Normality

[dryfter]

Hi. Most of the time I assume this is a completely normal way for one's body and mind to behave, but sometimes I wonder. So I'd just like to run something by you.

Some days, I have loads of energy. The day seems brighter, I move faster, I feel connected to the world. I can hyperfocus on tasks, and an avalanche of nifty code flows from my fingers. If I'm riding my bike, I feel like I'm flowing along the road perfectly. I feel enthusiastic and full of ideas.

Then there are some other days, where it's the opposite. I feel drained, lifeless, detached. I'm operating at a distance from a dulled world. I can't focus, have no motivation, and really just want to curl up in a duvae under my desk. Going out is just too much like hard work. I don't feel socialable or smart at all.

There also inbetween days.. it's not always total polar opposites like that.. but most days tend one way or the other. They tend to come in batches, followed by the swing to the other sort for a bit.

So... that's normal, right? Everyone gets that?

Personally, I'd love it if I could figure out how to have the high-energy days all the time. I'd get so much more done!

Comments

[feanelwa.livejournal.com]

I get that, and I think a lot of people do.

I don't think you can have high-energy days all the time. I think it goes like putting clothes together, you spend a lot of time sewing little seams that nobody will ever look at and attaching trimming and stuff and it still looks like a pile of bits of fabric, and then it takes one day to put it all together and suddenly there is a shirt. You couldn't have the putting it together to make a shirt day without all the silly little seams days first.

[gothic-violin.livejournal.com]

Oh god, yes. Always good to know others do as well.

[short-mort.livejournal.com]

I get it too, mind you there are times there is a lot more down days than up days.

[wintrmute.livejournal.com]

Oh, that's not so good :(

I think at least mine tend to balance out in the long run..

but sometimes i get clusters of 2-3 days of one, then the other... But some times get two weeks of one and then a week of the other..

[greenpea33.livejournal.com]

Yes, I think lots of us do that.

Not sure I want the high energy days all the time - get a lot of interesting thinking done on slow days - but the high energy days are more fun.

[strawberryfrog.livejournal.com]

It could be any one of a number of things.

Consider diet - do you consume a lot of sugar and caffeine? These tend towards a rush and crash metabolism.
consider sleep - do your sleep patterns vary a lot?
... and some people just have more mood swings than others

[wintrmute.livejournal.com]

I don't consume that much sugar at all, really.. I'm not a sugar junkie..
However I do go through a substantial amount of coffee.. well... is four-to-six shots of espresso per day a lot? Or just normal? O.o

Also, my sleep patterns are generally pretty screwed; I'd place them at #1 suspect for causation of mood.

[strawberryfrog.livejournal.com]

. is four-to-six shots of espresso per day a lot? Or just normal?


Normal? the last time I had coffee (any coffee or coke) was ... 1994.

[squiddity.livejournal.com]

This is very likely to be the - or at least part of the - problem, having had the same issues myself.
Specifically, the sleep pattern problem.
Which is almost certainly caused by the caffeine intake.

To test this, acquire an anti-narcoleptic - I recommend Modalert, a brand version of Modafinil.
http://www.goodhealthpharmacy.com/new/catalog/index.php?cPath=13&sort=1a&page=2
Take one in the morning just before you get to work, do not drink coffee.
Repeat a few times, also have 'control' days where you don't take any but do drink coffee.
You can take more than one in a day if you need to.
Note: Also very useful as a utility drug when out clubbing or drinking - will stop you feeling tired without the need to stimulants.


If this works, then your problem is bad sleep patterns. To try and balance them, start taking 'Melatonin' and '5-Htp', stop drinking any stimulants by 14:00 EVERY day, make sure your sleeping area is dark and has no noise (ESPECIALLY no whirring fans) and try to go to bed at least 15 minutes before you turn the lights out and spend time in bed reading or similar.
Other helpful things include showering every morning, not eating anything less than 3 hours before you go to bed and making sure you are properly hydrated. Vitamin boosters can help, as can other herbal supplements.

[binarydistort-n.livejournal.com]

Yeah I get that too

[purplegril.livejournal.com]

Yep totally normal. I don't have high energy days (heh! I think you know this) but my mood varies massively.

Definitely relates to diet and sleep as well as just normal personality though, like strawberryfrog pointed out, and which I'm sure you're already aware of :D

[carojenn.livejournal.com]

I get periods of high activity when I feel driven and excited, and then it plateaus...and sometimes turns into that want to curl up in bed feeling. Guess it's normal, and runs in the family!
Sometimes the high powered stuff lasts months, but only when there's a new project on the go - my new project!
Maybe the new job will be a new project for you....

[pond876.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I get that too... takes me back to a discussion we had about cyclothymia a few months back actually :)

I've found that my quasi-manic days *can* be linked to necessity; for example, when I was under a lot of stress at work, I was constantly burning the candle at both ends and generally doing a lot more than normal humans can or should.

People have natural "down" points during which the body and mind recuperate; if you keep trying to work through those, you're basically running totally on adrenaline. This is what I was doing. It was not healthy. This is why I now feel justified... nay, righteous, in being lazy.

Actually there's an interesting trend that I and other people on Uberman's sleep schedule noticed; even after we'd adapted to the schedule and were awake for 22 hours a day, we would take more opportunities to sit or lie down during the day. It wasn't a crippling necessity (most of the time, heh); just a natural tendency to seek more opportunities to relax.

[tbrd.livejournal.com]

I get that. One's called being awake, the other's called being tired. If I've slept well I feel good. Ready to take on the world. If not, I feel like everything is a hassle. I can't focus. I can't solve problems. I can't feel enthusiastic about anything.

I think a regular sleep pattern may solve this.

[wintrmute.livejournal.com]

Regular sleep pattern?

That sounds like an intrigueing concept. Where can I obtain one?

[tbrd.livejournal.com]

It was a just a theory. I didn't mean to suggest that it was actually possible.

[maelorin]

normal? no idea what that might be.

cycles are common.

could be something to worry about, or not.

if you're able to function, and it's not causing problems for you or others ... *shrugs* so be it.

otherwise ... find help, i guess.

[doseybat.livejournal.com]

*nods* sounds just like me.

High energy days all the time is not actually a good thing. (Have just spent a few minutes trying to think of a rational explanation for why multiple high energy days are not a good thing..) For me multiple high energy days are indication of some suppressed problem, or a coming crash, or a hypomanic state that feels whooshy but is harmful.

I think background pondering about things gets done on the low energy days. And you get rest and stock up energy for the higher energy days.

[doseybat.livejournal.com]

The only realistic alternative to high-low is having all days medium. Which is what mood suppressants do for you. Personally I prefer the high-low, and mine arent severe enough to be a practical problem.

[wintrmute.livejournal.com]

It's more fun to be on a rollercoaster than the highway, after all.

[burritob.livejournal.com]

Strikes me as fairly normal, although I'll note that when I was eating well, exercising regularly, and sleeping consistent hours, I would have way, way more "up" days.

Which reminds me that I really need to get back into that routine...

[illdrinn.livejournal.com]

I don't get this now I sleep normally. I find having a routine and taking enough Vitamin B and Iron actively decides whether my body behaves liket his or not.