so glad i found this community

[u/automatictwink]

hey all, just wanted to say how much i appreciate this community existing. i have felt so alone in my sleep issues for most of my life, and i'm just glad to have confirmation that i'm not crazy!

during COVID, i had a relatively cozy wfh job, which allowed me to sleep as much as i wanted. i was so happy and productive during that time

now, i'm back in an office. it's a great job and everything, but sticking to the morning routine has left me feeling more exhausted than ever and i don't know how to make things work. part of me feels like i just need to accept that i'll be tired and sleep-deprived most days, wasting my weekends catching up on sleep :/

if anyone has tips for managing these feelings, i would love to hear 'em! (also job recommendations for someone who works in engineering would be great)

[u/amo2765]

Also worked in engineering and I hate to say it but I had to quit my job.. after a few months I had to choose between my health and my work and I physically couldn’t do it anymore from the exhaustion. I don’t say that to be discouraging, but it’s simply my truth. However, it all depends on how bad your dspd is. My best tip would be to be extremely regimented with your nighttime routines and timing. My problem is I get into bed late bc I want to be up and doing things, not that I lay in bed awake. Also allowing yourself to sleep before your second wind. I always would be tired around 6:30-7ish but since that was “too early” to go to bed and I wanted to do more… I always stayed up and then by 9ish I was wide awake and stayed awake for for my prime dspd hours lol and then was going to bed extremely late. Even if it’s at 6:30pm, just sleep whenever you feel exhausted and give into it. Even with all that, it was hopeless for me and my managers weren’t willing to accommodate. However, other small tips I have that may be essential to your survival:

• 9pm have your phone go into night mode and set it so it automatically makes the screen a much warmer tone.
• Do your nighttime routine early like after dinner early - whether that’s washing your face, showering, etc. because if you happened to get tired at a slightly earlier hour, you don’t want to wake yourself up again with trying to do all that, you want to be able to just get into bed.
• No big lights after sunset!! - small lamps only! Even better if dimmable! The darker the house is the better.
• No late eating/dinner - I’m notorious for obnoxiously late eating because that’s what you do when you’re up till all hours of the morning! However eating early can definitely help
• Edibles - high quality edibles (message me for recommendations) sometimes I would have to have some in order to make myself out of it enough to sleep early.
• Do not sacrifice your health for your job if none of the above works :)

[u/automatictwink → u/amo2765]

love these tips, thanks for your comment :)

one big issue is that i play dnd with my friends on tuesday nights, which i'm genuinely happy to trade my sleep for lol but the rest of these sound like great ideas. i suppose it's time to be strict with my nightly regiment, and i plan to try all of these tips!