Sleep - How Much Do You Need and How Much Do You Get?

Leannep2201

I really need 8-9, but usually get 6-7 during weeknights. I can function, but am often tired, especially if work is full-on. I get about 9-10 hours on the weekends, so I guess I make up for it then!

drmarctagon

I don't really "sleep" in. I wake up around the same time of day every day. 4AM on work days, 5AM on weekends. Maybe once a month, I'll "sleep in" until like 8 or 9.

ruqayyahsmum

I function best on about 9 hours

Unfortunately I have a daughter with a sleep disorder who sleeps 2 hours a time tops and a baby boy who some nights wakes every 30 minutes to feed so I'm lucky if I get 5 hours of broken sleep

sgt1372

5-6 but I often nap 1-2 during the day in front of the TV.

DragonHasTheSapphire

I need at least 8 hours, but I feel my best when I get 10 or 11.

goatg

Currently need 9, +/- 1/2 hour. It’s a training thing.
When I’m not seriously training I’m fine on 5.5-6.

Anywhere from 6-8 currently is killing me. Unsustainable.

malibu927

7 is good but usually only happens on my days off or Sunday nights when I work later on Mondays. Usually it's about 5.5-6.

elsayegh25

as much as i can basically not less than 6 !

Djproulx

I can go on 6-7hrs most days during my off season. During higher volume training times in spring and summer, I need 8 hrs or more.

Seffell

I need 9-10 but only get about 8. I do this on purpose because I have circadian rhythm disorder and if I get enough sleep I can't fall asleep the same time the night after but
2-3h later and I start circling around the clock.

JeromeBarry1

Me personally: I have for years noticed that I got 4-6 hours sleep each night. I blame it on losing a good job in 2013. I got another decent job a few weeks later. There are numerous times on my news feed and in these discussions I've said something like "I get 5 hours sleep". I never knew why, really. Here's what has happened. I got my weight down to 165 lb last Summer by (Amazing, isn't it?) eating less and moving more. Then I chose to stop trying so vigorously to lose and started gaining. I gained 30 lb. Since I gained the 30 lb, I've noticed that my sleep has expanded to 7 -8 hours now. I'm feeling good each day, stay awake all day, manage to stay comfortably within my calories most days and find time to do some of that "move more" stuff several times a week.

I had asked my long-time physician for her advice about my sleep difficulties. She suggested I use some OTC night-time meds such as benadryl, acetaminophen PM, or NyQuil. I did use 2 tablets of benadryl each night, and didn't notice much improvement. When that bottle was empty, I bought some acetaminophen PM and now each night take 2 of those. That seems to do the trick, as I do go to sleep and sleep soundly for 7-8 hours. Often I drink a quart of water late in the day, and usually have to rise in the middle of the night to visit the toilet, but I'm able to get back to sleep and re-enter deep sleep.

spiriteagle99

I need at least 8, unless I'm training hard, then I need more. I find after a long run I usually end up sleeping 9-10 hours.

ForecasterJason

I think my body needs about 7.5 to 8 hours a day, although I usually get about 6 hours on the weekdays and 7-8 on weekends.

PRINCESSROJA

8-9 for me. Much less than that consistently and I get really crabby and emotional. I'd really love to need less sleep but doesn't seem like the lot I've drawn!

Lounmoun

I feel best with 8 hours.
I get 6-7 hours often.

pamfin

I feel best on 8-9 and am making a conscious effort to go to bed earlier to get that amount. Going back a few months, u was getting 6.5 a night average and felt rough a lot of the time.

lightenup2016

Maxxitt wrote: »

I find that 8-8.5 hours is pretty optimal and that's what I aim for. I am retired, and so I don't have an early schedule. For a while, I had morphed my day into going to bed around 2 AM and sleeping until 10 or 10:30. Same eight hours, right? But with that schedule I was sedentary more hours during the day (I don't usually do much in the evening). So I am now getting to bed by midnight and up a bit after 8, which adds a couple of active hours and I feel a lot better.

I need to do this!

TonyB0588

I usually get about 5 hours. Sometimes 4 or sometimes 6

Not sure how much I really need, but yes I'm often tired.

heavenjones7036

I think if I get about 7 a night I'm pretty good normally anymore an I feel groggy. I have a rather broken sleep pattern though. Normally I wake up a few times a night, between 2:30am and 3:30am most of the time.

callsitlikeiseeit

what is this sleep you speak of?

mandy220750

I rarely have a good nights sleep. Wake up many times. Sometimes cannot get to sleep until the early hours. Usually get to the point where I am exhausted then can occasionally have 10 hours.

JeromeBarry1

I wonder why I got a "woo". I'm sleeping better and feeling better.

whitpauly

Someone went "woo" crazy on just about every post,maybe they're tired and cranky?

SCoil123

I need at least 8 and am on medication that is supposed to help me get that but I still struggle to fall asleep and usually get 6-7hr during the week. On the weekends when I don’t have to get up at a certain time I get closer to 9-10hr and make some of it up

Aaron_K123

drmarctagon wrote: »

I'm not asking the general or clinical answer. Because we're all different, I want to hear about you personally.


For me, 6-7 hrs is optimal. I get 5 hours (from 11PM-4AM or 12AM-5AM) and usually a nap during my commute to or from work or both.

I'm pretty much the same. Do best with 7 hours, typically end up closer to 5-6 hours most days and try to make it up with a nap or on the weekend.

lucyl442

I usually aim for 8 but it always ends up being 6-7 hours.

Francl27

I need 7, like having more, but it's not been happening.

Usually I go to bed at 9.30pm and my dog wakes me up between 5 and 6.30am. To be honest, how I feel 100% depends on when in my sleep cycle the dog woke me up. Sometimes I feel awesome after 6 hours of sleep, others I feel horrible after 8!