Thread: What sets your sleep schedule?

In another thread, Bruno commented that my "extra" hours of sleep are a luxury. It just got me to wondering about how much sleep people get and what factors determine the amount of time. So, if you like, please share with us (or me) how much sleep you get per night and why. Feel free to include any other info might be relevant.

I'm a grad student in education, so student teaching determines my wakeup time. I am fortunate insofar as classes at the school at which I student teach don't start until 8:30, but I get there at 8 to help set up and review the day's plans. I try to get to bed by 10:30, but that typically turns into 11. First alarm in the morning is 6:40, but feet touchdown at 7:00.

So, in summary:
Grad student/student teaching
2300-0700

I usually get about 6 hours of sleep per night. I am up by 5:30 or 6:00 depending upon my kids and/or my dogs. I go to sleep at about 9:00 p.m., but my job worries and workplace deadlines/stresses/requriements wake me up in the middle of the night more often than not, and so I go downstairs and work at 2:00a.m. for a couple of hours.

Matt

Two factors set my sleep schedule. Baby and Work. I sleep as early as I can, usually around 11 or 12 unless I'm working later and get up when I have to, usually around 7:30 unless the wife and boy let me sleep in when I need it. I get about 8 hours per night. Any night that I don't means that I suffer the next day and will eventually need to make it up. I used to sleep 7 hours per night, but that was before fatherhood. Of course, I'm not counting the times he wakes us up in the middle of the night which is thankfully decreasing now that he's almost 7 months old.

X

I actually set my schedule to enable me to get in a workout. We have a fitness center at my office, and if I'm in by 7:00 I can get a good hour and a half and still get home before curfew.

I get up at about 4:45, shower, shave (which takes a bit longer with the new equipment) and head for DC. It helps with the commute because it's before the main rush.

j

To bed - 23:00 or a bit later; Up - 06:15-ish...depends on the puppy. Getting up is followed by a mad rush to the door to get the critter out before the bladder gives way. Eat, shower, shave, let critter out again, and on the road by 07:30-ish. Get to the office by 08:00 or so and then sit and listen to tunes and drink my coffee until 08:30....time needed to decompress after dealing with the Non-Drivers around here (cell phones, lattes, make-up reading the paper, riding the brakes, going 10 under the limit in the left lane...you name it, we have it).

Weekends....same up time, but then back to bed once the critter is empty.

2 year old and 3 1/2 year old set my sleep schedule.

About 6-7 hours a night generally

Originally Posted by mhailey

I usually get about 6 hours of sleep per night. I am up by 5:30 or 6:00 depending upon my kids and/or my dogs. I go to sleep at about 9:00 p.m., but my job worries and workplace deadlines/stresses/requriements wake me up in the middle of the night more often than not, and so I go downstairs and work at 2:00a.m. for a couple of hours.

Matt

Just out of curiosity: have you ever tried working longer in the evening so that you can go to bed at midnight and have 6 hours of uninterrupted sleep?

The only thing set about my schedule is the fact that I have to get up at 6:30 to get to work. That way I can stop early and get the kids from daycare / school.
My wife gets up together with me, but she stays with the kids to drop them off at school / daycare.
She works until 18:00 or more common 18:30

In the evening, the 'me' time doesn't start until kids are in bed and the household work is done. This is roughly 20:00.

That is when I can finally work on a razor, do some coding, work out on the excercise bike...
So usually I go to bed just slightly before midnight if I am working on something or other so that I can get something done.

I'd like to be the one working late instead of my wife, but when she accepted the promotion to supervisor of the microbiology group, we both knew that that was not possible anymore.
It's a pity, because I am much more productive in the afternoon, and even more so in the evenings.

I also hate getting up before 6:30.
In my consulting days I sometimes had to get up at 5:30, depending on where I had to go. But if I have to get up that early, I am truly in a foul mood , and my wife knows not to expect anything decent to come out of my mouth before I've had my first coffee.

I generally wake up at 7:00am, go to work, fit in a few classes, get home by 7:00pm (except tues. & thurs. which is more like 9:00), work on razors (honing/smithing) for a few hours, work on any material that I need to cover for the next days classes, shave, go to sleep by 2:00 or 3:00am. Do it all over again. And again. And again.... until the weekend in which case I keep the same hours but have a little more freedom.

I've just never slept much, so 4 to 6 hours is about average. On vacations I can sleep 8 hours, but I don't really like to.

Originally Posted by Bruno

I also hate getting up before 6:30.
In my consulting days I sometimes had to get up at 5:30, depending on where I had to go. But if I have to get up that early, I am truly in a foul mood , and my wife knows not to expect anything decent to come out of my mouth before I've had my first coffee.

Eww, I feel for ya. At least coffee helps your mood. Back when I had to get up around 6:30, I wasn't a conversant human until about 8:30 or 9. I will never be a morning person. I much rather midday and afternoon for doing anything work related that requires thought (or conversation). What kills me the most though is not getting the exact amount of sleep I need. For me, right around 6 hours is perfect. Too much or too little causes me to be drowsy longer. The only problem is that I have to force myself to stay up later in order to get the right amount. Hence my 3 AM posts