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Sleep Deprivation

Brain Fog and Its Effects

By Iria Vasquez-PaezPublished 4 years ago 4 min read
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Sleep deprivation is something I have had to deal with my entire life, since the age of 1. I was a sleepless child growing up in Mountain View, CA where my family didn't notice my pediatric schizoaffective symptoms since they didn't think medicating a child was necessary. I wasn't even on baby SSI since my mother wasn't a US citizen but I was. Now I'm working on restoring my body's ability to sleep even if there was a time when I somehow managed to sleep the whole night. I'm not sure I've done that on occasion in the last 38 years of my whole life. When I wasn't on medication, I didn't think of sleep deprivation as something that had been done to me. I was not on medication, but I knew it was only my mother who could get me some but didn't bother. I wish I had emancipated myself or worked harder to get SSI back when my social security number got stolen in 2001 while I was on the bus. I was still on my parent's insurance and living at home back then, and these days I still live in my parent's house. It is high time to sell a business. Brain fog comes from untreated or poorly treated hypothyroidism, which was discovered in my 20s by an endocrinologist. I was on Zyprexa, and back then I got that from internists. Yes, never get medication from internists because it will backfire. They don’t know enough about mental health. The best type of doctor to go to is always a psychiatrist, I did that in 2012 when I hit 30 because I had had enough of being unstable, period. I had enough of my family interfering with my mental health treatment decisions. SSI helped me figure out a way to get treatment around my parents. The effects of sleep deprivation only happen when someone gets less sleep than they actually need. I feel I need something like 10-11 hours of sleep a night because of 22q. Sleep loss does not allow for focus on the environment and the sensory input that can cause. Sleep deprivation can cause tragic accidents from people flying airplanes, running ships, trains, or even cars. Sleep deprivation is never a good thing if someone manages a nuclear power plant. These days I do not have ongoing daytime sleepy feelings because I'm trying to do my sleeping at night. People who do not get enough sleep, yawn, feel tired, get moody, get depressed, (which is why taking medication helps a mentally ill person sleep. There is diffficulty learning, people forget things, and cause an inability to concentrate, there is clumsiness, a lack of motivation, even an increased need to eat with carbohydrate cravings as a number one desire. Lack of sleep causes a reduced sex drive in addition to everything else. Not getting enough sleep does weaken your immune system, which is why in childhood, I'd get many colds, or flus. Not sleeping well does your body serious harm. There is an increase in respiratory diseases, because sleeping less can also have harmful effects on body weight. Sleep deprivation causes insulin to be released, that results in increased fat storage, which can in fact, lead to type 2 diabetes. Sleeping well maintains blood pressure. How often in my thirties was I plagued by high blood pressure? It was a fact that happened many times until my endocrinologist noticed it. Not sleeping enough increases the risk of heart disease, while influencing hormones in both men and women but also it can mess with men's testosterone levels. So you see, sleep is necessary. Back in high school, my family had me convinced that not getting as much sleep as the next person was a superpower. Now I have that all sorted out, and know I need at least 10 or 11 hours sleep. Sleep deprivation is not good for you, it doesn't help you with much either. Alcohol does not actually help. I'm on so many medications and you wonder why my energy goes to my family, not to me? I'm going to sell a real business, make money, and escape to a nice spa somewhere, a bed and breakfast and spa with alternative medicine treatments available. De Works Cited https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/307334.php#effects

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About the Creator

Iria Vasquez-Paez

I have a B.A. in creative writing from San Francisco State. Can people please donate? I'm very low-income. I need to start an escape the Ferengi plan.

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