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Old Aug 24, 2019, 05:43 PM
yellow_fleurs yellow_fleurs is offline
Grand Poohbah
 
Member Since: Jun 2018
Location: US
Posts: 1,512
I sort of informally tried this. A couple years ago while in grad school and my anxiety and depression got bad I figured I had to stay up to work on my thesis anyway and why not try it? I recalled that back in undergrad I would sometimes stay up all night and sometimes felt happier the next day. I knew my moods were tied to circadian rhythm. I did seem to find I felt mildly better, but then I think it actually may have affected my mental health. It's hard to say as I shortly thereafter started an SSRI which put me in a mixed episode and further messed with my sleep cycle. I will not try it again I don't think seeing as I am now so sensitive to lack of sleep my thinking immediately gets wonky, even paranoid and I get irritable and can't focus. I think in my case it is a bad idea, and I would imagine it could be a similar thing for many with bipolar who are at risk for mania. I would say finding a balance is probably best for me. Sleeping too much can make my depression worse.