Day 3 – Biphasic Sleep Trial

So a couple of days in to the Biphasic Sleep trial and I’m learning this is definitely something that needs customisation.

The evening of my first day, I napped from 7:30 to about 8:45pm.  It was a Sunday, which helped.  I had no problems getting up from the nap, made and had my dinner, and enjoyed having a few hours in which to unwind (TV) as well as get things done.  I was pretty much through what I wanted to do by 11:15, but made myself stay up until the clock ticked over to 11:30.  After that first night on the regime, I woke up like clockwork, got up, did some exercise, had my breakfast, and headed off.

That evening I had something I wanted to do at 7:30, so I napped from 6pm.  Not quite so easy to get up from that, and I ended up too tired to do anything by a little after 11pm.  Determined to stick it out, I pulled out the ipod and played sudoku for a bit – then realised it was 20 to 12.  Oops.  4am this morning came and it was NOT easy to drag myself up out of bed. I was so tempted to let myself have ‘another 15m’ but we all know what that turns into!  I’m thinking the nap yesterday was too early, and/or I need to work out when is the right time for me to nap to fit in with my circadian rhythms.  I ended up resorting to the paraliminal recordings to wake myself up again during the day a couple of times.

This afternoon I went back a little closer to 7:30, at 6:45pm.  I woke up, exactly half an hour later.  Since that session is supposed to be 60-90m, I went back to sleep until just on 8pm (45m later) when I got up again, but I’ve been yawning since.  I don’t know if I’m tired because a) I’m still adjusting to biphasic, b) I’ve not been napping at the right times, c) the exercise I did after my first night made a difference  or d) I’ve varied the nap times too much.

I am enjoying having what feels like a second day, all to myself, after I wake up in the evenings.  Once I’ve put my dinner, breakfast & lunch together, my time is my own and that’s a pretty good sensation – as is going to bed knowing I’ve accomplished at least some of the things I would’ve been struggling to fit into my overcrowded weekend.  The quiet would probably be a bit unsettling for a lot of people, but I’ve always loved the night-time silence.  I think it’s a pre-requisite for most geeks, isn’t it?

So, plan of attack:

• First off, stick with it.  At least 14 days, but aiming for 30.
• Secondly, have a set time for the afternoon nap, for at least 4-5 days without variation.  I’m thinking 7-8:30pm because that still leaves me the 2 hrs I want between dinner and sleep.
• Third, set an alarm to make sure I get to sleep at the right time each afternoon and night, until I get used to it.  By eliminating the variation, I should be able to get a better idea of just what adjustment I’m going through in adapting to the new sleep patterns.
• Finally, starting from week 2, I’m going to include a short yoga/tai chi stretching routine every morning, just to see if that was part of what made the difference these last few days. I don’t want to start it immediately or I won’t be able to tell what the effect is, separate from the fixed nap times.

Tired as I am tonight, even if I wanted to drop the trial, I’m not sure I could, considering the reasons why I started it..  This week and next I’m up for early starts most days at work  Plus I have to admit, I am enjoying the extra personal productivity time.  So, wish me luck?

Tagged as: 30 day trial, adaptation, biphasic sleep, overwork, Time management