Sleep issues

[SSMajinVegeto]

I am trying to figure out what kind of sleeping disorder I might have or if I have one. There are many diffrent phases of my sleep that are disturbing to me. One phase will be possibly one day or extended periods of time where I can sleep anywhere from 10-16 hours and wake up still exhausted, On the other hand their is days (same way sometimes one day sometimes a full week) that I can sleep 2 hours or less and spring out of with no effort at all and be wide awake all day. What worries me is it does not seem like it is just me catching up from lack of sleep one day and then over sleeping the next day to make up for it since it can wind up being 7 day swings. I have seen a therapist and he does not believe I am bi-polar (not saying that is accurate because it was only an hour consultation), Also another huge concern is sometimes my parents wake me up very angerly and state stuff like "This is the 4th time Im waking you up" but it is the first time I remeber seeing them that day or being woken up, almost as if I subconciously get up but am not really awake.


I know that is a very long description and probably to vague but any advice on this matter would be greatly appreciated

[Chanakosusa]

Hello,

Everything that Jerry said is quite true n accurate. The journal of your daily routines with eating habits is also a good idea cuz everything can affect your sleeping patterns.

The only other thing I think u should do, is consult your primary care physician and explain to him/her your complaint and the length of time u been experiencing these symptoms. Although trying to pin point the issue yourself is ok, its best to get a professional assessment and proper recommendations. And have your primary physician give u a referral for a sleep study. That should give u your answers to your questions right away. Good luck.

[Jerry_NJ]

You may find some help looking int Lucid Dreaming, I read a book by a PhD at Stanford that has me working on it.  Lucid Dreaming means being asleep, dreaming, and knowing in your conscious mind you are dreaming.  It sounds like you are almost there already.  The book by Stephen Laberges ( or something like that) provides a methodology for achieving Lucidity.   There's a lot on the web about it too, don't have to read that specific book.

I'm interested in Lucid Dreaming to take control of what I call trouble mares.  

[SSMajinVegeto]

Thank you for the quick response and the advice. I am going to start keeping a journal of what causes might be based on days and times. My biggest concern is the lack of continuous but still being awake at the same time. It's almost like its a state between sleep walking and being asleep, I wasnt sure if I was going into like stage 2 of sleep and back to stage 3 instead of returning to stage 1 like I should (sorry if the stages are wrong I just recently started looking up the diffrent stages of sleep)

[Jerry_NJ]

You are the best source of the answer, as only you know everything that is going on in your life: love, hate, what you eat, drink, smoke, any no-no stuff especially.  Think about these and every thing else, see if you can correlate anything to you sleep pattern.  

Then limit or cut out all together, caffeine and soft drinks, especially those with artificial sweeteners.  

Try to get a lot of sun light (when possible) or bright artificial light during your waking time.  It may be worth purchasing a "sun" output (whatever they are called) light for reading and studying.  

Get exercise during the day, try to slow down as sleep time approaches.  

Make sure you sleep environment (to the degree you can control it) is right for sleeping, dark, quiet, not too cold or warm.  

There are more items to consider, but I offer these for your consideration.