Sleep

I have nearly always been a good sleeper. I used to sleep a ridiculous amount when I was younger. I'd get up late, have a sleep after lunch and then be in bed quite early. When we were dating, my now husband would ring up and a lot of the time my mother would have to tell him I was sleeping. I'd have a sleep after uni, or when I got home from teaching.

I was never one of those young people who would be out all hours partying and then raring to go after a bit of shut eye. It was annoying but I felt dreadful if I missed out on my zzzzs. I learnt my limits and mainly stuck to them because I would get sick if I got too tired.

There is a lovely German expression 'moseln'. The river Mosel meanders its way lazily down through the German countryside. Lying in bed comfortably drifting in and out of the relaxed state of sleep my parents called moseln. It is a delicious sensation.

I have never been good with sleep deprivation. Broken nights with a new baby were horrific. Luckily both girls were big babies and they learnt to sleep through the night quite early because my husband and I worked out what they now call 'controlled' crying. We put them snugly in a room quite a long way from our bedroom and they really had to want us before we would hear them. A bit of a whinge did not disturb us so we weren't tempted to leap out of bed to check what was up.

When I was going through the worst part of menopause I slept terribly. Doona on, doona off, dripping with sweat, then freezing cold, desperately tired but unable to sleep. It was a misery. Thank goodness those days are over - it did take a few years though.

Luckily I don't need as much sleep anymore although I still love my nana nap after lunch. These days it may only be 10 minutes but it makes me feel great. If I sleep for an hour or so I know that I'm not well and it is my body's way of healing me, so I just accept it.

I don't sleep as long at night anymore either and I'm looking forward to daylight saving starting because I'm waking up way too early! It is amazing how much you can achieve when you get up early.

Getting lots done starting nice and early is great but you can't beat lying in a comfortable warm bed doing a bit of 'moseln'.