[lbsf1]

Hi guys, I have a real problem with sleeping in class, most lessons unless I'm actively working in a group I will fall asleep and there is almost nothing I can do to stop my body falling asleep the urge is so strong.

Some days when I have certain lessons I will be apsolutely fine, however other days certain lessons (not neccessarily boring ones either.) will cause it.

I'm 16, I only get 7 hours of sleep a night, however I'm not sure this is the problem since certain days I won't feel tired at all, and all the time I'm at home I don't even feel slightly tired. In lessons I will either be apsolutely fine and not feel any urge to sleep or it will be so strong there is almost nothing I can do about it.

Any help or tips. Its really irritating since teacher get pee'd off with me, and I miss important things. grr

[hcam]

What time do you go to sleep? I think the best time to sleep is ten or eleven.

[lbsf1]

I get to sleep at about 10.30 however have to get up at 5.30 for a paperround.

[c471]

Look at your diet. Eat more complex carbs, things like porridge, oats, flapjack to have a gradual energy release. Bannanas as a snack mid morning if you feel dozy.

Take a bottle of water and keep sipping it. Remarkable how well it works.

Examine your sleep pattern too.

[hcam]

Oh. Maybe go to sleep at ten.

[Miracle Day]

There's actually a disease that causes this. I can't name it from the top of my head.

[LtCommanderData]

Caffeine? Bring in a thermos with some coffee in and drink a bit of it between classes to keep you going.

[lbsf1]

Thanks guys. I will try the water idea and going to bed at 10, my diet is already pretty good. I'm one of those lucky people who can eat tonnes and stay thin .

Miracle if you could find me the name of it then that would be great so I can do some more research.

[c471]

(Original post by LtCommanderData)
Caffeine? Bring in a thermos with some coffee in and drink a bit of it between classes to keep you going.

This is a terrible idea.

It is well established that small doses caffeine actually only works really well to people who consume a lot of caffeine. starting to drink coffee/tea just creates the need to consume caffeine to reach the level of awakeness that a non caffeine drinker would experience.
Same concept as people who smoke in the mornings. Fags dont wake you up, you just feel more **** because you crave nicotine.

Not to mention anything like this is simply an energy transfer. You add energy at one point, but at the cost of energy levels later on. if this crash is while you are in class, you are worse off than when you started.

[c471]

(Original post by lbsf1)
Thanks guys. I will try the water idea and going to bed at 10, my diet is already pretty good. I'm one of those lucky people who can eat tonnes and stay thin .

Miracle if you could find me the name of it then that would be great so I can do some more research.

narcolepsy is the only thing i can think of.

however, that is not what you have. narcoleptics fall asleep in abnormal situations.
You are falling asleep sitting down while struggling to concentrate - hardly a rare occurance in healthy people.

narcoleptics can fall asleep mid-sentance, when they laugh, all sorts of triggers depending on the condition.

there arent many undiagnosed narcoleptics I suspect. Doesnt matter how stupid you are, you dont have to fall asleep every time you sneeze many times to realise something is up.

[LtCommanderData]

(Original post by c471)
It is well established that small doses caffeine actually only works really well to people who consume a lot of caffeine. starting to drink coffee/tea just creates the need to consume caffeine to reach the level of awakeness that a non caffeine drinker would experience.

I am extremely sceptical towards this claim. I almost never drink coffee, and don't often have tea either. Certainly not enough to have developed such a dependency as you describe. On the rare occasions that I do drink coffee, though, it makes me very noticeably more awake.

[c471]

(Original post by LtCommanderData)
I am extremely sceptical towards this claim. I almost never drink coffee, and don't often have tea either. Certainly not enough to have developed such a dependency as you describe. On the rare occasions that I do drink coffee, though, it makes me very noticeably more awake.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/20...alert-caffeine
http://www.bris.ac.uk/news/2010/7051.html

[CopperPlate]

I can see why your teacher would be upset!

Possibility: Environment: Has anyone checked the classrom for gasleaks, is anyone else affected, could you stay awake if you took your work to the library?
So the thing about different days could actually be about one room?

Lifestyle: Would it be possible to switch to an afterschool paper-round or a weekend job, instead of the early morning?

General health: If you can eat lots and stay thin (lucky you) but you're always ridiculously tired, has anyone thought to check for diabetes? GP can do a quick test or even the practice nurse.

Now, off to bed!

[LtCommanderData]

(Original post by c471)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/20...alert-caffeine
http://www.bris.ac.uk/news/2010/7051.html

Hmm, interesting. Thanks for the links.

[moya]

get more sleep?

[siwelmail]

(Original post by lbsf1)
Hi guys, I have a real problem with sleeping in class, most lessons unless I'm actively working in a group I will fall asleep and there is almost nothing I can do to stop my body falling asleep the urge is so strong.

Some days when I have certain lessons I will be apsolutely fine, however other days certain lessons (not neccessarily boring ones either.) will cause it.

I'm 16, I only get 7 hours of sleep a night, however I'm not sure this is the problem since certain days I won't feel tired at all, and all the time I'm at home I don't even feel slightly tired. In lessons I will either be apsolutely fine and not feel any urge to sleep or it will be so strong there is almost nothing I can do about it.

Any help or tips. Its really irritating since teacher get pee'd off with me, and I miss important things. grr

Go bed at 10 latest.

[danny111]

The solution I found - find your sleep pattern. I had lectures starting at 8am for my masters, which I was not used to at all. The first 3 Monday mornings I fell asleep. By the 4th and 5th I stayed awake with coke (I cant stand coffee), and after that I stayed awake without it even.

You need to have a pattern. Your body copes much better if you do the same thing every day. It is harder to adapt if you vary your go to bed times and get up times every day. Now you said you get up at 5.30am for paper round - so this suggests to me you should try to go to bed earlier.

Second, exercise. After a week you will start to feel a lot more energized. When I jog regularly I am much fitter in general, I'm almost only sick during the times when I'm lazy and don't exercise.

Finally, maybe it's just something in your genes. My dad almost always falls asleep in front of the TV in the evening. In the last 6-12 months I started doing this too. I fall asleep more easily when I am concentrating on something else (TV/class) than when I go to bed and concentrate on trying to sleep.

[Sarahg95]

Hi I can completely relate to you, I'm EXACTLY the same. Its hard for me to keep my eyes open if the teacher is going on for too long, esspecially if they turn the light off.

Also when i laugh too much I collapse and lose control of my muscles in my body.

I've been tested for Narcolepsy, I've been like this for almost 3 years now. I've had teachers having a go on me too, I'm 16 as well.

Reasearch it, if you have similar symptomes then go to the Doctors and try to get tested for it. I'm trying to get it sorted now before my exams next year.

I wish you luck!!