Working late really plays havoc with my sleep patterns. I’ve been quite good over the last while, making sure to finish work at a reasonable hour, but we recently started a fairly big contract which coincidentally has an extremely short deadline. As a result my work hours have extended a little bit.
Last night I finished work around 9pm, had some dinner and watched a nature show about Orangutans. Nothing quite like a nature show to help calm the mind and distract the brain from all the tasks running around your head.
However it wasn’t quite enough, and whilst I fell asleep quickly enough I have this sensation that I didn’t spend too much time deeply asleep. Waking early today I felt as though the last two hours of sleep were spent with my brain running around in circles still processing things from the night before.
I have a feeling that being extremely busy and pushing to reach a tight deadline can have a dangerous lure to find more reasons to work hard. The body, at moments like this, must be releasing adrenalin and endorphins to keep you pushing on at a good pace.
This can be exciting, but you need to watch it, and make sure to give your brain time to slow down, take things in, and rest. Whatever you do, don’t go checking your work email just before bed, that just re-activates all those thought processes!
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