Sleep and Meditation (humor)

As June 19, 2010 at 7:51 AM; I wrote:
Sleep is my hobby. This is why I have Benedryl stocked up, and try to choose an antidepressant based on its antihistamine properties.

I also like that tiredness some medications give you, which render me so unwilling to perform any activity needing sober cognition that I am just sitting.

In my opinion, meditation makes use of such moments since the West frowns on such activities as "excuses to nap".

Yet every hour of napping results in 2 or more hours of productive work — which might explain why Zen masters are able to meditate for more than 2 hours a sitting.

YMMV

Update as of March 10, 2013 at 11:14 PM PDT

Over the past five years, I have discovered that adequate sleep helps to reduce anxiety. For me, the optimal number of hours for a restful night is ten; though the minimum of six and a half hour is barely adequate.

Weekly though I might stay up until five in the morning, which is followed by at least six hours of rest. Usually, midnight is when I prepare for bed.

After ten-thirty in the evening, I'll take my medication (two gabapentin capsules and one cyclobenzaprine). Then, by midnight, my body tells me "It's time for bed" through the symptoms of sleepiness — drowsiness and fatigue.

Once I am in bed, the average time it takes to fall asleep varies between thirty and ninety minutes.

Since the previous two nights, I didn't get to sleep before four in the morning, tonight is the start of getting to bed by midnight, even though it is daylights savings time.

It's actually ten thirty in the evening at the moment.

So good-night!

Update as of January 7, 2014 at 05:24 PM PDT

Adequate sleep has reduced most anxiety for me. During the past week, I have gotten my full ten hours of sleep. My minimum has been on the average eight hours of sleep a day with the rare exception of insomnia.

I do not use benedryl anymore at all, instead opting for the two capsules of gabapentin and one cyclobenzaprine tablet at bedtime. Though, the time when I take them has been from 11:30 PM to as late as 1:30 AM.

Perhaps the reason for the late nights may have been having given up smoking once again.

Even so I have been trying to meditate as time permits.