"Excessive" Sleep

[Kat]

I've noticed that, given the opportunity, I'm likely to regularly sleep for 11 to 12 hours. I'm a teacher, so I don't have that luxury during the school year.  Mornings are a tremendous struggle, and I never feel fully rested. I also notice that I don't get good, deep sleep until the hour or so before I have to awaken.  I'm thinking maybe when I go back to work I'll have to give myself an earlier bedtime, but then I feel like I'm missing out on life. Thoughts? Similar experiences?

[Chart]

Hey Kat, my T has emphasized the importance of sleep in healing from Cptsd. She's got me doing all sorts of exercises for improving sleep. I talk about them in my Neurofeedback thread:
https://www.cptsd.org/forum/index.php?topic=16150.msg145352#msg145352

Hope that can help...

[Kat]

Excellent!  Thanks, Chart.

[Cascade]

Hi Kat,
Sorry I missed your post... I was sleeping, lol. 

First, I just want to check on your question.  Is 11-12 hours of sleep unusual for you?  Has it just been this summer while you're not teaching?  If you are in a little burnout or experiencing some intense CPTSD stuff, the extra sleep may be needed.  I know that's true in my own case right now, and have to prioritize around it.

Your idea of an earlier bedtime sounds like it fits with what you've noticed about the timing of your best sleep.  I also hear your concern about missing out in the evenings.  I wish I had some magic advice!  Maybe with better sleep, you'll wake feeling more rested and have more energy for the things that might still fit with an earlier evening.  My life probably doesn't have the same evening appeal as yours does, though! 

Hope the sleeping pattern feels better soon,
   -Cascade

[AphoticAtramentous]

Apologies if you've heard all this before but I do recommend maybe first talking to a doctor if you can? I used to sleep 10-11 hours every night, and pulling an all-nighter was a foreign concept to me. But turns out having low iron makes a huge impact on your energy. Since resolving that problem, I can work on just 6-7 hours of sleep now.

Otherwise if it's not a physical issue, CPTSD itself can be very exhausting. I don't have too much advice there unfortunately, other than just don't forget to practice self-care where possible. Wishing you well with it all.

Regards,
Aphotic.