Wide Awake and Worried

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Raerae00

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When I was training for my private pilot certificate and had an early flight the next morning, I'd often be so excited/nervous, I wouldn't be able to fall asleep the night before and have a really crappy flight. Of course, this happened the night before my checkride, but thankfully I passed by the skin of my teeth.
Now that I'm working on my instrument rating in college, most of our flights are late morning/early afternoon, and I can sleep just fine knowing I'll have a lot of time in the morning to sleep in. Passed my Instrument Final Stage Check easier than my private pilot checkride.
Here's the problem: now that I'm visiting home, I wanted to take my dad up for a ride in my old flight school's Cessna. I've been flying almost every day for the past two weeks to get ready for my instrument final, and have never felt more proficient in my life. However, last night I went to bed early (10 pm) so we could fly early this morning before it got hot, and I laid awake for 6 solid hours. Needless to say, I'm not taking my dad up on that little sleep. I just had one cup of coffee at 9 am, cut out screen time an hour before bed, and had spent the entire afternoon swimming at a friend's house, so I should've been exhausted. I think I just kept worrying I wouldn't get enough sleep and would have to cancel, which is exactly what happened. How do I fix this?
 
Take your Dad out later in the evening.
 
I find the best method to stop thinking and fall asleep fast is to listen to an audiobook or podcast. It’s almost impossible to have your own thoughts when hearing a recording.
 
This happens to me all the time for my contract flying. It's highly frustrating. On normal nights, I fall asleep with no problem. But if I have a flight that requires me to get up any earlier than I usually do, I often can't fall asleep. It becomes the old "okay, if I fall asleep right now, I'll still get 5 hours of sleep." "Okay, now I'll get 4:55 of sleep". And so on, and worrying about that prevents me from falling asleep. I may have woken up early that day, exercised, avoided caffeine and all that, and I will be exhausted that night, but can't fall asleep, just because I have to get up 15 minutes earlier than usual.

I do usually end up getting a few hours of sleep eventually.

I do not have a solution, but I think @Kent Wien 's may have some merit.
 
The instructor who did my instrument rating told me he only had one assignment for me the night before the exam. He handed me a well-worn copy of Kenneth Forsyth's The Shepherd to read. Each of his previous students left a note in the flyleaves. It settled things down nicely.
 
I've had the same issue before, if I had a big flight the next day scheduled, especially if I was anticipating weather or other items of concern with the flight. I'd keep playing out how the flight may go, then realize I only have 5 hour 33 minutes left to sleep, and on and on.

Don't really have an answer, but I think it's more common that we realize.
 
Maybe too much sleep the rest of the time.

I have found in the last few years that 6-7 hours a night is a lot for me.

if I need to be up at 5am on Wednesday, I will not go to bed until 3 or 4 am on Monday night and get up at my regular time Tuesday morning. Then I will go to bed around 10 to 11pm Tuesday. That will pretty much ensure I get at least 6-7 hours of uninterrupted sleep Tuesday night, and I'll be wide awake at 5am Wednesday morning and be good to go all day.
 
I sometimes get excited about something and I can't turn my brain off at night. Prolonged stress, especially mental stress can rob your brain GABA, an amino acid neuro transmitter with calming effects. Your body makes it but uses it up under stressful situations and one of the results is insomnia. If you are in fear for your life, a bit of insomnia is a good thing if you are trying to survive, but in modern society it might not be a great idea. I use it when I can't fall asleep and it works every time if taken occasionally. Everyday use makes me jittery. Do some research to be sure you understand what it can and can't do for you. I usually get mine at the Vitamin Shoppe. A bottle lasts me about 5 years.
 
Do all your worrying during the day. Do all your thinking during the day. Do your planning during the day. Then when it’s time to retire for the night, you can tell yourself that you’ve done all you can, now rest. Mind games.

Some people are over-active thinkers. Analyzers. Worriers. I used to take Melatonin when I had concerns about getting to sleep and it would help. Yawning within minutes of taking it. Poof, lights out. Then there is the advice of some saying if you wake up in the middle of the night don’t fight it, just read for a little while until you get sleepy again. That one works for me. Another cool trick I learned that works for me is once I’m lying in bed to meditate on resting. Calm breathes, think about your muscles relaxing to the point of making them rest. Kind of hard to explain, but the first time I tried it had great results and convinced me of its merit.It’s all about putting your mind and body at rest.

The issue is worrying. Stop worrying. Do some reading on worrying. You’ll find it accomplishes nothing.

(Now, I have a morning flight and I wanted to sleep until 0530 but just woke up hours early. And, now that I’m done reading and typing maybe I’ll get some more sleep!)
 
William Pete Hodges said:
I sometimes get excited about something and I can't turn my brain off at night. Prolonged stress, especially mental stress can rob your brain GABA, an amino acid neuro transmitter with calming effects. Your body makes it but uses it up under stressful situations and one of the results is insomnia. If you are in fear for your life, a bit of insomnia is a good thing if you are trying to survive, but in modern society it might not be a great idea. I use it when I can't fall asleep and it works every time if taken occasionally. Everyday use makes me jittery. Do some research to be sure you understand what it can and can't do for you. I usually get mine at the Vitamin Shoppe. A bottle lasts me about 5 years.
Click to expand...
Interesting. While I don't get stressed for flying (except checkrides) when I have a lot of work related stress (like tonight), not even melatonin gets me to sleep. I'd never heard of GABA before, but I think that's exactly my issue.
 
If you're worried and you know it, overthink!
If you're worried and you know it, overthink!
If you're worried and you you know it
Give your brain a chance to blow it,
If you're worried and you know it, overthink!
 
TrueCourse said:
The issue is worrying. Stop worrying. Do some reading on worrying. You’ll find it accomplishes nothing.
Click to expand...


Not everyone agrees with that. Here's one of my favorite quotes:

“When you have got as far as a working drawing…the next thing to do, and a very right and proper thing, is to worry about it like blazes. When I was concerned with the introduction of plastic components into aircraft I used to lie awake night after night worrying about them, and I attribute the fact that none of these components ever gave trouble almost entirely to the beneficent effects of worry.

It is confidence that causes accidents and worry which prevents them. So go over your sums not once or twice but again and again and again.”

James E. Gordon
British aircraft design engineer​
 
Sounds like a common case of anxiety? The over eager anticipation the night before a flight used to be more of an issue than it is now. Not really sure what the cure is, but eventually it seems to go away. Try thinking of that hot girl you saw in line at the checkout, or something instead.

Best of luck to you!
 
Hey thanks for all the tips, you guys gave me lots of good ideas to try! I ended up flying my dad in the evening and we had a blast. He's a huge aviation enthusiast who never got a chance to do flight training, but I caught the flying bug from him so it felt amazing to sort of give back somewhat for all the encouragement he's poured into me. All in all, a happy ending.
 
Kent Wien said:
I find the best method to stop thinking and fall asleep fast is to listen to an audiobook or podcast. It’s almost impossible to have your own thoughts when hearing a recording.
Click to expand...

:yeahthat:

NPR Wait Wait don’t tell me Pod cast works well, or old Car Talk reruns.
 
Get a life size poster of this and staple it to the ceiling above your bed. If Martha doesn't help, than John's reassuring grin surely will. Different strokes for different folks and all that

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brcase said:
Car Talk
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YES! love those guys. Although I'd venture they're far too entertaining to work as a sleep aide. The Splendid Table from NPR works great though.. (SNL famously ripped this off as "The Delicious Dish")
 
Chip Sylverne said:
If you're worried and you know it, overthink!
If you're worried and you know it, overthink!
If you're worried and you you know it
Give your brain a chance to blow it,
If you're worried and you know it, overthink!
Click to expand...
Evil glare in your general direction for thinking up a better song parody than I did.
 
Ryanb said:
Sounds like a common case of anxiety? The over eager anticipation the night before a flight used to be more of an issue than it is now. Not really sure what the cure is, but eventually it seems to go away. Try thinking of that hot girl you saw in line at the checkout, or something instead.
Click to expand...

Reminds me of my statement to the examiner when I went for my flight test. I told him that he had done something to me that hadn't happened since the prom with my high school sweetheart. "What's that?" Told him that, like her, he had kept me awake most of the night in anticipation of what we would do and I hoped to completely meet and exceed the expectations. I was quite nervous beginning my flight test but the examiner was really great and soon I realized that I could fly well and felt confident as it went along giving me more reason to focus and do well.
 
Age will solve this problem. In be different life, my rule used to be if I couldn't get 5 hours sleep before work I would just stay up. Now if I turn the TV on after 9pm, I'm out like a light. In the meantime, reduce stress in your life, eliminate caffeine entirely, and don't try to force it when you're not tired. Before you lie down, get everything ready for the next day, think through and write down your plan, and let it go.....
 
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