Content in partnership with KCBS

Adjusting To My Sleeping Disorder

12.16.13
Adjusting To My Sleeping Disorder

I only sleep a couple hours a night, but I’m never tired. I am what you would call a high-functioning insomniac.

I’ve tried everything to help me get to sleep: doctor visits, a sleep study in the hospital and even hypnotherapy. I was prescribed medicine even though nothing was medically wrong with me. I simply cannot sleep. I remember my parents staring at me in disbelief after a prescription sleeping pill had absolutely no effect.

Since then I’ve created rituals for myself before going to bed. I make a cup of Sleepytime tea and then proceed to lay in bed  for as long as it takes, sometimes doing breathing and relaxation exercises. I still feel like I benefit from this nightly form of restoration even though it  isn’t sleep.

I fear that when I go to college next year my irregular sleeping habits will bother the people around me. More importantly though, I’m concerned  that a lifetime of sleepless nights will cause serious health consequences. But with my hectic schedule and college applications due, my sleeping problem is the least of my worries.

And at 3 am while my peers are sleeping, I’m getting work done.

 

Support the Next Generation of Content Creators
Invest in the diverse voices that will shape and lead the future of journalism and art.
Donate Now
Support the Next Generation of Content Creators
Invest in the diverse voices that will shape and lead the future of journalism and art.
Donate Now