Drug-induced slumber

I couldn’t sleep last night.  I woke up at 6am with a scratchy throat, my eyes hurt, my head and stomach ached and my nose was all stuffed up.  It was terrible and in my 6am sleepy stupor I thought about the day ahead of me… I had absolutely nothing planned.  So, naturally, I decided to go back to bed.  I shut my eyes and with every noisy, irritating click of the loud radiator in my room the pains and aches I was experiencing seemed to amplify.  There was no way I would be falling back asleep anytime soon.  I got up, grabbed some water, went to get something for my throat and my eyes fell upon a little bottle sitting on the medicine shelf, next to the cough drops.  Tylenol PM.  Tylenol… PM.  The help you feel sleepy pills…. It’s 6AM…. the bottle says PM… but I have nothing planned… But I want to sleep all day…. But… Well… Maybe…  I considered the decision I was about to make, I heard the orchestral sounds of the music of a heaven sent gift, the letters on the bottle of pills were illuminated and flashing as I stared down the goods and took a step forward.  Throwing caution to the wind, I sucked down two pills and gleefully jumped back into bed.

Eyelids heavy, I slowly lift my head off the pillow and look around in a groggy state.  What time is it?  What day is it?  What am I late for?  My brain is whirring and I remember waking up earlier in the morning, taking the medicine.  I grab my phone.  2pm.  8 hours.  I slept for 8 hours.  My entire body feels a little numb, I have the droopy-slept-too-long tingles, my arm is a little sore from sleeping with it in a strange position and not moving at all, but… I.  Feel.  Good.  I feel remarkably well rested and lounge around the house for a few hours.  Somehow, by 4:30pm I start to feel a little tired.   I lay down for a minute and bam, I’m out.  Another 2 and half hours of sleep later, It’s almost 7pm and I wake up shocked to have fallen asleep again!  I get up and this time, feel no after affects of over sleeping – no tingles, no numbness.  I shake off the sleepies and go about my night.

I spent nearly an entire day asleep today.  It felt good… but not good…  I got a lot of rest that I needed… but it’s now 3:20 am and I’m wide awake.   Tylenol PM – you are still my friend but I think I’ll stick to the occasional nightly dose.

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