Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome

[livingwith]

I have this, I’m 41 and have had it since my earliest memories. My grandmother had narcolepsy, and while this is not that, I wonder if it is somehow related through genetics?
I get sleepy when the sun comes up, and the hours after dawn I am the most useless. I manage, but it’s difficult to get my son up and ready for school. I have fallen asleep while taking a shower getting ready for work and almost knocked myself out when I fell and hit my head. I can take unisom or some slee...Read the full article

[verytiredperson]

I am 39 and have had this for at least 20 years. Definitely in college...I had to take more evening and night classes. I went into a daytime/office hours profession, and for 15+ years have been fighting the negative image that goes along with DSPS. I have been fortunate enough to work for employers who accept me coming in late because I also stay pretty late.

I have never heard of DSPS before today. I can't believe this is actually noted as a disorder; I can stop feeling like I am at fault and start getting the correct treatment. I have been standing at my desk all morning like a zombie and I just decided to start googling. This is so spot on. I cannot function well before noon and function very well way past midnight. The rest of society, however, starts the day at 6 a.m. for the most part. I have tried everything from melatonin to ambien to xanax. I have tried giving up caffeine, working out in am vs. pm, having a glass of wine, not having a glass of wine, eating, not eating, leaving the blinds open for more light in the a.m., stress reduction techniques, "good" sleep habits...NOTHING WORKS! This is so frustrating - I am tired (literally) of being looked at with disdain because of the hours I keep. People think I can just "get up" as if I hadn't thought of that before or tried it.