Have you heard of Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder?

So, I was looking into ADD research to come up with more strategies to cope when I stumbled across a sleep disorder I had never heard of before. (ADD is linked to sleep disorders and anxiety disorders.)

Because what I've found out is so rare and misunderstood, I thought I'd shed some light on it here. Besides, this does indirectly have to do with careers, especially art. You'll see.





Without a doubt I am certain I have a rare and misunderstood sleep disorder, Delayed Sleep Phase Disorder (or DSPD). Have you ever even heard of this? I know I haven't.

For those of you who haven't heard of this, and I'm assuming most of you haven't, here's the facts. People suffering from DSPD have a permanently delayed sleep wake reaction in relation to the environment. They're not tired until at least 2am but often until 4am, and sleep until around noon. (There is also a disorder called Advanced Sleep Phase Disorder, which causes sleep onset and wake to happen earlier than normal.) They tend to sleep normally (or even more than usual) otherwise. If they are forced onto a "normal schedule", even if on this "normal" schedule for an extended period of time, they begin to suffer insomnia symptoms.

It can be likened to experiencing perpetual jet lag. Because this is a rare disorder, it is often mistaken for laziness or regular insomnia. If left undiagnosed, it can cause the sufferer a lot of frustration. Sufferers usually have difficulty with 9-5 jobs and school. Speaking from personal experience, I had poor grades and attendance in school until I took afternoon and night classes in college. Often people with this disorder will do much better with evening shifts, freelance, or being self employed. When traveling, they have extra trouble adjusting to the new time zone. Daylight Savings is difficult to adjust to as well.

I also suspect having lingering mild Non-24, which was much worse when I was a teen. It's an even more rare disorder, affecting less than 1% of the population, most being completely blind. The disorder is pretty simply described; the biological clock is longer than 24 hours, making the patient sleep later and later until it cycles back into normalcy. Most who suffer from this develop it in early teens and no longer display symptoms as adults. If the symptoms still show as adults, they have it permanently. In the blind, this is thought to be caused by lack of perception of day and night. In individuals who can see, the cause is not understood.

When I was a teen, this behavior precisely explains my sleeping habits. I would viciously cycle, staying up an hour later every day. I'd even have days where I fell asleep at 5pm and awoke at 1am! Now I'd say I tend to stay up 10-30 minutes later every day, and with effort I can reset it to my normal schedule (sleep at 2:30, wake at 10:30) without having to cycle all the way through.

My variations tend to be 1:30am-4:30am for sleep (6am-9am if I have insomnia), and 9:30am-12:30pm to wake. Waking earlier than 9:30am no matter what makes me miserable and tired. I find that I absolutely cannot fall asleep normally before 12am.

I'd better bring this to the attention of a doctor as soon as possible so I can be properly diagnosed.
I feel excited and relieved that these are actual sleep disorders! Sure, they're not curable, but at least I can prove to people it's not me just being lazy. If I get proof of this disorder, employers are legally unable to discriminate against me and must provide me with hours within my natural sleep schedule. Plus, I'm being told it's far healthier for me to pursue being a freelance artist or to be my own boss! Yay!

Ideas Ideas Ideas

I thought that this section of my previous blog actually deserved its own entry. I'm curious to see where all of these ideas have been going. Anyone would feel lost and overwhelmed having an idea bin this large.


Reject
Join the Peace Corps
---a. Anything with some semblance of "army" in it gives me the heebie jeebies.



Maybe Later 
Make a Non-Profit Organization

---a. I attempted this with friends, and it fell apart. If I were to try again, I'd have to do it alone. If I were to make one, it would be dedicated to bringing Transgender people together under an umbrella of protection.
Become a Tattoo Artist
---a. No one in the area will let me be their minion.



Maybe
Become a Monk/Voluntary Poor
---a No idea how to get this off the ground, but I would seek and grant wisdom, asking for small donations to live off of.

Go back to School for Marketing



---a Not sure if I'd enjoy this. I have a feeling I'd like it about as much as getting rabies.


Find Someone who will Fund me

---a. There are a lot of poor people who believe in my cause, and I love you all. I'm poor too. But I need to find someone who can fund my cause in addition. But how to find this person? I can dream. Caravaggio had an admirer who housed him for free! ... *sigh* I would have housed Caravaggio for free too.

Keep 

Join an Art Colony

---a. Haven't found one that doesn't ask for money, either in residency or in non-refundable application fees. Considering how little money I have, $30 is A LOT to ask for. I will keep looking.

Backpack Around the World
---a. I haven't seriously considered this option yet, as it's somewhat extreme. I want to look more into what I'd have to do to make this happen though, as it sounds like a great experience. I know I'd be using a backpacker site to find houses that will feed me and let me stay the night.

E-publish
---a. I must look into this.

Get a Scholarship for Funding my Art
---a. Just gotta keep trying.

Go back to School for Computers
---a. Gotta complete my taxes and FAFSA.


Make a Comic and let it go Viral
---a. I've got to get my comic to as many people as possible, gaining a fan-base that can support me.

3 Unconventional Ways to Change Your Life? Hmmm....

I just read a really interesting article called 3 Unconventional Ways to Change Your Life this Year, and I think you should read it too.

Looking around my sparse bedroom, you'd think to yourself: "this is a lazy person with nothing to live for who clings to the past", and that's certainly how I feel sometimes when I enter the room, but it doesn't reflect me well at all. I'll admit my back is bad, so yeah, lying down in front of a desktop instead of sitting up is a bit necessary for me. Other than that though, I don't see why my room needs to bring me down.

I need some DREAM PORN.

Thinking back, when I was dreaming of going to Japan, I already had so much dream porn surrounding me that I was constantly motivated. Looking around, I still have plenty of potential Japan motivations, except there's one problem with that. I don't want to go to Japan anymore. I've been there, done that.

Now, I want to accomplish one arguably much larger dream: be a famous professional artist.

Every time I say that, a good chunk of my brain laughs at me and tells me how ridiculous I am. Some people also think I'm ridiculous. Fine. The article is right. I need to break this all down into much smaller steps. I've been trying to do that. It's not very easy. I also need motivational reminders.

Some ideas I've played with, put down, and then started playing with again:

1. Join an art colony.
2. Backpack around the world, using a backpackers site to find houses that will feed me and let me stay the night.
3. Join the Peace Corp.
4. Become a monk of some sort, voluntary poor, that seeks and gives wisdom and asks for small donations to live off of. (I'm practically that already.)
5. Make a Non-Profit Organization dedicated to bringing Transgender people together.
6. E-publish.
7. Get a scholarship for funding my art.
8. Become a tattoo artist.
9. Go back to school for computers.
10. Go back to school for marketing.
11. Make a comic and spread it to as many people as possible, gaining a fanbase that can support me.
12. Find someone who's rich and believes in me (HEY STOP LAUGHING!)
... There's more but I'm having trouble remembering.


As for my bedroom I look around and see blah. A Knuckles doll sitting on my broken dresser mirror, staring straight ahead, only mildly interested in the blank wall ahead of him. A little black poodle with red ribbons tied around its ears, something I don't even remember receiving, nor do I have a sentimental attachment to it. I don't even find it fun to look at. I see a really nice monitor attached to a tower past its prime, a towel I've had since I was 16 hanging on my door, a shelf my gram-gram owned that I love cluttered with stuff I can barely see that I am sentimental for, and a window; its scenery including the wanna-be exclusive "Mansion" apartments, filled with occupants I despise, mediocre lifeforms who tend to annoy me with their drama, drugs, and sex.

How in the Hell am I supposed to get inspired here? This is depressing! I cannot change where I am, and I have no money to buy new furniture. Those options aren't viable.

Fine, but I can still change things for the better! Maybe post pictures all over the walls? I'm not sure yet.... I need a more clear path on what to do.