Sleep

Sleep is a precious commodity and I don't ever seem to get enough. I have that dreaded thing called insomnia. If a I get 4 straight hours of sleep, I consider that a good night. I swear I have had sleep problems since I was about 6 years old. That is when we moved into a creaky old Victorian house. At this time I became a big fan of ghost stories. Now you can see how a very impressionable 6 year old mind would react living in a big creaky old house (isn't that where all ghost stories take place-- old houses or cemeteries?). This started me on the road to being a light sleeper/big worrier when it came to falling asleep and staying asleep. Nowadays it's not the the scary ghosts keeping me awake it is the usual worries: school, fieldwork and money ( aren't they all related?)

I really am envious of people who practically fall asleep when their heads hit the pillow and proceed to stay asleep all night. When my head hits the pillow it is still whirling and even though I have ways of relaxing my mind, it still takes me 25-45 mins. to fall asleep (normally). Apparently the average time to fall asleep is 15 mins. max. I guess I am far from normal. Once asleep, as I said before, 4 hours is the maximum for me to stay asleep, most nights it is 2 1/2 to 3 hours then I doze until morning (waking up often). I avoid caffeine and eating after 7pm but none of this helps. Unfortunately, insomnia my mother and my brother so it is a family 'thing'.

I am afeared that all my bad sleeping habits and strange work schedules have done some damage after all these years. 

Oh, to be able to sleep like a baby!