How I improved my sleep and my Fitbit sleep score - 12 tips 😴

At some point in my mid-to-late twenties, I realised that my sleep isn't what it used to be. I first remember noticing something isn't quite right when I got my Fitbit and consistently had higher-than-average light sleep and lower-than-average deep sleep and REM. I would often wake up early in the morning and not be able to fall back asleep. My Fitbit sleep score would be poor, hovering somewhere between 68 and 75.

After a lot of trial and error, I developed some strategies that helped me get my deep and REM sleep back to normal. The main question that I asked myself throughout this process was: If I lived in a tribal society 10,000 years ago, would this be natural for me? If the answer was yes, I'd try that change. I now have, according to Fitbit, perfectly average amounts of deep sleep and REM. My sleep score is usually somewhere between 77 and 84 and it's been steadily going up month after month. More importantly, I wake up fully rested and find it easy to get out of bed in the morning. Here are the winning techniques.

How to improve your sleep

• Don't use an alarm clock. I know that not everyone has the same luxury but I have relatively flexible working hours so unless there's an early flight to catch, I let my body wake up when it needs to. Waking up to a jarring alarm sound elevates your stress levels - your ancestors would most likely be abruptly woken if they or their family were in physical...

Where you feel your emotions - heatmap

Source: https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2013/12/30/258313116/mapping-emotions-on-the-body-love-makes-us-warm-all-over

The Meaty Prison: Are We Truly In Control of Our Bodies?

When we speak about our bodies, we often refer to them as if they are something we possess and control. However, I argue that we are actually spirits trapped inside a "meat prison."

Here's why: Our bodies dictate our every move, from our basic physiological needs like eating, drinking, and relieving ourselves, to more complex actions such as experiencing mood swings and cravings due to hormonal fluctuations. While we may make choices about what we eat or drink, these choices are ultimately driven by our bodies' needs, not our own free will.

If we neglect our bodies' demands, our "meat prison" will punish us with sickness and disease. We cannot decide to eat a month's worth of food in one sitting and then not eat for the rest of the month. Our bodies simply won't allow it. Even if we consume enough nutrition to sustain ourselves for months or years, we remain imprisoned in our flesh.

Despite our best efforts to care for our bodies, we are still beholden to their limitations. We cannot fly or breathe underwater without the aid of technology. We cannot regrow limbs or organs once they are lost. In many ways, we are prisoners inside our own bodies.

However, some might argue that we do have agency over our bodies through healthy habits like exercise and eating well. I argue that these choices are not truly made out of free will. Our habits are shaped by external factors like education and the influence of gut bacteria...

It all comes down to being overworked

I am really shocked by various different governments' denial of this problem. Look it all comes down to being overworked. the crisis of population (less people being born) which is a part of the problem of pensions essentially being a ponzi scheme, obesity and health problems in the world. It all comes down to being overworked.

I remember watching a documentary about how Japan was having this problem that nobody there was dating, getting married, having kids. This is a problem as there are not enough people to pay for pensions for those who are retired as less and less people are born into the world. The government was trying all different methods in order to increase dating and reproduction in the Japanese population. The odd thing, is that even though they held all these events for people to meet each other, all they would have to do is interview people to realize the cause of the problem. Nobody had time to date. Everyone was overworked. If you're leaving your house at 8am and coming home at 10pm every night it's no wonder you don't have time to date. how could you? it would be insane to think otherwise.

As for Obesity: this is also a problem of being overworked and lack of time. Dude for real, I think the general population/society is way too mean to fat people. it's not their fault. it's society and we are just directing our anger to the wrong place. You think those guys want to be overweight, have health problems, and be gene...

#My most horrfyingly embarassing and by far toxic trait

I love this website because really only so few of my friends visit it I could just use it to vent to the world. like a little personal diary.

I have this horrible toxic trait of like, sometimes looking up people in my past life to see how their shitty decisions or shitty behavior has led to their lives turning out. Are they as miserable as I imagine they are? sometimes I watch them and through their facial expressions or little clues on their social media and make up little stories about how they're really doing

But I realize this is a toxic trait that I NEED to stop. Doing shit like this will not make my life better, it'll only hold me behind. I need to ignore those people, like they're from my past life. They're dead. Who cares. Work on your own life and trying to drive yourself forward. Why am I obsessed with the dead?

Someone, send me your therapist please. But yeah, definitely need to work on that...where do I start?

Learning to be alone or: Getting lonely?

Our generation is wild. So many requirements from society. Be chatty, go out, meet friends, enjoy your hobbies. Everything is about being present and active. Even social media. Don‘t get me wrong. I enjoy all of these things. But most of the time, I just want to be alone. In my own little bubble, all by myself. Like charging my social battery to do all of this above. Even to be capable of doing these things. Exhausted from everything. From life outside, staying in my safe place. But how can it be so ambivalent? The need of going out, but also just would like to stay in. Communicating with no one. Some say it’s a task or something you have to learn, to be alone. For me it’s the easiest thing ever. But deep down there is a fear in me. Being alone now is my choice, but what if someday it isn’t a choice anymore and it turns into loneliness. So sealed off, no one gets to you. Physically and mentally.

We are the worst timeline #Harambe

Has anyone noticed things have really fallen off since 2016? Specifically after the death of Harambe. Look, people weren't freaking out about the death of the Gorilla. I mean, his death was obviously very sad but there seems to be something more nefarious here. Harambe's untimely death had caused a shift in timelines, causing us all to unwittingly be transported to the worst timeline.

although, I have to say this timeline is boring. I mean, literally the AI "finale" is following the same timeline as COVID (as I wrote in an earlier blog). If they think people aren't going to see through that, they're insane. It is so blatantly obvious. These writers really need to get their shit together.

RIP Harambe. You will always be remembered and I think people will soon begin to realize the significance of his death. Not only was it a tragic and untimely death but it caused an entire shift of timelines in our universe.

The slow descent into postdoctoral madness

If you wont read any more posts or comments from me, youll realize that my descent into madness was a swift one. Im a last years phd student (in fact 6 months to go and 3 more months hopefully to write) in biology who is grasping to his last bit of sanity at the moment all the while sailing through the troubled waters commonly referred to as the "terrible last year". With work piling up from the last 2,5 years, multiple projects requiring attention and people expecting me to perform well, there is also a constant dread for my future career so the pressure is coming from the past, present and the future ready to gang up on you any time of the day. A general phd in life sciences (and i dont count medicine because its not a real science, sorry early falcon) includes 3-5 years of laboratory labor, depending where you live and how fucked or blessed you are with your supervisor. After the terrible last year, you are kicked out to write your thesis and depending where you life you can be lucky if youre still hired by then or if they lay you off to write your thesis on welfare (social programs yeeaahh am i right ?) By then you are ready to defend your thesis and earn your well deserved title, unless you have decided to quit at any of those moments, which i have seen people do from first year right up to only having to write everything together. Afriend of mine recommended me to start writing a journal book but im terrible with such things...

A Grimm Tale about obedience, by me and chatGPT

Once upon a time in a small, humble village on the edge of a vast forest, there lived a poor miller and his three sons. The miller worked tirelessly to provide for his family, but despite his efforts, they lived a life of scarcity. The three brothers, though strong and capable, were known for their differing personalities: the eldest for his pride and boastfulness, the second for his disobedience, and the youngest for his humility and kindness.

In a distant kingdom, a beautiful and wise princess was captured by a wicked witch with a heart as dark as coal. This malicious sorceress locked the princess away in a tower hidden deep within an enchanted forest, guarded by a fearsome dragon and surrounded by a maze of thorns. The desperate king, who loved his daughter dearly, announced that whoever could rescue his precious child would receive her hand in marriage and half the kingdom's wealth.

Hearing of this great opportunity, the three brothers decided to embark on the adventure, each hoping to change their family's fortune and prove their worth. They prepared for their journey, bidding farewell to their father and the villagers who cheered them on with hope and excitement.

The eldest brother, driven by his pride, ventured into the forest first. He encountered the witch who guarded the path to the princess. She looked deep into his eyes, her voice a raspy whisper, and said, "If you wish to rescue the princess, you must follow m...

Let it go by Elsa the Icequeen

A few days ago my boss told me „to let go“. Like don’t be too harsh to myself and others. Especially the children at my workplace. I think he meant something like don’t feel responsible for everyone and everything. But how can I do this if I have this feeling in my gut that I can do better than a lot of other colleagues. It’s like finding a thin line between responsibility and let five be straight (weird to translate German sayings into English). I’m really trying my best and I know I‘m really good at my job, but it leaves me exhausted at hell. So as part of a homework for myself I try to let it go. Leave the opportunity for others to do shit I always do.