The sleep deprivation is actually breaking me

Dec 161 min read

I know everyone says new parents don't sleep but like... nobody really prepares you for how it actually feels. My daughter is 7 weeks old and I genuinely can't remember the last time I slept more than 90 minutes in a row. I'm not even tired anymore, I'm just... numb? And then I get angry at stupid stuff. Got mad at my wife yesterday because she didn't load the dishwasher the way I like. Like dude, she's also exhausted. I need to get it together but I also have no idea how much longer I can keep going like this.

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Comments(5)

CChad R.RegularDec 17

7 weeks is the hardest part. I'm not trying to minimize it but it genuinely gets better. Week 12-14 was when I actually had a night where I slept 5 hours straight and felt like a human again. Hang in there.

OOscar D.New DadDec 17

Have you tried splitting nights with your partner? Like you do bedtime-to-2am, they do 2am-morning? Game changer for us. You at least get one 4-hour block.

BBenny R.RegularDec 19

responding to the sleep split suggestion - this only works if your partner is actually supportive of it. some people don't negotiate well on night duty. but yeah if you can make it work, one solid 4-5 hour block changes everything

HHarvey L.RegularDec 18

the genuinely can't remember thing is the worst part. I was worried I was losing my mind at week 6. Turns out severe sleep deprivation just destroys your memory temporarily. Docs say once you get more sleep it comes back.

SSteve Q.RegularDec 19

Nobody prepared me either. Everyone was like "oh sleep deprivation" but experiencing 3-4 hours of broken sleep every night for weeks straight is legitimately brutal on your mental health. The exhaustion is real.