I suffer from chronic and sometimes severe insomnia. About ten years ago something triggered a “severe” episode and it refused to let up. After about two months of ~90 minutes of light sleep per 24 hour period, my mind began to shatter. I won’t get into details here about how bad it got, but I can totally see how someone could accidentally put a raw chicken in the crib and the baby in the oven.
I also suffer from insomnia - I regularly get 3 hours of sleep per night, and rarely get more than 6 (rarely as in 1-2 times per month). For a week and a half or so, though, after a death in the family, I was getting between 0 and a half hour per night, with obviously no deep sleep.
I developed severe ataxia (I couldn’t walk without a cane), I lost the ability to speak coherently and it would take me minutes to form a sentence. I couldn’t follow conversations, and my appetite decreased to the point where I was down to about 50-100 calories per day (eg, I could sometimes manage a can of coke).
When your brain starts to shut down, things really go south pretty fast. I managed to kickstart things using those meal substitute drinks (which I’d consume by chugging it in one go), and eventually my eating and normal 3-6 hour sleep pattern came back, but I was probably about 24-48 hours away from needing an ambulance.
Luckily I live with my partner and although I put them into a panic, I didn’t have to manage the house/pets and just took sick leave from work. Even after going back, it took some time to return to my normal level of working. At the peak, I would have been absolutely incapable of operating if I lived alone.
When my insomnia hits it’s days of zero sleep… Like I see the 3 hours of sleep and I immediately (and unfairly) dismiss that you have insomnia, I’m just like, “bro, but you ARE getting sleep”).
As I got my things under control I pivoted to Polyphasic sleep anyway. 1 30min nap every 6hrs and I absolutely adore it. Extra exertion or any kind of injury will warrant more rest, but then, thats resting with a purpose.
My god. Having a kid and only getting a few hours per night for half a year drove me to the brink, it’s genuinely chilling to imagine what you’ve been through. I hope you’re sleeping more now.
We got the “don’t shake the baby” talk at the hospital. It was extremely over the top and patronising. It made a lot more sense later however. What was obvious and extremely patronising when rested and alert, barely cut through the fog, once sleep exhaustion kicks in. I can fully understand how parents can shake their baby to death, with no ill intent.
A baby in the oven sounds bad, but I can see it happening, under the wrong circumstances, with the wrong person.
(Oh, and my daughter made it to almost 2 before reliably sleeping through the night. The sleep deprivation was hellish.)
We had a good run of keeping a solid bedtime ritual between 6 months and 3 years where ours would sleep through the night. Then we found out our kid is a morning person with ADHD. 🪦
We’ve both got ADHD, so I definitely feel for you. Thankfully, our daughter seems to be more of a night owl. Not perfect, but a lot easier to cope with than an ADHD lark would be!
It has like 73% heritability. Surely they got it from one of y’all? I’ve just started exploring a diagnosis in my 30s, and holy hell is it helping me make sense both of why I struggle so much and why my dad’s so bonkers. Really recommend working with some professionals. I’m working on a degree in psych and can navigate the criteria from the DSM fairly well but I’m also working with individual and family therapists to help me and my family work through the hell it caused us from not knowing, plus how I can better understand/manage it moving forward
We’re pretty sure the wife has it. I’m more or less the least diagnosable person in my social circles, to my unending chagrin and everyone else’s general incredulity
I suffer from chronic and sometimes severe insomnia. About ten years ago something triggered a “severe” episode and it refused to let up. After about two months of ~90 minutes of light sleep per 24 hour period, my mind began to shatter. I won’t get into details here about how bad it got, but I can totally see how someone could accidentally put a raw chicken in the crib and the baby in the oven.
I also suffer from insomnia - I regularly get 3 hours of sleep per night, and rarely get more than 6 (rarely as in 1-2 times per month). For a week and a half or so, though, after a death in the family, I was getting between 0 and a half hour per night, with obviously no deep sleep.
I developed severe ataxia (I couldn’t walk without a cane), I lost the ability to speak coherently and it would take me minutes to form a sentence. I couldn’t follow conversations, and my appetite decreased to the point where I was down to about 50-100 calories per day (eg, I could sometimes manage a can of coke).
When your brain starts to shut down, things really go south pretty fast. I managed to kickstart things using those meal substitute drinks (which I’d consume by chugging it in one go), and eventually my eating and normal 3-6 hour sleep pattern came back, but I was probably about 24-48 hours away from needing an ambulance.
Luckily I live with my partner and although I put them into a panic, I didn’t have to manage the house/pets and just took sick leave from work. Even after going back, it took some time to return to my normal level of working. At the peak, I would have been absolutely incapable of operating if I lived alone.
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When my insomnia hits it’s days of zero sleep… Like I see the 3 hours of sleep and I immediately (and unfairly) dismiss that you have insomnia, I’m just like, “bro, but you ARE getting sleep”).
As I got my things under control I pivoted to Polyphasic sleep anyway. 1 30min nap every 6hrs and I absolutely adore it. Extra exertion or any kind of injury will warrant more rest, but then, thats resting with a purpose.
My god. Having a kid and only getting a few hours per night for half a year drove me to the brink, it’s genuinely chilling to imagine what you’ve been through. I hope you’re sleeping more now.
We got the “don’t shake the baby” talk at the hospital. It was extremely over the top and patronising. It made a lot more sense later however. What was obvious and extremely patronising when rested and alert, barely cut through the fog, once sleep exhaustion kicks in. I can fully understand how parents can shake their baby to death, with no ill intent.
A baby in the oven sounds bad, but I can see it happening, under the wrong circumstances, with the wrong person.
(Oh, and my daughter made it to almost 2 before reliably sleeping through the night. The sleep deprivation was hellish.)
We had a good run of keeping a solid bedtime ritual between 6 months and 3 years where ours would sleep through the night. Then we found out our kid is a morning person with ADHD. 🪦
We’ve both got ADHD, so I definitely feel for you. Thankfully, our daughter seems to be more of a night owl. Not perfect, but a lot easier to cope with than an ADHD lark would be!
I would almost prefer to have it myself, so at least then I’d know what they’re going through.
It has like 73% heritability. Surely they got it from one of y’all? I’ve just started exploring a diagnosis in my 30s, and holy hell is it helping me make sense both of why I struggle so much and why my dad’s so bonkers. Really recommend working with some professionals. I’m working on a degree in psych and can navigate the criteria from the DSM fairly well but I’m also working with individual and family therapists to help me and my family work through the hell it caused us from not knowing, plus how I can better understand/manage it moving forward
We’re pretty sure the wife has it. I’m more or less the least diagnosable person in my social circles, to my unending chagrin and everyone else’s general incredulity