Amarok Blog

So this blog entry is a bit like "Ask Slashdot", but instead I'm turning to our community

The thing is, I'm a light sleeper. Always have been, for some reason. When I'm at home in my known territory and daily routine, I usually have no problems sleeping well at night. I get my good 7 hours sleep at night like everyone else does, pretty much. But when I'm abroad, like at a conference or on vacation, getting good sleep really is much more difficult for me, and it takes its toll.

Usually it works like this: First day I'm all fresh and in my usual good mood; then in the night I will probably sleep for four hours, and spend the rest of the night staring at the wall in my hotel room. One night without good sleep isn't much of a problem, so I'm still in pretty good shape on the next day. In the evening we have a few drinks (who doesn't enjoy that), and now the alcohol additionally messes with my sleep, I get maybe three hours sleep and the rest is again spent in bed awake. By the third day I finally look like a complete zombie. All energy and creatitivity is drained, and I'm not much fun to be around.

Reasons? I don't know for sure. For one, I'm simply excited when at a conference, it clearly raises adrenaline levels. Then I can't really "switch off" in the night. Additionally there's the unfamiliarity of the surroundings, and such. I do sometimes envy people who can just sleep whenever and wherever they want. Like my stepsister, who can sleep soundly for 10 hours, and then some, and still enjoy it.


Any of you suffering from the same issues? Got some good advice?