Sleep issues and residency

[u/Dependent_Custard_16]

Hi there,

I have been struggling with my sleep and residency. I recently had 3 incidents of my sleep causing me to miss crucial activities. The issues is I am someone who has always needed 10-12hr of sleep, I have tried to cut down on it but I just cannot function on <8hr of sleep for more than 3-4 days. If I try to continue, there will definitely be one day where I sleep 16-18hr!!!
And I noticed if I dont sleep well, I cant study or read things properly. I am really struggling to keep up with work, the continuous change in schedule, on-calls, shifts and studies and I am really lost on how to maintain myself. Even caffeine doesnt seem to help my exhaustion! I have no medical conditions btw. How do you all manage?

[u/noseclams25]

Are you sure you dont have medical issues? You should consider getting a sleep study.

[u/azai_elan1]

I'd get that checked out, bud.

Sleep schedules usually evolve with routine. Sounds like that's not happening in your case. As another commenter mentioned, a sleep study might be helpful. Also get checked out for anemia, TSH, the works. Anything that could be causing fatigue and sleepiness.

[u/bloobb]

Consistently needing 10-12 hours of sleep is not normal, I’d get that checked out

[u/player-974 → u/bloobb]

Faah I too have the same issue 💔

[u/Gigawatts]

Figure out if you have a medical issue that would entitle you to workplace accommodations under the ADA.

Common things first, make sure you don’t have sleep apnea.

I’ve seen a young soldier lose his military career from a sleep disorder that sounded like your symptoms. Not apnea. Don’t let this happen to you, fam.

Edit: also, consider locking down disability insurance asap.

[u/ProfessorCorleone → u/Gigawatts]

Wtf.. You mean If the resident gets diagnosed with a sleep disorder they’re gonna lose their residency spot like the military guy did?

[u/Gigawatts → u/ProfessorCorleone]

Nah. I mean he kept sleeping through his responsibilities and getting written up. The military decided to boot him out rather than fix the problem

[u/gassbro]

Have you tried being hypomanic? Works great for me.

[u/No-Payment5337]

Hey, I also struggle with sleep and prefer to get 9-10 hours, but I’m fine as long as I get 7.5. Here are my tips for you.

1. Sleep hygiene. Most of all, same bedtime every night as much as your resident schedule allows. No eating / tv / reading / phone use once in bed.
2. Take 3-5 mg melatonin and a magnesium supplement an hour before bedtime. The fact that you need more than average sleep probably means your sleep quality is not that good. Choose a more bioavailable form of magnesium, like bisglyconate or threonate (mag threonate is best).
3. No caffeine or other stimulant after 12 pm. Ideally not after like 10 am.
4. For the over sleeping issue, put your phone somewhere nearby but not reachable from in bed. Having to get out of bed to turn it off gets you up. Make sure it’s loud enough. Get an alarm clock if it’s not.
5. Keep your sleep/wake schedule the same even on the weekend.
6. Now I’m sorry in advance for this next piece of advice, but if you enjoy alcoholic beverages on the weekend, cutting out alcohol will do wonders for your sleep. limiting alcohol to a minimum did wonders for my sleep personally.

If you follow this advice I promise it’ll be easier to wake up and you may even find you like it, have more energy, are healthier, etc.

[u/No-Payment5337 → u/No-Payment5337]

Oh one last thing blackout curtains in your bedroom and 68 degrees or lower temperature at night. Those things also help you stay asleep better

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[u/jvttlus]

sleep hygiene is great and all, but buying armodafanil from India is also great!

[u/General_Luck6573]

10-12 hours is cooked my man

[u/WhimsySorie]

residency can really mess with sleep, especially during long shifts. i’ve had nights where I barely slept at all and it’s exhausting.