Sleep disorders

[unixronin]

I had my evaluation appointment at the ECU School of Medicine sleep disorders lab this morning.  I was there about an hour.  I came home with a followup appointment in three weeks, a stack of information to read, a Tyvek patient-identification bracelet around my left wrist ... and for the first time, a diagnosis:  Delayed sleep-phase syndrome.

Delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS), also called phase lag syndrome, is a circadian rhythm sleep disorder.  However, unlike jet lag and the effects of shift work, delayed sleep phase syndrome is a persistent condition.  In clinical settings, it is one of the most common complications of sleep-wake patterns.

Delayed sleep phase syndrome results from a desynchronization between the patient's internal biological clock and the external environment.  Unlike jet lag, this desynchronization is not activated by travel or change in external environment.  Rather, the patient's propensity to fall asleep is simply "delayed" in relation to that of the general public.  Subsequently, a patient with DSPS is desynchronized with the routine that governs most of his or her life.

Patients typically are unable to fall asleep before 2 a.m. and have extreme difficulty waking early (e.g., by 7 a.m.).  People with DSPS are sometimes called "night owls" or are described as "not being morning people."  If they are able to sleep a full 7 to 8 hours (e.g., until 10 a.m.), they feel rested and function normally.  Unfortunately, this is usually not the case.

I've been unable to get a decent night's sleep as far back as I can remember -- at least since I was 11 or 12.  Now that I finally have a diagnosis, maybe I can make some progress dealing with it.  According to the above-referenced site, light-box therapy is one of the most common treatments.

Comments

[tabbifli.livejournal.com]

There seems to be a certain percentage of the population that has this particular "problem" - and it's only a problem because general society expects everyone to be on the same relative schedule. I understand why, mind, and I can't really argue with it, but it bugs me.

If you're in a position where you can work your own hours (you aren't, I know), it's not so bad. You can generally shift your life to the comfortable hours. If you have to be on the regular schedule, though, it sucks. Light box therapy helps. So does a dawn-simulator, I've found.

With my fibro, I'm pretty much on my own for my preferred hours. The classes I take are all online, except for the remaining ASL classes which will be evening. When I finally get my degree, I'm planning on doing what I can to maintain my preferred hours even when I'm doing professional research. We've noticed the trend here that I'm happier and much, much healthier when I maintain my preferred schedule, and that's an important thing. I just explain to anyone who questions why I'm still asleep at 9am that I'm on a swing shift schedule.

The sleep hygiene suggestions they have do tend to help, if maintaining a normal schedule is what you need to do. Good luck with it.

[unixronin.livejournal.com]

At Cygnus, I could work my own hours and it worked fine. At the moment, of course, I'm not working at all. :p

Still hoping to find something soon ....