"Catch up sleep" trend....it has to stop!

[SnoozyQ]

I'm finding that no matter what my numbers are, how well I've slept or how long I've slept,I have a mid-week slump. I have to 'catch up' on sleep. I can tell that on the day I struggle, but still manage to get out of bed, the next day will be the day I can't get up. That was yesterday. I slept from 11pm Wed night until 11am Thurs, napped from 1:00pm-4:30pm and went to bed for the night at 10:45pm, sleeping until 6:00 am this morning.
Today, I feel great.
I don't sleep that much on weekends. I go to bed around 11 and wake on my own between 8-9 and remain busy during the day. If I nap at all, it's for about an hour on Sunday.

I cannot keep this up.

What am I doing wrong?

[Julie]

Maybe nothing, but odd things could possibly be at work, things you'd never think of normally, like a change in weather that coincidentally happens on the same weekday x 3 in a row (I know that rain just turns me into a narcoleptic !), or staying up late on Tues. to watch a particular show without realizing the time, or eating a planned weekly meal of heavy carbs vs the other days. I wouldn't worry too much about it, though maybe your body just needs a certain number of sleep hours and runs out at the same time each week. We still have a lot to learn about all this!

[SnoozyQ]

I do worry though....I miss a day of work per week. My 'as needed' medical leave will run out soon. I want normal weeks, with normal pay! No one at work really understands the struggle, so then I have to deal with the "I want to stay home and sleep too" looks, like I am lazy, instead of struggling with a medical condition.

[Amigo]

Your therapy is only slightly over four months in duration. Nevertheless, I would suggest that unless your statistics are monitored and reviewed professionally you'll never know what, if anything, you're doing "wrong."

[bap40]

When I first started therapy, I would sleep 12-14 hrs at night. Luckily for me I only work part time. I also was still taking naps here and there. It took a long time for things to settle down to a more normal sleeping pattern.

[Jaylee]

When I first got my machine I slept a lot, too. I think maybe you just have a sleep debt to pay off, so I wouldn't worry too much about the extra sleep as long as your numbers are good. Eventually my body maintained at about 7.5 to 8 hours of sleep a night, waking up without an alarm.

[kentoboo]

SnoozyQ- I was always told that if you miss sleep, it cannot be made up. I am not sure about all this sleep debt needing to be made up. I have been on cpap sine Nov. and I sleep no more than before. I tend to think like another poster said, there are other variables going on with you. That one day you mentioned is way too much sleep and missing a day of work per week is not normal. Are you depressed?

[SnoozyQ]

I was diagnosed with depression years ago and treated with medication. I never felt the need to sleep that much, even prior to the depression dx. Only within the past 8 mths or so.

[BlackSpinner]

Maybe you are feeling too good and over doing things at work and home. You need to learn to pace your self. I did the same thing at first. You wrung your body out for at least a year before you got your machine, you are out of shape and have no endurance built up yet.

[ArtMovesTheSoul]

You may not be doing anything "wrong". As others have mentioned your activity level may now be higher than you are used to. You may also wish to have your regular doctor check your TSH levels. A thyroid problem can leave one feeling fatigued and run down and unable to function well. I had both OSA and a thyroid problem, both now well treated by my cpap and supplemental thyroid. The good news is that both issues can be easily addressed after a brief adjustment period.

I had a terrible time adjusting to my initial CPAP treatment. I went through a UP3 surgery (there is no pain like it...) and after that recovery, I was bound and determined to get the best sleep I could and got used to my CPAP. Now all I have to to do is strap the mask on and I'm out. After 6 years I'm getting a new S9 and a Quattro full face mask early next week and I look forward to the device and mask. I had used an Ultra Mirage but recently ran into issues getting a consistent fit as my face seems to have changed shape a bit as I've gotten older

Hang in there. It's likely you'll get to the root of your problem with patience and a firm desire to take care of yourself.

[Cuda]

14 hours of sleep in a day? Is that actual sleep or just time spent in bed resting? I don't believe the sleep debt thing myself 100%. I am sure it applies short term as I have seen it with my kids. If one is sick and does not get much sleep for a few days it takes a few days of "extreme sleeping" to get caught up. I have missed about 23 years of sleep or so the doctor has said but I feel if I can just get to a point of sleeping 6-8 hours a day for a few months everything will be alright.

Maybe thats wishful thinking on my part.

[SnoozyQ]

Cuda, that's actual sleep. And if my dogs didn't need to be fed and taken outside, I would keep sleeping.

TSH levels were checked in Nov. and they were normal.

I do think endurance is an issue. I really just run out of gas midweek, I have a sleep day (refuel) and then I'm fine again. I just don't want that to be the 'new' pattern. I guess I will just have to be more patient and give it more time....

[Big S]

Thank God I'm retired. I don't have to fight naps or catching up to years of abuse. I do have more energy since starting cpap use. In my lab test, my oxygen saturation got as low as 55%. The difference between then and now is so great that I can't help feeling better. I do easily outpace myself, however, but I think I'll have no problem dialing back if I put a grandkid on my lap.