Sleep
“It’s a wise man who sleeps when he’s tired, and eats when he’s hungry.”
I have always loved that saying. I have no idea where it originated, and I don’t care. It’s the essence of physical wisdom.
But it’s very hard to put into practice. We live in a 24/7 world where ‘I can sleep after I die’ is the operative phrase, and anyone who can’t have another shot of their favorite caffeine delivery vehicle and stay awake is, well, shall we say, a little kitty. Go to where truckers hang out and see them dig into their pockets for illegal amphetamines. It’s the same in the field for the military, but somehow it’s legal there and one is actually ordered to partake.
Doctors are made by giving them 72 hour shifts. We know this from Gray’s Anatomy and other TV shows. But it’s actually true, too. You get to be a physician by showing the guardians of the system that you can stand up under a heavy load of sleep debt as well as economic debt.
You hear of firefighters and emergency personnel sometimes going at it for more than 72 hours in a row. I’ve heard of people being up for five days straight, and working almost constantly during that time. There is no doubt they are taking ‘artificial stimulants’ to make it happen.
All of this is terribly unwise.
Most people start to make serious mistakes after being awake for about 18 hours. They often do not even realize it is happening. But look at the incredible numbers of deaths caused in hospitals by misdiagnosis, mistreatment, misprescription and sheer neglect. When the governor of South Dakota lifts the ‘time in the saddle’ regulations on propane-hauling truckers because farmers need huge amounts of propane to dry their crops, you see propane trucks involved in accidents that take a slice of highway with them. As emergency people work extra shifts because of shortages, you get EMTs and Paramedics who do not do a lift of a patient correctly, and a little spinal damage suddenly turns into spinal tragedy. You get firefighters wandering into the way of a brush fire and literally burning up.
Sleep is underrated. But it is essential. It is becoming even more essential. More about that in the next post, tomorrow.
