I sleep SO MUCH!!!

[Kirsten1983]

Hi everyone,

I seem to have opposite problem to most.

I seem never to have grown out of the teenager "I can sleep for 12hours easily" thing. I'm 32 this year!

My fitbit reflects this - sometimes I struggle to get to sleep but when I do, I don't wake AT ALL until my alarm goes.  It's HELL to get out of bed as well, even after 9-10 hours, to go to work. At weekends I can sleep 12-14hours, almost all day if I'm hungover!!  I've got a sunrise alarm clock, a nice wake up tune and a vibration from my fitbit and it's still HELL!

I've tested my fitbit on my parents - they wake 4-5 times a night so I believe it's recording accurately.

Is there something wrong with me?! If I don't wake up at all then does that mean I'm NOT lazy?  I don't have a hard physical job or anything.  I am on antidepressants tho.  (Citalapram).

Any suggestions welcome!

[GoldaT · Accepted solution]

I'm on antidepressants too.  I keep my doctor apprised of any and all "symptoms" in case the meds need adjustment. I suggest that you talk to your doctor about your antidepressant ---- it may be too strong for you and may be causing the oversleeping.  Your doctor may be able to suggest a different antidepressant that won't cause this problem.  Good luck.  GoldaT.

[Odyssey13 · Accepted solution]

@Kirsten1983  Once you're out of bed, are you tired?

The meds you're taking can make it hard to get to sleep, which explains your struggle with it. Have you done any research on Citalapram? You shouldn't be drinking while taking it and you've mentioned being hungover.

Have you spoken to your health care professional about this? The answer could be as simple as a change of medication or some tests to determine the root cause of this.

If you don't already, try keeping a journal of your sleep as well as your acitivities. Maybe you and your doctor can figure something out.

Welcome to the forums.

[Kirsten1983]

Hey thanks guys for answering my query.

When I actually get up, I am usually fine within a minute or two.  Even if I've had "only" 7-8 hours. 

I have always had this problem -  also when I was on fluoxtine and even if on no mediation - but then unmedicated depression can make you feel tired.  It's complicated, eh?!

Yeah, there are so many reasons to knock the booze on the head.  Easier said than done though!

I just have such a comfy, quiet bed and maybe I'm just a lazy cow to be honest.  But my sleep graphs look as if I'm dead!! It's just one big long blue line for 12 hours.  Maybe with a tiny pink blip if my mum comes in to try and wake me!

Thanks again...I will mention it to my Dr.  Hadn't realised just how different my sleep is to others'.  Rather this way than insomnia though!! That sounds like real hell!

[GoldaT]

@Kirsten1983: Glad you're going to discuss this with your doctor. Your
sleep pattern may be normal for you but better to get it checked out by
doctor. You're right about unmedicated depression being hell --- worse,
maybe, than with medication. Best wishes for good outcome. GoldaT.

[icarusgurl]

I found this interesting.  I'm on two antidepressants and one makes me jittery.  I had 19 "restless" moments and 5 "wakeful" during my 9 hours of sleep last night. 

I am considering talking to my doctor about changing my meds if this is consistent.

[Odyssey13]

@icarusgurl  Everyone is different with their sleep. I used to have more restless and awake moments before switching from sensitive mode to normal mode.

Welcome to the forums.

[Sabrinamoore84]

---

@Kirsten1983 wrote:

Hi everyone,

I seem to have opposite problem to most.

I seem never to have grown out of the teenager "I can sleep for 12hours easily" thing. I'm 32 this year!

My fitbit reflects this - sometimes I struggle to get to sleep but when I do, I don't wake AT ALL until my alarm goes.  It's HELL to get out of bed as well, even after 9-10 hours, to go to work. At weekends I can sleep 12-14hours, almost all day if I'm hungover!!  I've got a sunrise alarm clock, a nice wake up tune and a vibration from my fitbit and it's still HELL!

I've tested my fitbit on my parents - they wake 4-5 times a night so I believe it's recording accurately.

Is there something wrong with me?! If I don't wake up at all then does that mean I'm NOT lazy?  I don't have a hard physical job or anything.  I am on antidepressants tho.  (Citalapram).

Any suggestions welcome!

---

It is definately that medication! I sleep a lot as well so I had a sleep study that found I have narcolepsy. Before that I was on Citalapram because narcolepsy is often misdiagnosed as depression. That medication made me extra tired. I am not saying that there could be something else wrong with you, but the medication is definately one to make you feel so tired. After I fell asleep driving because I took the medication, I weened myself off of it and went back to the doctor to request a sleep study. There are some things to avoid such as caffeine and sugar before bed because these chemicals cause us to crash and feel more tired. Try to go to bed at the same time each night and get 8 hours of sleep. Avoid stimulants of any kind including TV and computers while in bed trying to go to sleep. That is what my doctor told me. If you do all of this and try to wake up at the same time each morning and you are still that tired, I would suggest talking to your doctor and get off of that medication. If that still does not work, you should get a sleep study. That is my advice.

[Shelbeegirl]

Hi Kirsten,

Your post was interesting to me. I am 52 years old and I can also sleep any time and for multiple hours at a time. This has been my norm for years. I too wake up and wait a few minutes and I resume my get up and go! I take Lexapro and it made me wonder if that might be my dilema too. I am very energetic during the day and I conk out at night. People have commented, as long as I can remember, about how much I sleep. I am a nurse at a very busy hospital andwork twelve hour shifts 3 x week. Any ideas? Any thoughts would be glad appreciated.

Thanks, Shelbeegirl

[Shelbeegirl]

Thanks! Such great and educated advice. !

Shelbeegirl

[Sabrinamoore84]

I would suggest getting an appointment with a sleep specialist doctor or
having a sleep study. If they rule out the medication then you may have a
sleep disorder. It is not normal for one to lie down and be asleep before 8
minutes. I have narcolepsy and am asleep in 2.5 minutes after I lie down.
Hopefully there is a lung specialist or sleep study doctor where you work.
They will do a sleep apnea test overnight first before doing the multiple
sleep latency test (MSLT). I am in an online narcolepsy support group on
Facebook and you are not the only nurse with these types of symptoms.

--
Sabrina M.Riddell, ASMBC, BSBA, MBA

[trainer]

And on the flip side, some people really do just sleep a lot. I have a very active busy life. I take no meds. For as long as I can remember, I lay down and am asleep in less than 5 minutes every night. My fitbit backs this up. I wake up maybe once a night to go to the bathroom and have 94-98% sleep per fitbit every night. I happily sleep 12 hours if I can, otherwise I sleep 7 hours. I am good with either amount but prefer the 12 hours. I've slept this way my whole life and have never thought there was was anything wrong with me. My dad slept this way as well and my  mom used to always tease us that our sleep was clearly genetic as no one else in the family slept like this (they are all early risers and complain constantly about insomnia). My fitbit shows that I move around while asleep (restless) about every hour, with much longer stretches of not moving at all happening toward the end of my sleep (the last 2-3 hours). My dr says as long as I feel rested and I perceive my sleep as normal I am fine.

[Sabrinamoore84]

Well if you move a lot in the middle of the night and are restless then
that is why you are so tired and fall asleep within five minutes of lying
down. Makes sense. Have you ever heard of restless leg syndrome? Also, you
can get steps while you are asleep.

--
Sabrina M.Riddell, ASMBC, BSBA, MBA

[Tisagillis]

Based on experence I would suggest a sleep study.  The fitbit will give you a high level idea of what's going on but cannot detect the fine level of brain activity while you are asleep. It records when you move around while sleeping.   I am bipolar and have taken lots of different meds over the years.  While taking citalapram (Celexa) I  could not stay awake.  Could not stay awake at work  and nearly fell asleep driving a few times, which was scary.  A sleep study showed that my brain waves indicated that I was "rousing" about every 3 min through the night, which is basically coming near awake.  No wonder my sleep was not restorative.  Upon eliminating the Celexa my sleep patterns improved very quickly.  I find that I still need a solid 8 hours of sleep, but my doctor assured me that everyone is different and that's just normal for me.  The important thing is that I'm able to wake up not feeling tired all day.  I've had I couple other issues with SSRIs, but this was the worst.  Ask your doctor to order a sleep study.  

[lml124]

I was browsing the forum and this is the closest post to what I experience. I fall asleep in less than 5 minutes, basically as soon as I close my eyes and I stay asleep until morning. I sleep hard. Most days I sleep through my phone alarm, fitbit vibrating alarm and my alarm clock. My sleep efficiency is usually 99-100% and I average 6.5 hours. When I get 8+, I have so much trouble shaking sleep. But with 6 or 7, once I"m up, I'm up.

I do wake up when my husband gets up and 9/10 times when my toddler starts playing in his room when he wakes up.

My sleep area is completely blue, with just that red line in the beginning and when I wake up/lay in bed after I wake up for a few minutes.

If I'm tired, I can fall asleep as soon as I sit down, even if I'm in room full of people. I sometimes avoid couches for this reason. My husband and close friends tease me, but I've always been like this. It might be a bit worse since I had my 21 month old, but I figure I'm just tired from taking care of him, normal chores, working and exercise.

Is this NOT normal?

[Journeymanjoe]

lml124 your sleep is not normal! Normal people do not fall asleep randomly in the middle of the day. Sounds like Narcolepsy or some other sleep disorder, there are many with similar symptoms. You will have to see a sleep specialist to find out for sure. Make sure you find a good one though. I was tested for sleep apnea 12 and 17 years ago, both times they said it was not that bad. I was diagnosed with Narcolepsy after the second sleep study without doing the MSLT. Tested last summer for sleep apnea again and now I have severe sleep apnea (stop breathing 39 times an hour). This doctor doesn't think I have Narcolepsy (had the genetic test, negative), she thinks that I had sleep apnea the whole time. Slight chance that I could still have Narcolepsy, but not worth stopping my medicine to take the MSLT to determine once and for all. As far as your Fitbit registering sound sleep all night, mine shows the same thing on normal tracking, set yours to sensitive tracking and it will show more movement.