From Ben Franklin’s wise words, “Eat not to dullness; drink not to elevation,” we might infer that sleeping to dullness is no virtue.
But I still recommend trying it for a few reasons.
For one thing, as “Dirty Harry” said, a person must know his or her limitations. Humans don’t come equipped with operating manuals that tell us to the dot how much sleep we need.
It takes trial and error to find out. As I mention elsewhere, because we’re socialized to surrender our native, natural, individualistic sleep routines in deference to the collective, we may not know anything certain about our optimal sleep and waking rhythms.
I can tell you this about mine. If I get only five to six hours of sleep in an evening, I’ll crave a nap after lunch. That nap may catch me up, even if it’s an hour or two at the outside.
Add up the numbers and I need the typical eight hours of daily sleep to be functioning at a comfortable level.
They don’t have to be bunched all together. Let’s say somehow I manage to get nine straight hours, from 10 PM to 7 AM. Will I need a nap? Probably not.
If I get 10 hours, sleeping in until 8 AM, I could end up feeling groggy until noon. By that time, my head will clear. The grogginess is wasteful, of course. So, I’m paying a price by needlessly sacrificing an hour of my time, by feeling poorly, and by not being able to focus until I’m thinking properly.
I have found it does me no good if I awaken early and then try to stretch my sleep, fighting the impulse to get up and move around.
However, there are times when a too-much-is-better principle can apply. I do recommend pre-sleeping when you are facing a stressful event. Big events might include starting a new job, going in for a major surgery, appearing in divorce court, or preparing for a major speech to venture capitalists. When a lot is on the line, invest in pre-sleeping so you’ll have a reserve of energy and tranquility from which to draw.
I confess I got too much sleep last night. I hit the sack around 11 PM and was awake by 6 AM. I got up, puttered around for an hour and then tried to cram in another hour of shut-eye, as I knew I was under-quota at seven hours.
I arose again around 8 AM, but whatever added sleep I got was accompanied by an annoyed attitude. I was peeved that I had to try so hard at getting those seven hours up to eight. It wasn’t worth it. And it definitely made me grumpy, so much so that I was about to forego jogging at the beach and my channel swimming. The good news is that I talked myself back into my routine.
If frustrated sleep was going to affect me, why not sandwich in some productive exercise? I knew I wouldn’t feel worse and I just might feel better.
It worked and I do feel better, which is why I’m writing this segment. I was struck by this observation—we expect perfect sleep, all the time! Society lays such a guilt number on us that we chastise ourselves if we don’t get enough repose, get too much, or if it is of inferior quality.
I cooked some great protein the other night, seasoned perfectly, not too well done or too rare. Even rarer is the fact everyone in the family liked the way it came out.
So, I trekked back to the market to make next evening’s meal an encore performance. I thought I did everything exactly the same way. But the filets turned out to be just so-so, and the former evening’s raves were merely distant echoes.
Sleep is like this. One night it can be great, carefree, full, and lush. And the next, you could be tossing and turning.
Becoming perfectionists about what sleep should be puts an extra burden on us to perform. This leads to stress and guess what? That extra quantum of stress can keep you awake or make your sleep feel troubled. Sleep isn’t work. But if we approach it the wrong way, we can turn it into work. Oversleep on occasion to determine your tolerances and preferences. The test of quality sleep is how you feel when you awaken. If you’re feeling dull or dizzy or faintly headachy, these are symptoms of having gotten too much rest. If you’re lethargic, maybe you got too little sleep.
BAD SLEEP CAN HIDE OTHER PROBLEMS
Sometimes we use sleep as an avoidance mechanism. We bury our heads under the covers as a way to procrastinate. If you’re fighting against the idea of doing something while you are awake, sleep probably won’t be a great tonic for what’s ailing you.
Ask yourself, “What am I avoiding?”
It could be polishing or sending out your resume. Or you’re putting off having “the talk” with your partner.
If you can take a single step toward solving the problem, then get out of bed, no matter what the clock says. I’ve found admitting to having an unsettled matter is a relief in itself. This small act signifies I am on the case; that I will get whatever is bothering me taken care of.
In another moment, I’ll get drowsy and be able to quickly surrender to sleep, and that sleep will typically feel very refreshing because I have removed an emotional blockage.
William Blake famously said, “Excess is the road to the palace of wisdom.”
How much sleep do you really need? Let your body tell you. It can give you vital feedback.
Purposely, oversleep and then see how you feel and what you accomplish the next day. If you feel great, do it again! In this way, oversleep will lead to the palace of appropriate sleep.
Not long ago, I did an intensive consulting program for a corporate client. It involved a nine to 10 hour day, five days a week, starting at 7 AM.
It was so stressful that I found my sleep was hugely affected. Literally, I was bringing home, and into my bedroom the unresolved challenges I faced at the job site.
This made me feel I was never off-duty, and this was exhausting.
I decided not to renew the agreement, allowing it to conclude at the initially agreed-upon time.
For the next few months I enjoyed the luxury of calm, deep, and long reposes. It was as if I was compensating myself for the foregone comforts the engagement required.
There is a key moment in the movie The Bourne Identity. A killer is stalking the protagonist. Bourne gets the upper hand, mortally wounding his foe in a field. Before expiring, the bad guy groans upon learning they work for the same employer.
“Look at what they make you give!”
That lament is universal. If you’re giving up your sleep, you’re giving up too much!