. It seems to work for people undergoing anesthesia on TV. Usually I lose my place around the 70’s or get distracted and start counting up instead. Mind wandering is okay, because sometimes it turns into a dream and that means you’re asleep.
When I was little, I would use the time before I fell asleep to pray sort of desperately to not have bad dreams. I used to have recurring nightmares about wolves. In one, I would let the dog out before bed, but when I let her back in she would be a wolf. Another I would dream my father could turn into a wolf. But I wouldn’t believe it was him, so I wouldn’t let him in the house and then he would ride away on his bicycle (no longer in wolf form, obviously). Eventually I outgrew my fear of wolves, but not the nightmares.
After that, I tried counting backwards from 100. It seems to work for people undergoing anesthesia on TV. Usually I lose my place around the 70’s or get distracted and start counting up instead. Mind wandering is okay, because sometimes it turns into a dream and that means you’re asleep.
When I was little, I would use the time before I fell asleep to pray sort of desperately to not have bad dreams. I used to have recurring nightmares about wolves. In one, I would let the dog out before bed, but when I let her back in she would be a wolf. Another I would dream my father could turn into a wolf. But I wouldn’t believe it was him, so I wouldn’t let him in the house and then he would ride away on his bicycle (no longer in wolf form, obviously). Eventually I outgrew my fear of wolves, but not the nightmares. 
The two recurring nightmares I have now are that I accidentally injure someone’s child, or that my teeth fall out. In the case of the children, I am usually babysitting and turn my back for a second and the kid drowns or falls or just disappears. Dreams about my teeth involve grinding them so hard they start to splinter and crack. I put my fingers in my mouth to try to stop grinding, but wind up biting off my fingers. When I have one of those nightmares, and snap awake in the middle of the night, I usually don’t bother going back to sleep. After I started working in the prison, I used to dream that I was at work. Nothing exciting would happen, I’d just be doing my usual job of ordering books or answering questions. This lasted for months and I felt like I was at work 24 hours a day. Eventually, as the prison grew more violent and depressing, I started having nightmares about it too. I would have a hard time falling asleep before 2 or 3 and find it impossible to get up in the morning. But all that went away when I moved back home. I fall asleep easily and wake up alert and refreshed. Now that I’m not working, I sleep better than I have in years.
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