This past week it’s been very cold and windy, and sometimes very cold, windy and rainy. But regardless of the seasonal weather, the Pacific Northwest is consistent in this: From late September through late March, more hours of the day are dark than light!
And getting darker!
And 9, that pattern will continue here in Walla Walla until December 21, 7:03 A. That’s the moment of the winter solstice when daylight increases second by precious second.
Let’s spend the holidays in New Zealand next year.
Believe me, Lily, that’s crossed my mind more than once. But, given the challenges of travel and the difficulty in finding house and cat sitters at this time of year, I’m taking a more practical route. What do bears do in the winter?
Hibernate! And they get to eat a whole bunch before then.
Correct. Full hibernation isn’t practical, and probably not even possible*, for humans. So I’m taking a modified approach: I’m using the long, dark hours to improve my sleep habits!
That sounds exciting.
Maybe not exciting, Miss Sarcastic, but I do find it interesting. Typically, I sleep 6 hours/night. I know this is less than what’s recommended for allowing the body enough “down” time to repair itself but it seems like enough to me. Especially when the long daylight hours of summer are here! Just thinking about that gives me the irresistible urge to dance with joy!
[several minutes later. . .] Okay, I’m back! So about my sleep improvement strategy**- –
I’m on the edge of my seat.
There are a few reasons why I don’t get 8 hours of shut-eye every night. First, I stay up reading too late when I have plans to do things early in the morning. Second, I am sometimes tense in body and worried or anxious in mind. Last, it’s been a long time since I’ve needed to get up at a regular hour to work for somebody else, so I rarely set an alarm.
Why would that matter if you don’t have to get up at a certain time?
Good question, 9. When I wake up in the middle of the night I have the annoying habit of looking at my iPhone to see what time it is. When I do this, it sometimes gives me stress, like “I can’t believe I’m awake at 2:15 A! How am I ever going to get back to sleep?” So it makes sense to set an alarm. That way, it doesn’t matter what time it is if I wake up in the middle of the night because the only relevant time is when the alarm is set to go off.
Speaking of stress, about a month ago I was lying awake worrying about something I had absolutely no control over. For whatever reason, I thought of the time the craniosacral massage therapist told me the fascia in my scalp was tight, and was constricting the flow of spinal fluid. In bed, I focused on my scalp. There was definitely tension up there, so I just- -relaxed it. A lot of the tension in my body let go, and the worry melted. As I drifted off to sleep, I realized the “relaxed scalp” sensation was exactly the feeling I have when I easily fall asleep. Maybe not everyone holds tension in their scalp, but it might be worthwhile to mentally scan through your body if you’re having trouble sleeping in order to find and relax those tight spots.
The third leg of my sleep improvement program: Lights out 8 hours in advance of when I want to get up.
Impossible when you’re reading the last 20 pages of a really good book!
Improbable, perhaps, but not at all impossible, Lily. Put down the book, set the alarm, and turn out the lights. Simple enough for you, or me, or 9 to do if we exercise our well-known self-discipline and iron will.
Long hours of darkness can be put to beneficial use! Northerner Hemisphere dwellers, if you aren’t getting enough sleep, I hope these tips will help. For you Southern Hemisphere folks, go for it! You can always catch up on your sleep in June.
* According to my close personal friend and researcher AI Overview: “Humans currently do not hibernate, as our biology is not equipped for the drastic metabolic and temperature changes true hibernation requires.”
** No, I am not, and have never claimed to be, a sleep specialist. Whatever gave you that idea?
Wonderfully useful and amusing post, Susan! LOL I”ll try the scalp trick, for sure. I have two tricks of my own, case you’re interested: If you sleep on your side, gently place your fingers over your third eye. There’s a theory about this, something to do with fetal attachment. In any case, I find it often works. Another strategy, in the “counting sheep” category, is I will say my “thank yous,” to anything and everything…”Thank you moon; thank you cozy sheets;…” Turns out the list can go on and on! This totally takes care of the fretting that often occupies my mind at bedtime. May these dark days be filled with beautiful dreaming, my friend!
Thank you for the additional sleep tips, Erin. Sweet dreams to us both!