sleep and night owls.

A friend told me to sleep from 1-9 am, instead of up all night and sleep in the day. I said, dude I am bipolar. It can take me hours to fall asleep. I love the night now. I was just outside swinging at 3 am. I loved it.

Do you think many bipolar's are night owls?

I'm most definitely a night owl naturally, but my meds are so sedating that they have me out by about 11pm- as long as I take them on time. Sleep is so closely linked to my mental state though, that if I had to watch anything concerning my mood, sleep would be it. It's the one fairly objective measure I have, that can't be faked or deliberately controlled, as much as I might want to.

For example, if I start sleeping much less than 'normal' but feeling refreshed, or having periods awake in the night then it's a sign I'm going up/mixed; similarly if all I want to do is sleep but I'm only getting poor quality sleep with repeated wakening, then it's an indication of my mood going down. When I'm stable on all these meds I tend to oversleep, getting about 12hrs if I don't set an alarm. I'm interested to hear what other people say about their sleep.

I'm actually more of an early bird off meds. I'd usually fall asleep around midnight and wake up around 6am. On meds I'm a lazy f'n cat that sleeps all the time (fall asleep around 11pm and get up around noon/1pm).

Thanks for responding. I have always been a night owl. I went to sleep at 5 last night and got up around 10, but fell back asleep until 1. During school for son, I get up early but then come home and nap for hours. It is just how I am wired.

For me, it isn't time of sleep that effects me, it is hours of sleep. I try to get at the very least 5 hours of sleep. That is what my Psychiatrist told me.

I don't know if this fits in the "night owls" category, but when I'm not in the deep end of things, I like to start my day between 1:30 and 3:30 in the morning. Everything is so peaceful and quiet at that time. ^_^

I've had unusual sleep cycles since my mid teens.. Sleep 3-4 hours, wake up rested, jump out the bed and go-go-go! Of course I have to nap every now and then, but unless I'm heavily sedated by medication, I rarely sleep for more than 4 hours at a time.. even in full blown depression (can't get out of bed for more than an hour or two, but can't sleep more than 4 hours straight).

I do love the night ! Long walks, empty streets, a soft breeze, and NO TAN ! This summer I decided to avoid the sun at all costs just for that... To stay as pale as I can

Hello All! I have been a night owl since before I can remember. Apparently, I used to get in trouble for reading under the covers with a flashlight. A good side effect; we night owls are smart! I have been major depressed for quite some time now and am recently (finally) officially bipolar. Have been in and out of that "fog" for decades.
Our night owl status actually has a name; Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder. Look into it. You'll be surprised at how many times you say"Oh my Goodness. That's me!!" There are other types of course, just like with being bipolar. You'll find that the sleep patterns and the mental issues are interconnected.
Good luck to you all!

Yeah I tend to be both if that makes sense. I am awake for at least an hour in the middle of the night, but then up for the day between 4-6am. Been this way for a years now.

EverSleeplessGoddess wrote:Hello All! I have been a night owl since before I can remember. Apparently, I used to get in trouble for reading under the covers with a flashlight. A good side effect; we night owls are smart! I have been major depressed for quite some time now and am recently (finally) officially bipolar. Have been in and out of that "fog" for decades.
Our night owl status actually has a name; Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder. Look into it. You'll be surprised at how many times you say"Oh my Goodness. That's me!!" There are other types of course, just like with being bipolar. You'll find that the sleep patterns and the mental issues are interconnected.
Good luck to you all!

For me its only during mania phases... and I really try to control that, just really sh*tscared to push the mania too high and then end up deep deep down.

Been reading this 21 Smarter Ways to Sleep book.

Best of luck to you too, I also had a recent diagnosis like you, it would be good to hear how you're doing..