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are you getting enough sleep ?

how much and when you’re actually sleeping now. Keep a record
for a couple of “typical” weeks, noting when you go to sleep and
arise, any naps during the day, and problems or disruptions in your
sleep. Include subjective narrative, noting your impressions of how
deep and satisfying your sleep is.

Also note your consumption of nicotine, caffeine, and alcohol
and when you eat and exercise, since this all affects your sleep.

Now you’re ready for a chat with a sleep disorders expert, who
may have some immediate suggestions for you or may suggest an
overnight stay at the clinic for a thorough monitoring of your sleep.

Is It a Problem or Just a Pattern?

So, are you sleeping “right”? Is your pattern “normal,” even if it doesn’t
fit the schedule Ben Franklin laid out in Poor Richard’s Almanac?

For years a good friend and colleague of mine went to bed
at 10:30 each night, awoke between 2:00 and 3:00 in the morn-
ing, read for about an hour, and slept again until 5:45. By my cal-
culations, he was getting about six hours and fifteen minutes of
sleep each night, and he certainly wasn’t following any prescribed
pattern.

He was also unfailingly alert and full of energy, a high achiever
and a keen observer of life.

He may not have been “normal,” but he certainly seemed to be
thriving on his “abnormal” sleep pattern.

You may be an early riser and can’t seem to overcome your
tendency to be awake when most of the world is still in bed. Are
you worried about it? Do you suffer any ill effects, or is your
clock a little different from everyone else? It may or may not be
a problem.

If you decide that you do have a problem, this chapter has given
you the tools for understanding the problem, making some life
changes, or perhaps getting some help.

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