Early Morning Wake-up Call

Happily sleeping, eyes closed and BAM I wake up. This has been the pattern for over a week now. Some nights it is at 2:00AM or 3:00AM and others nights it is twice starting perhaps at 11:00PM and then again at 2:00AM or 3:00AM. Wide awake with my mind racing through random life lists, things I have to do or things that I would like to do. Regardless of what it is that wakes me returning to sleep is allusive.

I am not sure why this is happening, but I do know that I am tired! I am also frustrated, and I know that I am not alone. Sleeping is the one thing that we all need and it holds much power over our lives. We are either hoping not to fall asleep or we are hoping to fall asleep depending on the circumstance and the hard part is that unless you want to take something to help you fall asleep, the whole process is up to your body. I am very happy with my body being in charge of my sleep as long as it follows appropriate normal sleep protocol, which in my mind requires us to each sleep at least seven or eight hours straight.

Part of me believes that because I carry lists of tasks in my head that I am awakened by either sudden additions or subtractions that subconsciously make their way into my sleep. Last night it was suddenly important that I list out what needed to be accomplished so that we could prepare Mark's current car to be handed down to our middle daughter and to fine tune the details of the pick up process of his new car. Now let me ask you this…why do I care at 3:00AM? What kind of crazy control freak am I?

I am very tired of the early morning wake up calls. Tired being the operative word here, as I am slogging through each day hoping to accomplish all the tasks on my list…you know, the lists I make in the wee hours of each morning? Today, I have my lists prepared, but zero actual motivation to accomplish anything. The trick today and everyday for the time being will be to make my way through my list while staying awake. No naps or resting allowed and no caffeine, nothing to encourage this bad sleeping behavior. I need my sleep back and these early morning wake up calls to end!!