How little sleep can you survive on?

Sat here, bored so doing my books and listening to some music got me thinking, how much sleep do I get or actually need?

I've never been a big sleeper, except in my yoof, this was soon knocked out of me when I joined the military.

Anyway, now I get about 5 hours per day, on average.

I go to bed about 0230hrs and up for about 0700-0730 hrs.

This can vary, sometimes I'll be in bed for midnight but I'll still be up around 0530-0600hrs.

How much sleep do you get or need?

Re: How little sleep can you survive on?

I get about 5 to 6 hours sleep. But, will say this, sleep is very important to the well functioning of our bodies. I saw an experiment conducted where a patient was deliberately deprived of sleep for about a week. Not only did his blood pressure increase, but worse of all, the patient became diabetic.

Re: How little sleep can you survive on?

As with most folk, some nights I sleep better than others but on average I get about 7 hours but I always have 30 minutes after lunch.

Re: How little sleep can you survive on?

Hi

I like to get a good 7 hours normally.

Unfortunately I am back working part time at the moment, the shift patterns are three nights, so very little sleep now, it takes a long time to reset my body clock.

Re: How little sleep can you survive on?

i need at least 6 hours but i'm usually a night owl and then have to get up at 6 to get ready for work so usually feel tired at work - to be a lady of leisure up late at night and then to have a lie in would be fab
i used to do night shift many years ago and survived on very little sleep in that period as found it difficult to sleep during the day

Re: How little sleep can you survive on?

I usually have about 8 hours but if I get less some nights it doesnt bother me...I usually know when im becoming "ill" as my sleep becomes terrible and I dont sleep well at all then I know its time for me to do something about it.
I have no problems getting to sleep and would fall asleep on a linen line and if a bomb went off id probably not even stir

Re: How little sleep can you survive on?

I try to get about 6 hours if possible. I go to bed about 9pm, and get up at 7.10am. Often I have wakeful hours during the night, but I just lie there, I don't get up.

Re: How little sleep can you survive on?

I have had 5 to 7 hours regularly but in what I call a split shift
I fall asleep for a few hours then wake up and put the radio on
and on a snooze button after an hour. I can only listen to talking
radio I cant stand music otherwise I would be singing all night.
I then wake up about 5 or 6am.
I did excel the other day after having hardly any sleep for days.
I went to bed at 10pm and slept without any radio break until
9am and that was a exceptional length of time for me but I did
feel the benefit of it as my head wasn't swimming anymore.

Re: How little sleep can you survive on?

About 6 hours is usual for me nowadays.
I function ok on it but sometimes I find myself nodding off in the evening while watching TV.

Re: How little sleep can you survive on?

They say as you get older you need less sleep. I aim for 6 hours but have survived with much less, 3 hours or so when working three or four jobs at a time .

I once got home from work at 8.30am and sat on the bench in the kitchen having a cup of coffee. The next thing I knew I woke up on the floor coffee all over me I had fallen asleep with the coffee in my hand and slid off the bench.
I found as long as I kept going I was fine but the moment I stopped a horrible tiredness took over but that did not mean being able to fall asleep, I think you can get 'too tired to sleep'.