Oh! I hate when I'm deep in the middle of a great escapist adventure and then *BOOM* I drop out of the sky back into my
bed and I'm jolted wide awake!
This happens to you, too, right?
Some people suggest that it's good to get up and read or write down whatever is on your mind. That can help people retain those brilliant ideas that seem to eviscerate the moment the sun comes up.
I suppose that would work if I could think clearly.
I find that when I wake, my heart is often pounding and my mind is racing as it breaches the delicate surface of my dreamscape. I struggle to determine if I'm dreaming, imagining or just experiencing whatever it is that has my mind wrapped ever so tightly. If I try to get up and write down what I've been seeing then I break the spell:
I simply can't get back to sleep. It's as if once those wheels start turning, they are forced to keep turning!
I'm not sure what's worse -- being wide away, staring up at the ceiling waiting for that moment where eyelids flutter and I'm back in my dream world OR -- being very sleepy -- but too damned tired to go back to sleep.
I think the latter can be worse because I know without those 8 hours of "beauty rest" I get the early afternoon blahs. And with that in mind, after I fuss a bit, I force myself to go back to sleep so that the rest of my day can be productive.
It's amazing to me that we really don't know much about why we sleep or what really happens to us when we sleep. It takes up between 1/4 and 1/3 or our lives -- and yet we still don't have a clue why our bodies need a span of time to rejuvinate us. Sleep deprivation is absolutely a form of torture -- as all new parents know. All I am sure of is that I can't function during the waking hours unless I get into what I call "my deep freeze." For me, that's not just resting. It's more of a restorative coma (for lack of a better descriptive word) that allows me to wake feeling rested and with energy to attack my day.
One of my favorite pieces on the subject of sleep -- and as a frequent traveler --why we can't sleep well on the first night in a new place, then you MUST listen to one of my favorite RadioLab podcasts. It will change the way you think about the thing you do every night -- sleep.
Zzzzzz.....
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