My Life on a Plate

Insomniacs United

Why is it when I'm feeling really, really tired and have difficulty even climbing the stairs, I then lie in bed tossing and turning for hours? Eventually I concede defeat, get up in the cold and dark to watch some crappy film until three in the morning.

Why is it that when light dawns and it's time to start the day, the sleep I longed for the night before is extremely difficult to fight off? It takes mammoth efforts to keep the eyelids open and get out of bed.

Why is it my hubby can fall asleep in an armchair with the T.V. blaring and beer glass still balanced in hand, yet wake up the minute I leave the room to crawl into bed?

Why is it he can then resume sleep before his head even hits the pillow and within seconds be making noises resembling a full orchestra, complete with brass, wind and percussion sections?

Why is it that animals don't seem to have sleeping problems? Cows and horses can sleep standing up, dogs can decide to take a nap in the middle of a game of 'fetch,' and my tortoise has no problem dropping off at the end of September and not waking until spring.

If you haven't already guessed I'm tired and having sleep problems. I won't let it worry me, but just find it such a pain. Napolean, Florence Nightingale and Margaret Thatcher all survived on four hours sleep a night apparently. No one knows exactly why we need to sleep, but I tend to agree with Thomas Edison who thought it a complete waste of time. Incidentally, did you know that -

Fish can't close their eyes as they have no eyelids and it's not certain they sleep at all.

Dolphins only sleep with half their brains as they need to be conscious to breathe.

Leonardo da Vinci slept 15 minutes out of every four hours - a daily total of one and a half hours.

Cows can sleep standing up but only dream lying down. {Now WHO researched that?}

The world record for sleep deprivation is held by Randy Gardiner who, in 1965 stayed awake for 14 and a half days.

I think I'd better stop now - I don't want to send anyone to sleep.