[livingwith]

hello, my name is lisa, im 16 years old and ive had dsps for almost 3 years now. i actually just found out that this was a common disorder with a name just a few days ago, until then i had no idea what was wrong with me.
usually at night i go to bed at around 2-3am or somtimes even later, no matter how tired i am from the previous day. this sucks because on school i have to wake up at 6:30, and i feel very bad and sick in the mornings. my mom yells at me every morning that i should wake up earl...Read the full article

[Merrikate]

Lisa, I am 62 and have dealt with DSPS all my life. Both my adult kids have to cope with theirs, too. The good news is that you will find it easier to manage more normally as time goes by, provided you stick to a decent schedule as best you can. You may even outgrow it, or have years of normal sleep hours.

As for me, I always had to struggle with morning classes both as a student as well as in my long career as a teacher, and life was MUCH easier and more productive if my days could have a later start than most people's. When you are able to influence your own timetable, try to pick classes that start mid morning or later. In the workplace, try to find jobs that allow you to arrive and leave later than conventional hours.

Other people will always be a bit sceptical about this being a real 'disorder', but it is, simply because it makes us different from the majority. Yes, you can live a full, happy, and busy life of health and fun and responsible achievements. You will handle all of it a lot better by being cheerful and accepting, and telling folks what you need. And talk to your doctor about it to ensure he/she is aware too, as DSPS is so often linked with depression. All the best to you from this senior Night Owl!

ps
As soon as I retired from teaching, my night owl tendencies reasserted themselves. Nowadays, I'm up and busy all night and asleep all morning unless using chronotherapy to establish more socially normal hours. Yikes!

[speedie969]

Hi Livingwith,

congrats on finding out about DSPS and already taking action to prevent the effects from getting worse!

Some of the things you were saying i also experienced.
I also missed those precious few hours i could sleep during weekdays, for similar reasons.

The following things helped me get more regular sleeping times:

- Intense Activities can keep you awake... so slow down a few hours before your desired sleep time.

- I couldn't sleep for several hours after using/writing things on my computer.
Try changing the background colour from white to something more soothing. The bright light can keep you awake(Bright light stimulates). Or try writing things on paper.

- What also worked for me was reading a book, especially required reading for my education usually helped me fall asleep before i could finish two chapters. (on the other hand, reading a book i like to read can keep me up all night)

- Refrain from watching exciting programming on TV just before going to bed.

- Start to moderate the amount of coffee/red bull during the afternoon.
And don't drink any of those during the evening. that includes for instance Cola or other bubbly drinks or drinks with sugar.
Juice worked best for me, the vitamin-boost is also very good for you ;-)

As far as beeing late in the mornings i found that, having someone there to help me wake up worked much better than 3 alarmclocks. So whenever i used to have important stuff in the early mornings with my friends, i usually slept over, or had one of my friends stay at my place.
(btw. All my current friends agreed to automaticly compensate for the extra time that i always needed to get somewhere.)

The abovementioned helped me deal with DSPS, and prevented some of the possible disastrous effects it can have. I've lost several friends over this, and quite a few jobs too. (don't even get me started about missed oportunities)
Getting help from a medical doctor or having sleep-therapy will help you deal with DSPS or minimize the impact it will have on your life! At least you'll figure out what works for you ;-)

Kind Regards,
Speedie

[allals2580]

Hey Lisa,
I just found this forum myself. I was diagnosed with dsps when I was 16. I was a junior prettymuch failing out of school b/c i couldn't keep up during the school day. One thing that helped me was to get the official diagnosis from a doctor. I was then able to present the formal information to the head of my school. With the help of my parents we spoke with my school and arranged for me to come in up to as late as 9am during the week granted that I stayed 1 hour later in the afternoon to meet with the teacher of the class I had missed. This was definitly helpful for me and my grades improved for my senior year. College was easier, since I could preschedule my classes for afternoon's only with the help of the disabilities center. Keep in mind though to get this far I did need to provide documented proof of my dsps, I was able to find this through a sleep center in NYC, although I know there are many other facilities now you can go to. Hope this info was helpful, when I went through school no one understood my problem and my classmates used to tease me, but now I have plenty of friends who are willing to help me as well as the help of my family I hope you will too!