Research has proven the chronic sleep deprivation does terrible things to your mind and body. According to WebMD, it may lead to:
- Memory problems:
forget what day it is? (check) forget where the keys are? (check) have trouble concentrating when I am driving? (check!) - Depression:
no explanation needed here—I am definitely down in the dumps right now.
- A weakening of the immune system, increasing your chance of becoming sick:
fortunately this has not happened to me yet. (fingers crossed!) - and weight gain:
People who sleep less appear to generate more ghrelin, a hormone which stimulates hunger. Research on subjects reported an increased craving for food, especially fats and starchy foods, after simulated sleep deprivation.
Check again! I definitely crave sugary foods to help keep me alert and awake. Unfortunately, it just makes things worse when I come down from my sugar high.
Right now I’m averaging about 4 non-consecutive hours of sleep per night and I’m starting to wonder how I am going to survive. Honestly, the furthest thing from my mind is working out, even though I so desperately need it. (I still have 25 post-baby pounds hanging on. UGH!)
All I want to do is crawl in my bed for a week and sleep. Unfortunately, that is not an option.
So gang, how do you survive when you are sleep deprived? Should I just load up my fridge with caffeinated drinks and hope I make it ’til the spring? (anyone want to come and watch my kids so I can take a nap?)
photo credit: BillRhodesPhoto
{ 14 comments }
lordy yesyesyes to all the symptoms listed above.
and LORDY JEFF to the product pitch above (Ill give ya a hint: look for workoutmommys email address
)
oh
wait
am I snarky?
snarCASTIC?
snarCAUSTIC?
ahhh methinks I need more sleep.
please to babysit the 4 year old, Jeff.
.-= MizFit´s last blog ..5 questions to ask before you eat. =-.
Sleep deprivation is sooooo hard!!!! I’ve so been there… But it will get better eventually. I have a teenager in addition to the toddler, and he loves to sleep, so he would let me sleep all day…
But seriously, hang in there. And the baby weight will come off. It took me a LONG time to lose the toddler weight, but it all came off and then some – eventually. Remember that his phase in your life is not going to last forever (even though it may seem like it right now). When you look back at it in a few years, it’ll seem like a rather short period….
I hope you get some sleep!
.-= Andrea@WellnessNotes´s last blog ..Kale Chips and Some Awards =-.
I would SO watch your kids! We could trade off;) I hear you about the evilness of sleep deprivation. There is just no staying away from the sugar when I’m this tired. And there is something particularly cruel about being woken up every couple of hours. But I gotta say I’m getting worried about you – you have just sounded so sad lately. Can you hire a babysitter to let you get a nap in every 3rd day or something? A neighbor you can trade babysitting with? A nice long video, some duct tape and ear plugs?? I don’t know about you but it takes my kids a good year to sleep through the night – you don’t want to be sleepless that long! ((hugs))
.-= charlotte´s last blog ..The Great Fitness Experiment Talent Show =-.
Oh Lisa… time. It’s really the only cure. I’m guessing you all are ‘sticking’ with 3? Well, this is how I survived it more or less sanely: I kept that reminder that this was my last baby in the front of my thinking. It may be very hard to only be able to cobble together 3-4 hours of crappy sleep a night, but somehow if I kept reminding myself to enjoy it because it really is fleeting, it helped. You’re never going to have the gift of this newness again, even the hard parts.
You can do it! I’m still working on the weight part, though, haha! I’m not sure how to have it all — there is no heaven on earth. Now my baby is nearly 2 and finally I am within sight of a good night’s sleep *and* no muffin top.
.-= Kristianna´s last blog ..Cookin’ the Book: Pioneer Woman’s Egg-in-the-Hole =-.
I try to do easy things to pamer myself physically. I’m not really girlie, but I do enjoy taking 15 minutes to do a home facial or quick mani-pedi (really I just lotion and file my nails). I think the key is to start feeling good sensations in your body again. A standing massage appointment while hubby watches the kids for 45 minutes is in order! I think you should go once a week for the next month. This is a prescription!
.-= Hiit Mama – Meredith´s last blog ..The Craziness of Timed Feeding When Breastfeeding =-.
Ugh, I remember those days. The way that we managed was to grab a nap any opportunity that we could. I slept at lunch while at work. When I got home, I’d take over for my wife so that she could get some shut-eye for a bit. I slept a lot on the couch with one of the girls in their car seat or bassinet next to me.
Then, one day, they would sleep the night through… or at least enough to get some consecutive hours of sleep.
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.-= Todd´s last blog ..New Year’s resolutions =-.
Oh honey, I feel your pain. Been there. Where you feel dizzy and your facial parts all have ticks? ::sigh:: Wish I was close enough to help!
.-= syd´s last blog ..happy holidays =-.
Okay girl, as soon as I get rid of this food poisoning from that crappy game last night…I am so coming over and watching those cutie pies while you nap!! And Mizfit is cracking me up, tee hee!
Jamie
p.s. if you do that massage once a week for a month bit/ let me know, I’m in
.-= A Forest Frolic´s last blog ..Whirlwind =-.
Bah. I don’t even have kids and I’m constantly sleep deprived (I have nightmares and always wake up multiple times throughout the night). It’s hella rough and you’re right, all of the above issues DO come to pass.
Some things that I do: I don’t drink caffeine (except sometimes caffeinated tea), I try to make sure that I have a balanced, healthy breakfast each morning, and I take some time every day to go for a walk, no matter what else is on the go or how exhausted I am. I think these things at least help to prevent making the effects of sleep deprivation worsen.
.-= Sagan´s last blog ..Day 29 of the 200 Reps Challenge =-.
It may be time to talk to your husband about this? I know that when our kids were babies, I felt guilty about asking for his help, since he was the one getting up and going to work every day. But someone pointed out to me that I was working, too, and at one of the hardest jobs in the world! And they also mentioned that HE is also a parent, and needs to share in the responsibilities, including the nighttime feedings, diaper changes, or even just helping with the other kids so that I could take a nap while the baby was down.
Also, talk to your doc about the depression. You could be having some post-partum issues, and the exhaustion certainly doesn’t help with that!
Since we’re both in the same boat here (we’ve got a 8 week old and a 2-and-a-half year old), let me offer a few tips from my end:
1. gift night: your other half takes the whole night shift, letting you get a full night’s rest at least once every 10-14 days. on our end, this is usually on a weekend night.
2. ask one dear friend to come over and watch the wee ones while you get a 2-hour nap. be sure it’s a dear friend, they’ll be glad you asked. your casual friends may not understand your desperate pleas for sleep.
3. mommy trade. if you have a mommy friend with whom you are close, offer to babysit her kids for an afternoon and then vice versa for you.
4. when you get the wee one down around 7 or 8 at night, go sleep for a few hours for an early start to your night sleep. it’s only a few hours, and it will be interrupted, but you’re adding to the total hours you get in a night. i know you need to do laundry, dishes, emails, etc. so for real sakes, make this a 3x per week goal.
5. and yes, this early phase ends (PROMISE!) but plan to feel this jet-lagged time/space sucks phase for a bit longer.
as for workouts – oh heck, i had a repeat c-section and just now got the ok to do anything. but here is what i can do:
1. push ups when the wee one is doing mat time/floor time. even if i really only do this to firm back up my chest, it’s a start. great app for the iphone if you have it is 100daypushups (they also have 100daysitups).
2. lunges down the hallway to go get the wee one. even if i really only do this to get my thighs and backend back to some level of “less soft” at least it’s something i can do.
3. stretching any time you can. it’s one of three basic fitness elements: cardio, strength and flexibility. while the first two are tougher, flexibility i can work on almost anywhere in the house.
4. to get to the gym, for the cardio i need (its cold here so outside walks are short), i go on the weekend when my other half can watch the brood.
i’m contemplating going to the gym at a ridiculous hour in the morning, but really, right now i still just need the sleep. home workouts for now and in the near future, 5:30am workouts will have to be my new normal.
may the zzz’s find you. jenny
My babe is 10-mos. and I get really excited when he sleeps 6 hours straight… AND I would be extremely concerned if you did not “still” have baby weight. Remember, slowly and surely, they will go away. I am just now seeing numbers on the scale I remember. Don’t panic!! Breathe and sleep–much more important!
.-= Kara from Mama Sweat´s last blog ..Look at me! Look at me! =-.
Hi Workout Mommy!
You are doing a great job as a mom. Those first few months (actually a year) are really tough, but us woman can do it. Hang in there and we are all pulling for you.
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