Lack of sleep and fatigue

[Unconditioned]

So last night I chose to celebrate cinco de mayo with some friends and got in a bit late. I woke up very tired this morning and all day I've been strongly identified with my thoughts/body/ego/etc. However, when I had a good night's sleep a few days ago, I was very alert/aware mentally and even though it was a tough day I was unaffected by the external circumstances.

 

So my question is this: under fatigue is it possible to remain in a hightened state of awareness even though the external challenges may be greater? Or is it essential that in order to not get caught up in the dream (so to speak) the body needs to be well rested and in good health?

[trailmaker]

So last night I chose to celebrate cinco de mayo with some friends and got in a bit late. I woke up very tired this morning and all day I've been strongly identified with my thoughts/body/ego/etc. However, when I had a good night's sleep a few days ago, I was very alert/aware mentally and even though it was a tough day I was unaffected by the external circumstances.

 

So my question is this: under fatigue is it possible to remain in a hightened state of awareness even though the external challenges may be greater? Or is it essential that in order to not get caught up in the dream (so to speak) the body needs to be well rested and in good health?

 

 

rest/health of course beneficial anyway, and healthy stress levels can heighten awareness in every way.

 

at one time i was a paramedic in a busy city.

 

can guarantee that with enough sleep deprivation and on-the-job stress one can get caught up in a nightmare

(in a heightened state, mind ya', but the awareness is other than pleasant.) took a few days off 'til sleep

and practices returned to usual. didn't drink any coffee in the meantime, ha.

[Unconditioned]

rest/health of course beneficial anyway, and healthy stress levels can heighten awareness in every way.

 

at one time i was a paramedic in a busy city.

 

can guarantee that with enough sleep deprivation and on-the-job stress one can get caught up in a nightmare

(in a heightened state, mind ya', but the awareness is other than pleasant.) took a few days off 'til sleep

and practices returned to usual. didn't drink any coffee in the meantime, ha.

 

Good point about being aware... I have a hard time describing what I mean by that. I'll try though, in the state of no thought our BEing is not caught up in anything... that is the state that I refer to as being 'aware'. I don't like to add a noun to that Aware of _____ because it ends up being an object of the mind.

 

So after lack of sleep, I notice that it's more difficult (personally) to be calm and in the no-thought state. Even when trying to meditate after lack of sleep or fatigue I find it much more difficult to resist the temptation of associating my BEing with my thoughts/emotions/etc.

 

I'm guessing that it is very possible to not make that choice when tired but it also seems much easier to get caught in thoughts when tired. Could this have to do with lack of energy when the body isn't properly cared for? Does anything i'm saying make any sense at all? lol.

[Aetherous]

You can definitely train yourself to stay very awake and aware while being totally exhausted (done it), but the repercussions of that are not good (constant sympathetic arousal, amongst other things).

 

It's good to sleep when tired. It's good to not get into the habit of staying up when the day ends.

[Gats]

I have battled with this problem for many years. It seems for me when I don't get enough rest and sleep, my will is weaker and I'm more likely to get caught up in negative thought patterns, resenting the whole world including myself for preventing me from getting enough rest.

 

At least for me, dreaming has much to do with it. We all need to dream but with my 12th house moon there is a certain amount a dreaming that needs to be done every night for me to be emotionally (as well as all levels) balanced. If I go more than 1 night of sleeping less than 7 hours, I'm in trouble. I'm certainly envious of those who can live on 6 hours or less every night and still be happy and energetic.

 

Chronic Fatigue Syndrome is a prevalent issue among a few close friends as well. I have numerous theories of why but that's a whole different story

[Ian]

So my question is this: under fatigue is it possible to remain in a hightened state of awareness even though the external challenges may be greater? Or is it essential that in order to not get caught up in the dream (so to speak) the body needs to be well rested and in good health?

 

I had experience of this just this weekend. And found the same as you: When I'm really tired I tend to be a miserable bastard. But half an hour's practice made a big difference.

 

The danger, for me, is letting the negative voices say that I'm too tired to practice, or that it won't do any good. I actually find, on the contrary, that practice while tired can be very effective, like I haven't got the energy to get in my own way either.

[trailmaker]

Good point about being aware... I have a hard time describing what I mean by that. I'll try though, in the state of no thought our BEing is not caught up in anything... that is the state that I refer to as being 'aware'. I don't like to add a noun to that Aware of _____ because it ends up being an object of the mind.

 

So after lack of sleep, I notice that it's more difficult (personally) to be calm and in the no-thought state. Even when trying to meditate after lack of sleep or fatigue I find it much more difficult to resist the temptation of associating my BEing with my thoughts/emotions/etc.

 

I'm guessing that it is very possible to not make that choice when tired but it also seems much easier to get caught in thoughts when tired. Could this have to do with lack of energy when the body isn't properly cared for? Does anything i'm saying make any sense at all? lol.

 

 

nice take on 'being aware'. making plenty sense.

 

guess over time i pigeonholed all else 'work yoga', some days better than others, of course.

 

daily awareness is energy.

[Uncle Fester]

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Edited September 19, 2021 by darebak

[Stigweard]

As a professional Sleep Consultant I find this an interesting subject. There are two phases of sleep that are of primary importance ... Level IV delta sleep and REM (rapid eye movement) sleep.

 

During the Level IV sleep our body undergoes vital physical restoration. This is where the bodily tissues are being repaired and also where our nervous system and metabolism are being 'reset'.

 

REM sleep is where we are dreaming. The common science behind dreams, at least on the mundane level, is that this is where our minds assimilate our daily experiences and files them into our memories.

 

From this basic understanding I would be willing to venture to say that our Level IV sleep is most relevant to Jing whilst our REM sleep is relevant to our Shen.

 

So, under the effects of sleep deprivation, our Jing and Shen are 'out of whack' and our ability to function normally is impaired. In response to the OP, I feel confident to say that, with the disruption to our healthy expression of Shen and Jing, our consciousness would definately be degraded more into the Yin Shen state.

Edited May 6, 2009 by Stigweard

[trailmaker]

As a professional Sleep Consultant I find this an interesting subject. There are two phases of sleep that are of primary importance ... Level IV delta sleep and REM (rapid eye movement) sleep.

 

During the Level IV sleep our body undergoes vital physical restoration. This is where the bodily tissues are being repaired and also where our nervous system and metabolism are being 'reset'.

 

REM sleep is where we are dreaming. The common science behind dreams, at least on the mundane level, is that this is where our minds assimilate our daily experiences and files them into our memories.

 

From this basic understanding I would be willing to venture to say that our Level IV sleep is most relevant to Jing whilst our REM sleep is relevant to our Shen.

 

So, under the effects of sleep deprivation, our Jing and Shen are 'out of whack' and our ability to function normally is impaired. In response to the OP, I feel confident to say that, with the disruption to our healthy expression of Shen and Jing, our consciousness would definately be degraded more into the Yin Shen state.

 

.

a good teacher guided me to delta level IV sleep in a way that includes REM. great siestas.

 

the chemistry of sleep is a fascinating topic.

[Deepbluesea]

And if you were out late on 5/5 doing tequila shots until 4 am what does that do to your REM and delta level IV? Not saying that you were but some of us were ...

 

Any hints on "powernaps". I think I have found that a half hour of meditation on emptiness is better than an actual nap. I have sometimes wondered about staying up for long periods with meditation instead of sleep.

[Ya Mu]

 

Any hints on "powernaps". I think I have found that a half hour of meditation on emptiness is better than an actual nap. I have sometimes wondered about staying up for long periods with meditation instead of sleep.

 

I practice and teach a "spiral" qigong rejuvenation form. 45 minutes is as good as a 3 hr nap. Can't tell you how to do it over internet; have to go over it and over it in the workshops. Not hard to do, though.

[joeblast]

Any hints on "powernaps". I think I have found that a half hour of meditation on emptiness is better than an actual nap. I have sometimes wondered about staying up for long periods with meditation instead of sleep.

Meditation all the way, the more in practice you are the more benefit you can derive from it. Embryonic longevity breathing is what I do for something that. But that's a practice in and of itself

 

I've been sleep deprived for great long periods of my life. Currently am right now, in fact.

[h.uriahr]

I've been working since April 5th, literally everyday now. I had to pull an actual 29 hour workday and got to sleep at the 37 hr mark. I was tired mentally and physically to say the least. I'm sure with proper training you can pretty much sleep or not sleep for as long as you'd like. Meditation is similar to sleep in that your body and mind are relaxed and resting so I'm sure it's possible to go without sleeping indefinitely. Can I do it? Right now that's a huge NO. I need rest.

[Todd]

 

So my question is this: under fatigue is it possible to remain in a hightened state of awareness even though the external challenges may be greater? Or is it essential that in order to not get caught up in the dream (so to speak) the body needs to be well rested and in good health?

 

This is something I've been exploring recently as well, though more to do with physical pain. I'll just tell you whats come up, but keep in mind that it is very much an exploration.

 

I would say that there is no set condition that must be met for us to recognize truth. If our state changes and the recognition of truth seems to change with it, then it means that we have confused truth with a state. This is an opportunity to explore the ways in which we are misperceiving/misconceptualizing our experience. What I seem to find, in this particular sort of misperception, is that I have identified truth with a feeling. This is interesting, since feelings come and go, and if I don't seek any particular feeling, then emptiness is clear. Another way of saying that emptiness is clear is that things take on more of their natural functioning.

 

There are a lot of approaches to resolving mispeceptions, and it really depends on how deep you want to go. But just opening the question up is the most important part. It allows the possibility of clarification.

[Unconditioned]

This is something I've been exploring recently as well, though more to do with physical pain. I'll just tell you whats come up, but keep in mind that it is very much an exploration.

 

I would say that there is no set condition that must be met for us to recognize truth. If our state changes and the recognition of truth seems to change with it, then it means that we have confused truth with a state. This is an opportunity to explore the ways in which we are misperceiving/misconceptualizing our experience. What I seem to find, in this particular sort of misperception, is that I have identified truth with a feeling. This is interesting, since feelings come and go, and if I don't seek any particular feeling, then emptiness is clear. Another way of saying that emptiness is clear is that things take on more of their natural functioning.

 

There are a lot of approaches to resolving mispeceptions, and it really depends on how deep you want to go. But just opening the question up is the most important part. It allows the possibility of clarification.

 

Wow, that hit home for me... tired or not our energy levels may vary but we're still conscious... very good point.