NPR: Half Your Brain Stands Guard When Sleeping In A New Place

Depends on the definition of “unfamiliar surroundings.” I don’t sleep in a sleep lab very often :-) But seriously, I do have trouble sleeping in unfamiliar hotel rooms, spare bedrooms, etc.

Wouldn’t longer and more frequent backpacking trips put you in unfamiliar surroundings more often? I see an argument for sleeping in the same tent and sleeping bag/quilt for years.

Or for pushing yourself so hard on the first day, you can hardly keep your eyes open anyway. That’s been my experience.

That and taking studies like this (with very small sample sizes, etc.) with a very large grain of salt.

— Rex

I seemed to sleep fine in the bosom of mama PCT even though I was in a different location each night. What keeps me up is too much coffee, the full moon, too much stimulation too close to bed time, and those random nights where you just don’t sleep well. Happens to everybody.

pushing yourself so hard on the first day, you can hardly keep your eyes open

+1 on pushing yourself the first day. The first night of almost every trip I tend to sleep lightly, hear every sound and wake up often. Not so if I’m really tired the first night.

What I took away is that you could inoculate yourself. As an example, last weekend was my first night out in months and I slept like crap the first night. While I’ve never paid much attention to my sleep, it sounds reasonable that switching from a bed to a sleeping pad, particularly after a hiatus or early in the season, might disrupt things. It also seemed reasonable that most people would get used to it “after the first night”, give or take.

Beyond being amusing, it did make me think of threads where people report having trouble sleeping in the woods; maybe in part it’s their approach: an overnighter three or four times a year. At that rate it’s always going to feel unfamiliar.

I don’t have problems sleeping out any more. I remember years ago having trouble sleeping and feeling mildly anxious for no discernible reason. But we are out 1-10 nights per month — averaging 2-4 nights, weekend trips, car camping sometimes, backpacking most of the time.

I don’t sleep that well at home…

What I liked about that piece, was that in a row of ducks, the outside ducks didn’t sleep as well because they were keeping an eye out for predators.

More specifically, the side of the brain connected to the eye facing out…

I have a couple of parrots. I don’t think that outside-facing eye is ever really closed. Plus I think they can see through their eye-lids, too. I can see their irises through the eyelid.

The inside of my tent and quilt is a very familiar place.

Cheers

re: ducks in a row. I heard part of that npr piece. The scientists pointed out that only one half of the ducks’ brains were asleep during their cycle. More: the vast majority of species only sleep with one half of their brain at a time; the other half is awake watching for predators. Apparently a few mammals developed the ability to go into full brain sleep once they established predator proof sleeping abodes: think marmots and pika, and maybe chimps in trees. And us in our apartments.

Or: our tents. (and yes I realize there is no predator proof sleeping abode in an absolute sense.)

But both eyes closed/both brain hemispheres sleep is the big exception, not the rule. Who knew?

I generally sleep fine in the wilderness and I don’t use a tent. My xtherm and summerlite are familiar, so is the darkness of night and the sound of running water. Familiar situations rather than familiar locations?

I would define my pattern as “sleeping poorly the first night away from home.” I might change my tent location/hotel room every night, but apparently, after the first night, the novelty no longer matters.

Some of my best sleep is in my tent. I’m tired, thoroughly enjoying myself, and don’t have to go to work in the morning.

Kelly

Earplugs!