Does being a memory owl affect learning or memory in any way?

[mr chievous]

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About two weeks ago, I got a pretty bad cold, took some medication, and knocked out and didn't wake up until 6 p.m. the next day. I wasn't tired the next day until 10 a.m., so for the past 2 weeks, I've been sleeping at 10 a.m. and waking up at 6 p.m. (waking up when it's dark, sleeping when it's light out).

I was wondering if you guys knew of any studies (or from general knowledge) regarding this habit - can it affect the way you retain information and how quickly you learn new concepts? Note: I'm still getting the recommended 8 hours of sleep.

I know it's a strange question, but I'm just curious.

Edit: LOL clearly it does. I meant to put "night owl" instead of "memory owl" for the thread name. But you get the point.

 

[TangoDown]

Well I'm only quoting my limited knowledge from my general psych class, but I believe that once your circadian cycle adjusts, as long as you're getting your 8 hours of sleep, it's at a predictable time (10am-6pm every day) and are not on any sort of sleep medication (as certain sleeping pills can decrease REM sleep), you should retain the same amount of information that you would if you were utilizing the same study methods and sleeping at a "normal" time.

If I'm incorrect, please correct me.

 

[Lollygag]

Well.. regardless of whether it affects your memory or not, you're eventually gonna have to stop doing it lol it's terribly inconvenient. It is difficult to find classes/jobs only between the hours of 6pm and 10am. What exactly have you been doing the past 2 weeks OP?

 

[mr chievous]

Well.. regardless of whether it affects your memory or not, you're eventually gonna have to stop doing it lol it's terribly inconvenient. It is difficult to find classes/jobs only between the hours of 6pm and 10am. What exactly have you been doing the past 2 weeks OP?

MCAT studying 😀

And yeah, it's ridiculously inconvenient. A lot of schools/businesses close at 5, so I end up having to do everything in the morning before I go to bed.

I've found a few things saying it can cause anxiety and health problems, but that's about it.

 

[Lollygag]

MCAT studying 😀

Enough said lol

And yeah, it's ridiculously inconvenient. A lot of schools/businesses close at 5, so I end up having to do everything in the morning before I go to bed.

I've found a few things saying it can cause anxiety and health problems, but that's about it.

I don't know much about it so take this with a grain of salt, but I feel like it can harm you if you do it for an extended period of time.

It also depends a lot on the person, I sleep walk whenever I take naps during the day or when light is on in the room; I have no idea why lol but it definitely can affect you in weird ways but for other people it may not affect them at all.

To remove all doubt, you might want to gradually transition back to a normal sleep pattern, like maybe going to bed 2 hours later each night, after a week or two you should be bak to normal.

 

[mr chievous]

Enough said lol



I don't know much about it so take this with a grain of salt, but I feel like it can harm you if you do it for an extended period of time.

It also depends a lot on the person, I sleep walk whenever I take naps during the day or when light is on in the room; I have no idea why lol but it definitely can affect you in weird ways but for other people it may not affect them at all.

To remove all doubt, you might want to gradually transition back to a normal sleep pattern, like maybe going to bed 2 hours later each night, after a week or two you should be bak to normal.

Haha yeah I guess it's better to be safe. Thanks man.

 

[TheShaker]

I can't imagine you're seeing much sunlight with that sleep schedule. That could cause some mood problems but don't quote me on it.

 

[TangoDown]

If you're not taking in a ton of sunlight, you should be supplementing with some vitamin D.

 

[futureczar]

Kind of confused why you didnt immediately try to change back to regular sleeping patterns...😕

Ive heard that it is very easy to adjust to sleeping during the day, but terribly difficult to switch back (someone said it takes a few years to get fully adjusted back). This may all be heresay, but I dont know why you would willingly subject yourself to this. Oh well to each his own!

 

[elevenses]

Melatonin release is inhibited by sunlight, which has some important, daytime-related behavioral effects. Epidemiologically, night shift workers are more likely to have all sorts of bad things happen to them (increased risk of divorce, automobile accidents, cancer). Read about it on Wikipedia all day so you can go to sleep at night.

 

[mr chievous]

Melatonin release is inhibited by sunlight, which has some important, daytime-related behavioral effects. Epidemiologically, night shift workers are more likely to have all sorts of bad things happen to them (increased risk of divorce, automobile accidents, cancer). Read about it on Wikipedia all day so you can go to sleep at night.

Haha touche 👍

 

[TangoDown]

Melatonin release is inhibited by sunlight, which has some important, daytime-related behavioral effects. Epidemiologically, night shift workers are more likely to have all sorts of bad things happen to them (increased risk of divorce, automobile accidents, cancer). Read about it on Wikipedia all day so you can go to sleep at night.

That's true, unless you can prevent sunlight from entering the room you sleep in. That's a common trick that a lot of night shift workers do.

 

[elevenses]

That's true, unless you can prevent sunlight from entering the room you sleep in. That's a common trick that a lot of night shift workers do.

Right, so it's easy to use darkness to stimulate melatonin release during the day, but it's hard to fake sunlight to inhibit melatonin release at night. There is some evidence that bright 480 nm light in your peripheral vision does the trick, but lightboxes seem to be only practical for helping maintain a circadian rhythm that includes real daylight during the awake period. I think there's enough evidence suggesting wakefulness during the day is superior to wakefulness at night to avoid the latter unless you have to.

 

[TangoDown]

Right, so it's easy to use darkness to stimulate melatonin release during the day, but it's hard to fake sunlight to inhibit melatonin release at night. There is some evidence that bright 480 nm light in your peripheral vision does the trick, but lightboxes seem to be only practical for helping maintain a circadian rhythm that includes real daylight during the awake period. I think there's enough evidence suggesting wakefulness during the day is superior to wakefulness at night to avoid the latter unless you have to.

But the question is, how negligible is the difference? Melatonin release can be inhibited by a computer screen's glare, so I'd imagine that walking around in a lit house or walking down the street and having car lights and street lights shine into your eyes wouldn't necessarily be completely ineffective in inhibiting the pineal gland.

What about those people that take night classes? There's no natural sunlight during that period, so by the same logic, melatonin should be produced and their retention should be limited. And yet we see people in night classes doing very well, so I'd think the difference in retaining learned information is, at least in the realm of anecdotal evidence, limited.

 

[phikapdoctor]

I did something like that 3 months well I worked night shift. Managed a 4.0

 

[elevenses]

I think the main reason to consider a day schedule is not theoretical, regarding the potential to simulate daytime at night. Rather, I think that it is the evidence that night shift workers have, in the past, had many more bad things happen to them. I know it's not experimental, and thus inappropriate to attribute cause, but in light of the evidence I think one ought to have a strong reason to choose to sleep during the day, rather than at night. Emphasis on choose.

 

[elevenses]

P.S. I'm not making this argument about learning and memory specifically, but about well-being in general.

 

[elevenses]

P.P.S. House lights (2700K) and street lights (low-pressure sodium vapor) emit a negligible amount of light at 480 nm, thus failing to inhibit melatonin release.

 

[mr chievous]

P.P.S. House lights (2700K) and street lights (low-pressure sodium vapor) emit a negligible amount of light at 480 nm, thus failing to inhibit melatonin release.

Just looked it up. Looks like you're right. Tons of health benefits to sleeping at night as opposed to the day. Weird..I used to think only the "8 hour" rule mattered.

 

[sliceofbread136]

This thread title keeps bugging me...