less sleep = better mood?

My mood seems to improve with less sleep. Even 7 hours seems to bee too much. I don't trust my observations. I have anxiety and depression, (maybe BP2) and ADHD.
Any advice? Most all publications say 7-8 hours. How long will my mood stay high?

I have a similar problem. I can't seem to sleep enough, 9-15 seems to be my range at the present. I know I should get out of bed, but I just feel too tired. I need to find a way to get up and stay up.

I have a little bit of both. Some nights, I can't get enough sleep other nights and other nights, I can't sleep to save my life (it starts to worry me when my mood is good and I haven't slept that well).
@kiddiesrule you might want to get your doctor to do some blood work and see if you have an iron deficiency or a vitamin out of whack.
@Jim00w5 I learned in my personal wellness class that sometimes 5-6 hours of sleep is all someone needs. It really depends on the person. If you are feeling good with little sleep, try to maintain it. I feel that you may be worried about a crash later (where you sleep a lot and your mood lowers), but try to view that as something that may happen and do as much stuff as you can before it happens. When you have the energy it is a great time to get caught up on stuff and reconnect with people. Then when it falls, you have things in place.
Good luck

I didn't sleep on Fri night & it led to some mild hypomania THEN I didn't take my Seroquel but did take my other meds SO I was up for almost 3days THING is that I felt great...better than I have in a long time; I was probably mildly manic at that point. However I was a zombie on Monday & slept almost all of today (Tues) I broke down & had a Ben & Jerry's relapse - Phish Food - so good. Need to get up in 6hours.

My point is that I KNOW HOW to induce mania in myself & in fact it will occur naturally if I don't take my meds. My natural pattern IS to stay up for a couple days or 3 w/little sleep, then sleep for 16-20hours. The whole reason for my taking meds & going to therapy, etc IS to get STABLE not only emotionally but to have BALANCE in all areas.

ITS easy for me to forget where mania takes me & I ofetn catch myself longing for the energy despite the inevitable pitfalls. In the end its NOT worth it. Though life seems lackluster & lights aren't as brilliantly shiny as they used to be ~ I long to know what its like "in the middle" w/the rest of humanity.

I can always go back - against medical advice (AMA) BUT it will only be a matter of time before hitting one end of the spectrum gets me in serious trouble MAYBE dead...I've come pretty close by putting myself in situations; manic OR depressed.

-kby-

I have had immense trouble sleeping lately. I know it started when I had to go off my Seroquel - I just couldn't afford it anymore. A dose of 450mg a day was costing about 800$ depending on what pharmacy I was going to.

Then Desyrl - nightmare (not really because that would involve "night" and that suggests "sleep."

Tried Sinequan - also nightmarish. The side effects were unbearable and I still couldn't sleep.

Now, let's jump into the Wayback Machine, and now I'm taking Thorazine. Sleep is still erratic. The did add cogentin to help with the Thorazine side effects: blurred vision to the point where I can't read or craft anymore without a magnifier, extreme dizziness and loss of balance, the thorazine shuffle, slurred speech, hand tremors and facial tics and in general just feeling "stupid." Been on the cogentin for a week and I really don't feel any better and my sleep is so erratic. Seriously? Who can take Thorazine and then stay up all day/night.

@kumbaya I know how you feel. I woke one day last feeling incredible! Thought my side effects were over and I was ready to conquer the world. Then I noticed that I had forgotten to take my meds the night before. All this to say, I totally understand why people stop their medications - I've done it several times myself over the last 5-6 years. Hypomania is really wonderful - you feel witty, energetic, like everything is going to be alright. But if you're still in a rational state you KNOW you are going to crash, and that crash could put you in the hospital or worse.
It is really a tough decision to make. It was hard for me to wake up feeling so fanf*ng and know that I'd better choke those pills down tout suite and be more careful next time.

All that crap to say - you are seeing what you going through and are able to make rational decisions. It's your choice. But is is hard to to deal with the lacklusterness of it all.

Hang in there. Julie

You guys...it seems as though you are forgetting that the baseline is the goal, not mania or hypomania. I know it feels better (especially when our basis for comparison is depression, not baseline) to be hypomanic and sometimes even manic, but it is also the reason you keep rapid cycling! The point of a consistent sleep schedule is to even yourself out, not to get you to a consistently elevated mood.

This is the entire reason we don't take our meds as prescribed. Our elevated moods are addictive - life-threateningly so. In our minds the "ups" are compensation for the "downs", and I used to think of them as my reward for having such a #@$%&*ty time when I'm "normal" (aka very depressed). It was the only time I felt happy. You just have to remember that you can be happy without being manic, in fact you HAVE TO be willing ot give up those moments or days of "happiness" (which is really just mania/hypomania) and have faith that you are not giving up your ability to be happy. BREAK THE CYCLE!!!! Regulate your sleep. That's not a suggestion, it's not an option, it is a NECESSITY if you want to get better. It might feel like you're giving up who you are, but you're not. You're giving up being controlled by your irrational, bipolar moods. You're taking back permission to be jailed by your disease. You are deciding to be free.

Don't forget to love yourself.
Lucy

"It is never too soon to be who you are becoming." -Jon Berghoff

Jim,

There are studies that have been done on manic depressives & sleep. I read some in college a long time ago & don't know if there are current research articles w/similar conclusions. What I read suggested that an irregular sleep schedule was of mood-wise benefit to manic depressives.

Lucy577,

The reason I take my meds at the same time everyday is so that I can learn how to function like the rest of the humans on this planet. I've missed my Seroquel less than 5 times, maybe 3, in the 19 or 20 months I've been taking it. BALANCE is something very NEW to my life & has proven to be extremely elusive, despite my best efforts. Nevertheless, I assure you it IS my goal.

Always too much OR too little...I have read so many articles about sleep. Its referred to as 'Sleep Hygiene'. Research suggests making habits or rituals out of the going to sleep process for those who have trouble falling asleep. Like flossing & brushing your teeth. However, its easy to find contradictory research.

I've read don't go to sleep if you're not sleepy. Try to go to sleep at the same time & get up at the same time everyday, including weekends, holidays & vacations. But if after 15mins you don't fall asleep, get out of bed. Don't stay in bed IF you're not sleeping OR having sex = ) You're not supposed to use the bed for anything else like watching TV, reading & eating; ONLY sleeping (& sex) that's it.

If you have been able to regulate your sleep PLEASE tell me how you were able to achieve this feat! I would sure like to know...I've been eating a healthy diet, exercising, I don't drink, smoke (even weed) or do drugs & I'm exercising my brain everyday as a full time student. I meditate almost everyday & try not to eat anything but a small snack (less than 200cals half hour before) 3hours before going to bed. I drink Sleepytime Extra tea & take melatonin as well.

My insurance won't pay for a sleep study. I'm sure I wake up multiple times during the time I'm in bed. The way I get the best sleep is either every 3 days or so OR staying in bed most of the morning til I get enough REM. I'm not going to give up though - you can bet on that.

trugem,

Thanks for your supportive words ~ Sleep troubles have been w/me since I was 8yrs old. Way before my BP type 1 Dx.

-kby-