Does anyone struggle with excessive sleeping?

This is one area that even during Covid Lockdowns, I’ve always been very self-disciplined in and have not had many problems with over the years - between 10pm - Midnight (at the absolute latest 3am) I try to at least wind down for bedtime and I get up at 7am or 8am regardless - I also try to avoid “napping” during the afternoon (which is a very bad habit) - this is different again while travelling, as I can never sleep on an overnight coach, train nor ferry as I go by SailRail from Manchester when going home to Ireland - you can’t sleep on the coach out of Manchester, as you have to change coaches before you even get to Holyhead and it’s the same with the trains - once on the ferry, the crossing time from Holyhead to Dublin is only 3 hours so it’s pointless getting a cabin or napping on the seats, especially during a rough crossing on the Irish Sea so that by the time you arrive in Dublin at 6am you are dog tired and only want to sleep for the rest of that day - being stranded in Holyhead for 2 days during the train strike in October 2022 on arrival back from Ireland was a nightmare after being stuck in Dublin Port the whole of the previous day until 9pm and getting into Holyhead after midnight, as usually the trains to Manchester dont leave Holyhead for 4 hours - trying to stay awake after 4 hours is horrible 

As someone who is having a bad run of little sleep at the moment, I wish that we could share it around and us insomniacs could syphon off some of your excess.

I wouldn't worry too much about whether excess sleep relates to autism or not. 

I can say I envy you! I have regular sleep disruptions I don’t know why. I wish I could just sleep a night without having to pace my kitchen for an hour to finally fall asleep 

Nope. I find excessive sleeping to be easy, and it comes naturally!

Yes i have always needed a lot of sleep, even when there was no explanation for it. I used to worry about getting over tired as i used to connect it to feeling unwell. Thats how it felt.

What i have realised only recently, is that i need that sleep, that rest. I no longer fight it. I love sleep  

Thank you, I get free prescriptions.

I use Holland and Barrett, timed release vit B12 1000ug to manage my low energy. It might be cheaper and easier than a prescription charge, but consult with your doctor first if you are under the "care" of one..  

Thanks for sharing, yes, I think I need a lot of sleep to help with the processing of my brain. Most likely a good nine to ten hours. I will have a think, thank you. 

Thank you very much for your insight and for sharing those tips. 

That’s a good idea about making it work for me. If I’m losing hours during the day I could do more productive things in the evening before going to bed and laying there. Thanks! 

Thank you, yes I think I get very tired and go to sleep late at night and then need a good ten or eleven hours of sleep. I will take your advice onboard, thank you again. 

Thank you for sharing about how melatonin affects sleep & for the reminder about caffeine. 

Thank you very much for the suggestions, I should have mentioned though in my original post that my low B12 is now under control with medication from my GP.

I've always needed a lot of sleep. When I was school age, in the holidays I would regularly sleep 12 hours a night, and as an adult I've always felt best after sleeping around 9 or 10 hours. However I usually go to bed between 10 and 10.30 and then wake up around 8am. I'm the summer when it gets light early, I sometimes wake early (about 5.30) and if I can't get back to sleep I have to take a nap after lunch.

I read somewhere that autistic brains do more processing than NT brains so that would explain a need for more rest/sleep?

I keep the screen settings on my tablet on the blue filter mode, which is supposed to help with getting sleepy in the evening. Also going out in the fresh air during the day can help.

I sometimes go through periods of what I refer to as hibernation. I want to be in my room, or in bed, and I sleep a lot, and it feels like everything is on go slow. But I know that this only happens when it can, if that makes sense. When I have to be up and out of the house to work, my adrenaline kicks in and I feel awake and alert. It's interesting that you recognise that you're resisting sleep, and I think that this is because you feel you can. I wonder whether this would still be something you did if the negative consequences the next day were greater than your need to resist. This is what keeps me disciplined re my body clock - I can't function at work without enough sleep, and this just makes my day ridiculously hard :-) I agree with some of the other comments in here, in that the change has probably got to come from you. I would definitely try getting up when you first wake, no matter how much your body says you need more sleep. Do something when you are awake. Leave the house. Get fresh air and do something purposeful. Then you"ll eventually be so tired that you'll fall asleep earlier again. And it'll feel good to be taking a bit of control instead of drifting on the tide, I think. Good luck 

Go to sleep at midnight if you're a night owl!!! I've only just started to get ready for bed at that time, I won't be able to sleep until at least 1am more like 2am. For me it dosen't matter how early I have to get up I still can't sleep until the small hours, if I try I just lie there looking at the insides of my eyelids!

Yes. I am sleeping a hell of a lot at the moment. I think it's the cumulative effects of burnout.  Partly anyway.  I have other health issues that are a factor for me.

If you don’t fall asleep till 1am, maybe your body just needs 9 or so hours. Try to get into a routine like going to bed at 12 if you are a night owl, or earlier if not. Because then at least you will be sleeping until a “normal” time. I’m as guilty as the next person, but get off your phone. Or at least get out of bed and then be on your phone. Make sure as someone else said to take a B12 supplement and maybe Vitamin D.
I hate it, but make sure you are doing some form of exercise- a walk, some yoga etc.. It will make you tired at the start and then you’ll start to feel better hopefully!

I'd advise a B12 supplement, see your GP and get some blood tests done as you might need injections or even have pernicious aenemia which means your body can't get the B12 it needs from your food. I'm borderline pernicious aenemic and I know how ill it can make you feel, I have to take a daily supplement, before i was prescribed it I was really worried about myself as I felt so ill, with tiredness, lack of concentration, breathlessness and all sorts of things. I was so relieved when it came back as something so easily fixable as I was seriously wondering if was something like lucemia.

If you can't get to the GP or it takes a while to get to see them then I'd suggest you try Floradix liquid Iron supplement as it contains all the things you need to absorb B12 as well as iron in an easily digestable form. When I worked in a wholefood shop we had a lot of midwives suggest this to pregnant women as it dosen't bung you up, it's not cheap, but it's worth it, so many supplements dont' contain the vitamiins and minerals you need to absorb them or they counteract each other.

I see heard that blue light from a screen could keep people awake. There's a blue light filter you could turn "on" on your devices, and there's also blue light filter glasses you could buy from the store. 

Your body produces melatonin, which is the "drowsy" feeling you get, before falling asleep. Blue light makes your body think it's daytime, and so the body doesn't go in to produce melatonin. Filtering the blue light, will help the body start producing melatonin, it'll take a few hours to produce enough of it, and then the body will eventually feel drowsy and fall asleep.

If you drink any caffeine or eat any sugar before bedtime, that could also keep you up. I've accidentally done both those things, and it lead to being up the entire night, and that's no fun.