Circadian Rhythm

Circadian Rhythm

Jacob Schlitt

"I have been troubled by Fran’s sleep pattern, and think that it is a result of some distortion of her circadian rhythm, which I believe is an internal clock that tells us when to go to sleep and when to wake up."

2012-07-04

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Circadian_Rhythm

Circadian Rhythm

Fran’s Sleep Pattern

I have been troubled by Fran’s sleep pattern, and think that it is a result of some distortion of her circadian rhythm, which I believe is an internal clock that tells us when to go to sleep and when to wake up. Fran has always gone to bed late and slept late. But for the past several years, it has gotten ridiculous. It is of course compounded by the fact that Fran tires easily, and when she gets tired, she has to lie down, and when she lies down, she falls asleep. Before falling asleep she usually tells me to wake her in an hour. When I wake her, she usually tells me to wake her in another hour. When I wake her in another hour, she usually thanks me and continues sleeping.

What is all of this in actual hours and minutes? A typical day begins with Fran getting up around 1 pm. It takes her a very long time to wash and dress. Some days, she does not dress but stays in her nightgown. Around 2 pm, Fran may have breakfast and read the paper. Around 3 pm, Fran may make some calls, go through papers, or work in the kitchen. Around 4 or 5 pm, if Fran is dressed, she may go shopping or to an appointment. Occasionally, if she has been on her feet, she will take a nap. Around 7 pm, Fran may make dinner, and we will usually eat after 8:00. Following dinner, Fran will sit at the table, and then lie down. When I get ready for bed around 11 pm, Fran will get up. She will busy herself—read, nosh, watch TV, doze off--and come to bed around 6 am. To sum up: Sleep from 6 am to 1 pm. Awake from1 pm to 9 pm (with a possible nap). Sleep from 9 pm to 11:30 pm. Awake (or dozing) from 11:30 pm to 6 am.

I am not privy to Fran’s activities during the night. She reads The Times, eats, watches the news, goes through accumulated papers, works in the kitchen, and dozes. I used to get up around 3 or 4 am and ask her if she is coming to bed. Fran would reply, “in a minute,” and continue doing whatever she was doing. On the rare occasion that Fran has a morning appointment, she would try to get to bed early. The best she seems able to do is 3 am.

My Sleep Pattern

I keep the same stupid routine I have kept all my life. I tell myself, I am no longer working; I can sleep late; I can go to bed late. But I can’t seem to break the habit. By 10-11 pm, my eyes are closing. I get ready for bed, catch a little TV, and by 11:30, 11:45 pm, I am asleep.

I get up between 7:15 am and 7:45 am. During the night, I am always aware of the digital clock at my bedside, and have been playing games with it for years. If I awaken and look at the clock, and there are either three numbers in a row or in succession, I win. If there are just random numbers, I lose. For example: 2:22, or 2:46 or 3:45 or 4:32 are winners. 1:47 or 5:28 are losers.

I have become a light sleeper, and am almost always aware when Fran enters the bedroom. I used to sleep soundly from the time I went to bed to arising. Now I get up every hour or two. I turn from side to side. I adjust my pillow. I stretch my legs. During the night, I may get a cramp, or have to pee. I have been having lots of weird dreams. Some times they are so weird, I feel I should try to remember them. On a few occasions, I wrote them down in the morning, but most of the time they evaporate. To sum up: I sleep from 11:30 pm to 7:30 am. Awake from 7:30 am to 11:30 pm, with a brief nap in mid-afternoon. Around 10 pm, I find my eyes closing while reading or watching TV.

I googled Circadian rhythm, and found something called “Biological clock human.svg.” It was a circle with noon at the top and midnight at the bottom, depicting “the circadian patterns typical of someone who rises early in the morning, eats lunch around noon, and sleeps at night (10 pm).” That’s me. According to this clock, the sharpest rise in blood pressure is at 6:45 am, melatonin secretion stops: 7:30 am, bowel movement: 8:30 am, highest testosterone secretion: 9:00 am, highest alertness: 10:00 am, best coordination: 2:30 pm, fastest reaction time: 3:30 pm, greatest muscle strength: 5 pm, highest blood pressure: 6:30 pm, melatonin secretion starts: 9 pm.

So what do I conclude from this? I am a morning person who prefers to make love, have a bowel movement, and get work done in the morning. Physical activity, I should save for the afternoon. Some years ago, I read that if I wanted to sleep on overseas flights, I should take melatonin. I bought a bottle and took a couple of pills before taking off. It did nothing for me. The jar is still sitting in the medicine cabinet.

I had hoped to start an exercise routine. I read that you shouldn’t exercise before going to bed. One of the exercises I was told to do, is done lying down. Before going to bed seems like a perfect time to do an exercise that you do lying down. The end result is that I am not doing any exercises, standing up or lying down.

Getting sleepy in the afternoon and evening has become a more frequent phenomenon. It usually occurs when I am reading or watching TV. The solution seems to be to switch to writing. When I am typing at the computer (as I am doing now) I am less sleepy. However, I find myself making more typos these days. Something to do with coordination, I guess. Nothing to do with circadian rhythm.

7-4-12

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