“A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse.”
ol’ Bill Shakespeare
King Richard III may have needed a horse but I don’t. What I need is a decent night’s sleep.
As a lifelong insomniac, getting that decent night’s sleep is a bit of a challenge, and its not getting any easier as I age.
Unfortunately, sleep deprivation is a very bad, awful, no good thing.
Suppressed immune system.
Lack of focus.
Heightened stress.
And most of all, mood swings (and mental health problems).
If I want to be able to “navigate the third act through the grey mist of depression,” I need a good night’s sleep, and believe you me, Christmas holidays are not helpful in getting it.
“If you don’t schedule it, it doesn’t happen” is great advice, which is why I give it. But the devil, as they say, is in the details.
I can schedule a 6 am workout, so that I can schedule a lunchtime blog post.
I can schedule a 10 pm bed time, so that I can get up for a 6 am workout.
BUT.
I can’t make my insomniac ass go to sleep.
It’s a hard balance, trying to get up early enough to fulfil my schedule, but late enough to have gotten enough sleep that I’m not vulnerable to a depressive episode, and simultaneously be backing my sleep up to support the desired schedule.
Something had to give, and some of my writing and video creation will have to wait until my sleep is a bit better.
Focus.
Prioritize.
Choose.
