This is one of those “other changes along the way” that I would definitely call a work in progress for me. As with most things, this one specific change may not be possible for everyone, but the more I’m wrestling with it myself, and researching it, the more I believe that people and the planet would benefit greatly from our living more in tune with natural circadian rhythms, taking our cues for wakefulness and sleep from the sun.
Those who know me know that I am most definitely not a morning person. So before anyone accuses me of pushing a morning person agenda onto the night owl world, please know that I fight against this one hard in my own life and really wish, on so many levels, that it weren’t true. 🙂
I come from a long line of night owls and have always found myself really ‘waking up’ and most productive somewhere around 9:00 at night. But, in recent years, with the addition of young children to the mix of my life – at least 3 of whom are already taking on my husband’s morning person traits – I have had to confront this issue. If I ‘wake up’ at 9pm, get things done, and go to bed around 2am (or later), then I can be one grouchy zombie mama when my kids pop up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed (except for the one who takes after me in this regard) at 7am.
The reality is, this issue of my sleep habits affects every aspect of my life. My relationship with God, my marriage, my kids, my friendships, my work, my health, and my mental sanity.
The number one thing that keeps me up late at night is the computer. Having electric lights and electronic gadgets makes my day longer than it would be naturally, and it is throwing me off. I realize the paradox here and feel a little hypocritical, since I’m also trying to maintain a blog, but I really don’t like being online much. The online world is great for reconnecting with old friends, making new friends, and finding information, but I so much prefer life offline.
When I took my ‘e-fast’ back in February – no internet at all, including email – I felt so good. Maybe it was the postpartum hormones, but I really think it had a lot to do with unplugging. I know it did, because when I logged back online March 1st, my brain hurt just looking at the computer screen – and the 500 emails I had to work through. Ugh.
Since then, I have been trying to get in the habit of turning my computer off with the sun. And I’m still trying to form that habit – definitely a challenge.
I know that not everyone can do this – some overnight jobs require life in artificial lighting – but there are lots of people out there who, like me, could unplug more frequently at night. From a creation care perspective, living according to circadian rhythms could have significant benefits for energy conservation, which can in turn improve health for certain populations affected by pollution from energy production. And, as with so many things about efforts to live a more natural life, living by circadian rhythms can have positive impacts for our own health – physical, emotional, spiritual, and relational.
Here is an interesting article on sleep from Dr. Mercola. 33 tips.
Do you struggle with this at all? Maybe it’s just me. If you feel too attached to your computer, like I often do, try taking an ‘e-fast’ for a few days, a week, or even a month. Let me know what you experience. 🙂
Good post. Yes, I struggle with this, too. Read and am thinking about some of the articles I found on the info you linked too.
One thing I struggle with: many of the things that would keep me up at night are actually things that are aimed at helping us live a more simple / natural life. For example — after the kids are in bed is one of the main times I can sew (clothes for myself or kids, gifts for holidays, etc), read up on gardening or chicken keeping so I can learn to better grow our own food, make my own lip balms, etc, etc…all the little projects that help us move closer to a simpler, more sustainable lifestyle. I fear that if I started going to bed earlier, then I’d have to start buying more things that I could (and would like to) do for myself. And therefore spend more time earning money to pay for all those things. Kind of a viscious cycle…
I guess I need to figure out how to work some of these things into other hours of the week and do less of it at night. Maybe if I had more sleep I’d have more energy to do more during “normal” hours. Maybe reverse the viscious cycle and get that momentum working for me instead of against me??
I feel I’ve lost touch with when “normal” adults go to bed and get up. I mean, do people really go to bed at 9:00 or 10:00 at night? Do you have any idea when most adults go to bed?
I think if I went to bed earlier, 2 things would happen: 1) I’d feel great; and 2) I’d be frustrated that I wasn’t getting above-mentioned projects done. So, kind of a conundrum.
Anyway, thanks for posting, good food for thought.
Yes, yes, and yes. Sounds familiar. And I’m guessing this is most people’s scenario also. In many cases, we didn’t grow up learning this knowledge and these skills from birth at our mamas’ sides. So we are having to actively research and learn it all – it doesn’t ‘come naturally’ and is a big undertaking to make these changes. (And researching nowadays, in the Information Age, is no small task – there is SO much info to sort through.) No fault to our wonderful moms – it’s just a different time in history. We’re now seeing the (dare I say, negative?) feedback of many of the latest and greatest innovations of their time. And really, from what I’ve read, a lot of these changes have really only taken hold in the last 15 years or so – for you and I at least, that gap in between being at home with our mamas and having kids of our own.
Right now, I’m trying to at least get off the computer an hour before bedtime. Staying up late to sew or make your own lip balm, I would think, would be a fun way to unwind before bed. I’m trying to tend to stocks or kefir or other food prep before bed – or reading a book. The electronic gadgets, I think, really mess with my head. This article just out yesterday from Dr. Mercola, talks about this.
http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2011/08/23/is-this-one-of-natures-simple-answer-to-sleepless-nights.aspx?e_cid=20110828_WNL_art_4
Good points about DIY vs buying things as it relates to the time dilemma. We just have to pick and choose a balance that works for each of us, I think. I was talking with a leader in the sustainability movement a few weeks ago, and she said very clearly, “No one can do it all.” If you think of an historical small village setting, you had the butcher, the baker, and the candlestick maker. You know? Everyone had their roles to play. Today, it may be more global than a small village (which I think has some amazing benefits, despite the challenges), but the same things hold true – we can’t do it all ourselves. We’ve chosen to buy some things (like personal care or food) from responsible, sustainability-minded companies/farms (like Miessence or Your Family Cow), so that I can focus my learning time more on food prep and eventually (hopefully!) production (have only gotten toes wet with gardening – big challenge for a black thumb like me). Plus, of course, Miessence gives me flexible work as well, double bonus. The realm of work is a huge factor. Lots of people – I’ve talked to many 🙁 – feel trapped in jobs that are doing little to nothing in contribution toward a sustainable future. Although right now the journey often looks like trying to become fully independent (DIY everything) because we are surrounded by so many mainstream, unsustainable living choices, I think a big part of a sustainable future will be getting back to those roots of entrepreneurship – where everyone has their niche role to play in communities (small or large). And more and more companies are cropping up to offer sustainable choices for lots of life’s needs and wants.
The other thing that I struggle with in this realm is involving my kids more. I often do things at night because it’s quicker and faster – living under the ‘tyranny of the urgent’ kind of mindset – to do it without the kids tugging on me. Really, I want to embrace the awkward stumbling and mishaps of including them in these projects because it will pass the skills on to them. But take gardening for example, right now, I’m still in ‘research phase’ (though, more on that in a minute) – and I don’t really want to include them so much in the online stuff because I’d rather they be playing outside. Which is another dilemma to doing my online time during the day rather than at night – I want to be outside too!
For a lot of these things, I’m trying to get offline and learn from real people wherever possible. For example, with gardening: We did a small garden the past two summers, and never got one going officially this summer (life adjusting to four kids etc) – though we are accidentally growing some sort of squash from the seeds we threw in the patch in a haphazard compost heap all winter. But, I have such a black thumb, and am such a hands-on learner, that I’ve decided to forgo all the online research and reading and just ask my friend Andrea (master urban gardener) to come teach me hands on (and pay her for her consulting time). The only thing holding me up is getting a time scheduled with her to get it rolling. Another example of the ‘time is money’ issue, I guess. I’d rather pay someone to help me if it’ll cut down my online time and turn into time offline shared with real people, than to have to spend way more time online sorting through info that I don’t have enough foundational knowledge to process all the info and pick and choose what and how to apply to my own unique situation.
Same with my business, working now to get a system of hands-on workshops up and rolling, to help develop the local franchise aspect of a global company.
Gotta run – a few more things to finish up online here before hopefully heading outside to enjoy the post-Irene sunshine with the kids. 🙂 Including emailing Andrea! 🙂