sleeplistening, sleepreading

I am a thinking zombie. I am sleeplistening through lectures. I have perfected the slight angling of the neck in contemplation and the perceptive nodding of the head implying understanding. It has become a reflex. It does not matter if none of the words spoken ever really reached my ear or my head. It really does not take much to pretend that everything is all right in class. With me always sitting near the aisle right next to the professor I can’t help but exude a vibe of interest and involvement.

Sleep deprivation has taken its toll on my body. It is the week before the finals and my sleep-wake pattern has been drastically altered. This can only grow worse when the exam week starts. Already, I have been visibly slow to react and becoming irritable. There is a dull aching in my head that never seems to go away. Less sleep has me drinking more coffee to keep me awake during the day. At night, the coffee in my system does not allow me to sleep a restful sleep. It is a vicious cycle. Less sleep >>> more coffee >>> less sleep >>> even more coffee. The cycle just goes on and on.

Last night while studying for Clinical Therapuetics I could barely keep my eyes open. My mind was willing to work and so was the rest of my body. It was only my eyes that were unwilling to cooperate. My eyes wanted to stay shut. If only I could read with my eyes closed.

In all the sleepreading I did yesterday this was the only thing that piqued my interest: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) have gone in remission when infected with HIV.

But who would want to get infected with HIV just to control RA anyway?

Dr. Emer has this to say about the importance of sleeping.