My best work comes in the middle of the night. It’s not really by choice though.
Sometimes I wake up after getting three hours of sleep, and when I look at the clock it’s 2:10. It isn’t every night, but it happens.
I used to try to force myself back to sleep. Sometimes it works but a lot of times it doesn’t. I just lie there, getting more antsy and irritated that I’m not sleeping.
One night a couple of years ago I decided to just get up. Getting up when it’s 2:00 in the morning is kind of weird, and if you live with someone they probably won’t appreciate it. For me though it was what I decided to do.
Something happened that night that made me realize it was okay to get up and start my day as I normally would, even if it was the middle of the night. I found I was more productive instead of less.
I got things done. Although there were moments that day when I felt a little groggy, for the most part I didn’t allow it to affect me and it didn’t. I felt no need to make it part of my story and tell everyone around me how I was running on three hours of sleep. In fact, I didn’t tell anyone at all. They had no idea because I was the same person I always am.
By not setting the intention that I was going to be less productive and cranky because I missed some sleep, I never felt that way. It was business as usual. Or better than usual actually.
This happens to me frequently enough, maybe three or four nights a week. I lie in bed and see if sleep comes, but then if it doesn’t I get up, make coffee, do my writing and plan my schedule. I do everything I normally do, just as quietly as I can.
I respect that others don’t think getting up in the middle of the night is appropriate.
It’s important to know yourself because every one of us is different. I don’t eat before bed, so my body isn’t forced to be digesting food instead of resting. That helps a great deal. Mostly though I just accept it and don’t worry that my life will fall apart because I’m not sleeping eight hours a night.
I think everything comes down to quality over quantity. I would rather get three hours of solid productive rest than eight hours of restless slumber. It’s all a matter of how you function and how your life works.
I take solace in knowing that some of the most celebrated geniuses from history felt fine with getting less sleep than we are told we need. Nikola Tesla slept a couple of hours a night, then took little naps during the day. I haven’t figured out how to work in the naps yet. If I need them I will figure out a way.
The bottom line is that I don’t get too caught up in what is supposedly good or bad. Declaring that something is one way or the other isn’t really necessary; sometimes things just are whatever they are.
Releasing the need to judge and categorize our experiences frees up energy to be flexible and to go with the flow. Today is a little lifetime unto itself, and if in this one day I am functioning on two or three hours of sleep, that’s okay. Tomorrow’s lifetime will look different.
There is nothing more liberating than allowing things to just be. Whether it is the people around us, the weather, the way we feel or how much we slept, letting go of the need to control any of it reduces anxiety and stress.
And by reducing anxiety and stress, it is very likely that all of life will begin to flow a little more easily. It’s also possible that the sleep you get will be more restful too.
It’s 3:00 in the morning as I am writing this. I have a busy day ahead, and that’s okay. I have functioned at a high level on three hours of sleep before and I intend to do it again.
There’s no need to let this ruin a perfectly good day.