Why this blog

owlDelayed sleep-phase syndrome is a chronic circadian rhythm disorder.  Those of us who have DSPS can’t get to sleep at a “reasonable” hour, and we can sleep through any number of alarm clocks in the morning.  Some “grow out of it” by age 20 or so; the rest of us deal with it all our lives. 

Until we are aware that there is such a thing, we are inclined to believe what “they” say about us:  lazy, undisciplined, inconsiderate and more.  It is a revelation to learn that we have a medical diagnosis: it’s not all our fault!

This blog’s mission is to inform about DSPS based on what I’ve learned since diagnosis.  If I can reach people who have DSPS and their families, I may be able to save them years and decades of physical suffering and mental anguish.

If something’s unclear, ask!  If you doubt my info, or, heaven forbid, find something directly wrong, please tell me.  If your story would be interesting to my readers, please tell it.  If you know more than I do, please help us all out. 

The blog is written more or less like a book, from beginning to end; see the Table of Contents page.  The posts are numbered and each post is linked by its number in the Table of Contents.

The blog started out on Yahoo360Beta and was moved to WordPress in June 2009.

I am not a doctor.  No doctor treats patients anonymously on the internet anyway.  Nothing here is to be taken as medical advice.

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  1. Yay, it is not my fault if I sleep at 3AM and wake up at 12PM. ^_^ Although it is quiet mild, since I am able to sleep at 11 if I want to.

    Comment by ibyea— 4 July 2009 #

  2. My theory (don’t know how original it is) is that while we all have a hard-coded best wake time, a separate factor plays a role. I don’t know why, but some people can be quite flexible about it and not lose their health and others are more rigid. It must be biological, I think.

    I see we’re both fans of Coturnix.

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 5 July 2009 #

  3. I am the owner of the web site DSPSawareness.com

    I obtained this site because I live with DSPS and have been trying to find the communities and information over the years…but have not seen enough.

    To be absolutely clear, I am not trying to profit; I am trying to help myself and others by spreading the awareness of the disorder.

    I am commenting here with an anonymous name and innocuous email since this is a public forum, but would love to talk more. I hope to make the blog full of content with vetted authors, but have not had the time to update it myself with all of the information that it should have.

    I am also looking into how to form a foundation to follow such pursuits as I feel, based on experience, the public (and most notably employers) should be aware of the actuality of this condition.

    Please feel free to email me so we can work together.

    Thank you for putting this blog together. When I began my research there was little to nothing out there.

    Comment by DSPS Anonymous— 14 June 2010 #

  4. I can’t believe you exist!!! I’ve suffered from DSPS all my life, and only now, at 36, have discovered it has a name. I always felt there was something wrong with me, but people assumed I was lazy… Thank you thank you thank you.

    Comment by marina— 11 August 2010 #

  5. Welcome, Marina! So many people say just what you’ve said when they discover this. I’d never heard of it before I got my diagnosis, and I was “high” for six months just having validated that my problem was real. Wish I’d heard of it as early as age 36 — try to look at it that way! Best wishes.

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 11 August 2010 #

  6. now, my problem has a name. i was reading about dsps over at wikipedia and i stumbled upon this site from the references.

    when i was younger, i used to job hop (i think at one time, i went through 3 jobs in 3 month’s time) because i couldn’t keep up with the normal 9-to-5 work sked. the only way i survived the last 10 years of being employed in regular day jobs is having bosses that allowed me to work flexible hours. now that i’m freelancing full time online, my sleeping time got pushed back farther and farther. i now sleep at 4:00 in the morning (or thereabouts) and wake up at 12:00, just in time for lunch.

    lately, my husband has been griping about my late nights and my lunch-hour wake up time. i’ve also begun worrying that i’m just plain lazy. now i discover–at 38!–that there’s a name to what i’m going through. i plan to do something about correcting my sleeping time and i hope i can get back on regular track again. thank you so very much. now i have great hope i can start recovering… :)

    Comment by Leineriza— 22 August 2010 #

  7. Thanks so much for telling your story. Freelancing, you are in a good position to experiment with management techniques while well-rested. As you learn more about the disorder and educate your husband, I hope he will become supportive. That’s kinda necessary. Good luck!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 22 August 2010 #

  8. Please keep this going. I have been so alone with this all my life. Doctors can’t help you, don’t believe you, medications for anxiety and depression don’t work for DSPS/non24 and meeting other people can be a blessing.

    Comment by anon.— 15 September 2010 #

  9. Thank you for commenting. “Doctors don’t believe you” is a major problem I struggled with for decades. I’m so glad people are discovering this blog if it is a help, as intended.

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 15 September 2010 #

  10. Thank you for commenting on http://try-therapy.com I browsed your site a bit and I would like to commend you for the depth and breadth of coverage you have on sleep and sleep disorders. I have added your blog to my blogroll (as of this writing, your site IS my blogroll). I would be honored if you would consider doing the same… it would appear that we have similar interests, even if your interests are more specialized in the area of sleep disorders.

    Regards,

    Kent Brooks

    http://try-therapy.com

    Comment by Kent Brooks— 25 September 2010 #

  11. Dear Delayed2sleep,
    Thanks for you comment on German Melatonin Milk on my blog. Would you like to exchange blog links? I really like your blog, and I know how difficult or no challenging it is to lives with a condition that almost “does not exist” in the eyes of the mainstream. I have read a lot about sleep in book and on the web but never heard of delayed sleep phase. I mean I know if obscure sleepdisorders like non-rem narcolepsy, parasominas etc but was not aware of this. I will add your link to my blog – because I think it’s important that we help eachother spread awareness of the hugely neglected area of sleep disorders. It’s crazy, that so much money is spent by the pharmaceutical industries on nutrition and dieting and other money spinning research, instead of putting some of that money aside for sleep research. I am sick and tired of my symptoms being treated and NOT the cause. My rant of the day! ;) ….but there are so many people out there that are suffering and could so easily be helped! Visit me on http://www.queenofsleep.wordpress.com if you would like to hear more about me finding my way back to a healthier more manageable life as a narcoleptic, and general-holistic advice on how to improve your lifestyle and the overall quality of your sleep.

    Comment by Queen of Sleep— 21 October 2010 #

  12. Wow… I really think I do have DSPS. I am a freshman at Texas A&M university and i find it harder and harder to wake up for class everyday. When I scheduled my classes in the summer, I knew I couldnt wake up for 8am classes so i decided to start my day with 11am’s. Since then, my hours have changed from 1am to 8am my senior year, to 3am to 10am this semester. I stay up just as late on the weekends, but I dont wake up till about 3pm… It has always been very hard for me to wake up and now it is getting to a point that I take 4 hour naps. Is there any way for me to get a diagnosis? And I would like to hear your discovery of DSPS if you would like to share it.

    Comment by Preston Bateman— 22 November 2010 #

  13. Hello Preston. I’ve taken the liberty of editing out your e-mail address. My discovery of DSPS? I didn’t discover its name on the internet, as most seem to be doing today. I knew there was something wrong for years but didn’t learn its name until I finally was diagnosed; see my diagnosis post. I’d even done an overnight sleep study 10 years before, and the report came back simply “NOT narcolepsy.”
    .
    I know what 4-hour naps are. I can seldom take a nap that lasts shorter than that. But it’s a bad habit, if avoidable.
    .
    You should be able to find a Sleep Center at http://www.sleepcenters.org/ but check that they know circadian rhythms before wasting time going to one. Good luck!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 22 November 2010 #

  14. You have no idea how happy I am to find this blog. I was told this afternoon that I have “DSPS”and am really happy to find out I am not alone. I am trying to establish though whether anyone else has had this since birth like me? What therapies have worked? I unfortunately am not able to move into a job that will allow for night shifts or working from home (Law firms frown on that).

    Any advice you, or fellow suffers could provide would be wonderful! Am about to spend the next 6 – 8 hours until my “body clock”allows me to sleep reading all your information!

    Comment by Sleep Deprived— 23 November 2010 #

  15. And I’m glad you found us and commented; information was what I wanted, too, when I got the diagnosis. Several of my blogroll links have good information.
    .
    Since birth? Hard to establish or document. Most people have it start some time before school start *or* at the beginning of puberty. (Many of the puberty cases end at the end of adolescence.) My DSPS started before Kindergarten, probably in infancy.
    .
    As to whether treatments work, my sleep specialist and I disagree :-) He points out that I’ll never have contact with the many (?) whose problem is solved, as they have no need of the mail list (see circadiandisorders.org) nor the blog. True enough. But I’m in daily contact with people who struggle, although light therapy and melatonin may help somewhat. Enjoy your read, and good luck!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 23 November 2010 #

  16. OMG! I thought I was alone with this problem!

    Comment by Neve— 14 December 2010 #

  17. There are many of us, Neve. But we’re spread pretty thin. I’ve never met one face-to-face and most of the others haven’t, either. Thanks for commenting.

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 14 December 2010 #

  18. Hello Again!
    I am compiling some information on the usefulness of using lightboxes, light therapy rooms and blue light products. Does it help people with DSPS? or do you know anyone with DSPS that have benefited from using this form of therapy? Does it address the DSPS or just the associative difficulties? Would be grateful for a reply! Sweet Dreams!

    Comment by Queen of Sleep— 14 December 2010 #

  19. Hello again. I don’t know anything about light therapy rooms, except that I’ve seen pictures. Lightboxes come in white, blue and green. White light, 10000 lux, has been shown to work for many (most?) people to advance sleep timing up to about 2 hours. Blue does about the same, but can be dangerous if one is disposed to macular degeneration in the retina. Green light is new, and sounds promising; it’s used at a lower intensity than the others. All of them work only if applied daily.

    So light therapy (alone) works if one is satisfied with an advance of about two hours. People who naturally wake at 10 and need to be up at 8 may do well. But people who naturally wake at noon and need to be up early aren’t helped much.

    Avoiding (bright) light in the evening and using melatonin in addition can give a somewhat larger effect.

    Hope this answers your questions!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 14 December 2010 #

  20. Thanks for taking the time to create and continue to update this blog. It is nice to know that I’m not alone!

    Comment by SleeplessInSeattle— 29 January 2011 #

  21. And thanks for commenting. I appreciate it!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 29 January 2011 #

  22. I have discovered today that my d’ter of 15 has this, she has been thought of as lazy, she often doesn’t get to sleep until 6am. If she is woken up (forced waking) she has no memory recall of any conversation we have had. She misses out on social activities because of dsps.
    For 3 yrs she has also been passing out just after waking which as time went on became convulsive syncope, every time she is forcibly woken this has occurred. She never passes out at any other time, always on waking if she has been forcibly woken. Every test known to man has been done including brain scans, eeg’s, ecg’s, bloods etc, all came back clear. I have tried telling the doctors and consultants it’s sleep related to no avail.
    We are now being referred back to the consultant but this time I have some knowledge of what she has, dsps may not be it solely for her but it’s a starting point. Her sleep pattern is exactly as dsps describes. She herself believed it was insomnia. The doctors wrote her off and believed it was all psychological. We rejected this.
    Thankyou for sharing this information, I am relieved. I will continue to fight for her and hope that everyone affected by this condition gets the treatment they deserve.

    Comment by Dawn— 29 January 2011 #

  23. How wonderful if we can be of help. How good of you, Dawn, to write. It’s fine that you have so many diagnostic tests out of the way. I do hope you can find a doctor who has any experience at all with Circadian Rhythm Disorders (CRDs). The best of luck to you and your daughter!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 29 January 2011 #

  24. Thankyou Delayed2sleep,
    Many thanks for the email, I will follow up all the links you have suggested and very much appreciate your support.
    All the best to you!

    Comment by Dawn— 29 January 2011 #

  25. Same story as everyone else, just great to put a name and an actual disorder to something I’ve dealt with for as long as I can remember. Melatonian has helped a little – now I fall asleep at 2 rather than 4. I’m excited to read the rest of the blog and find how other people have coped with it.

    Comment by Paul— 23 March 2011 #

  26. Thanks for commenting, Paul!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 23 March 2011 #

  27. Hi! I’ve just started my own blog about DSPS. Could you please consider adding it to your blogroll? Thank you.

    Comment by Amanda— 1 April 2011 #

  28. Glad i found this blog and similar articles regarding dspd.
    Since as long as i can remember i have had problems going to sleep early most nights only getting to sleep at 1am then having a real tough time getting up for school i have fairly regularly missed the bus because of this. My parents thought the usual that i was a “lazy” child and i myself thought that , until recently that is within the past 2 months my sleeping pattern has become allot worse i now can’t sleep until the early hours of the morning (4-6Am) and am a pain in the ass to get up at 7/8Am
    So recently this past week i searched on the internet for anything that could be related and i’ve finally found it.
    Most symptoms if i can call them that about dsps are the same as i experience:
    Cant sleep until it gets to early morning
    Incredibly hard to get up even with a radio alarm clocks on full blast (Probably waking up the neighbors :D )
    Can sleep fine if left to my own sleeping pattern on weekends i can easily sleep in excess of 9 hours
    I’m more alert at night times, and always been considered a night person

    I’m currently 18 and have just begun to write a sleep diary using sleepchart thanks to your blog.
    Thanks for this great source of information and advice :)

    Comment by Richard— 6 April 2011 #

  29. Comment by Sleep Deprived — 23 November 2010 #

    This comment and your response really grabbed me as I was just cruising your site.

    My mother tells the story of how I was impossible to get to bed from birth. I would NOT go to sleep before 3-4 a.m. throughout my childhood and no amount of cajoling, singing, rocking and God knows what else they tried would get me to sleep (my father confessed to slipping me beer in my bottle several times). Mom says I am the only baby in the world that you had to wake up at noon. My family has always made fun of me for being a “night owl” and a “sleepyhead” and I was often called lazy in my pre-teen and teenage years.

    I’ve had this disorder all of my life and although I have a 9-5 career I managed my way through the first 8 years of hard core 8-5 to get the privilege of working from home.

    I haven’t tried light therapy. I have tried melatonin and it does work some of the time but, like tonight, not always. Ambien helps me get to sleep before my normal sleep time but is addictive so I alternate between melatonin and Ambien to manage the addiction (I don’t think I’m addicted but how would you know? I don’t crave it.). Plus I have the lovely side effect of Ambien of sleep eating which is giving me very bad reflux in my sleep. Very dangerous. I’ve choked in my sleep and literally woken up vomitting as a result.

    I read an article once on CNN where there was a study done that indicated that some people may be naturally nocturnal as part of a genetic layover of tribal times when the safety of the tribe was depenedent on the “night watch” while the majority of the tribe slept. It makes sense in a way but doesn’t help in the knowing or pondering.

    I was diagnosed a couple of years ago and was relieved to learn that there is a diagnosis.

    The most difficult part of this disorder is that it is so far outside the societal norm that you never really fit in if you are true to yourself and your natural sleep cycle.

    I sleep late on the weekends. I take naps when I can because I am *exhausted* when I have to go to sleep before midnight and wake up before 8 a.m. I relish sleeping in the morning sun from 8 a.m. until noon. It is the most delicious treat I can give myself.

    I wish there was a DSPS club we could join and start our own tribe somewhere. It would be so lovely to live near and know people who are on a similar rythm(sp) and can truly relate to how hard it is to function in “normal society” with this “disorder”.

    Thanks for posting this blog. It’s very helpful. I appreciate all of your hard work, time and effort investment into this very informative source.

    Comment by Holly— 6 April 2011 #

  30. Thanks, Richard. Lazy kid, impossible to awaken — we do all tell the same story, don’t we? It’s good for us to know we’re not alone. Now, if only doctors would educate themselves about us!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 8 April 2011 #

  31. Hello, sleep deprived Holly. Thanks so much for your good letter!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 8 April 2011 #

  32. Hi D & L and everyone else!
    Thank you so much for this blog, as everyone has said. On Tuesday morning, sick and desperate with exhaustion at 10am, as my morning-person co-worker babbled next to me, I googled “Nocturnal People”.
    I was just wondering who was out there, if anyone was talking about the suffering my boyfriend and I experience trying to walk the Day People’s world. I never expected to find an answer, an explanation, of the situation that has made so much of my life hell.
    Just learning it’s a physical condition and not the failing of my moral character I’ve always believed it was (couldn’t help internalizing the Day People’s shaming) is such a relief.
    I don’t know what happens next- I’m going to see my psychologist (because of course I have depression and I’m a recovering alcoholic) and get a diagnosis.
    Meanwhile, I wish all of you the very best long lovely nights awake and delicious sunny-day sleeps.

    Comment by Suzanne Forbes— 15 April 2011 #

  33. You are very welcome, and thanks for commenting, Suzanne.

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 24 April 2011 #

  34. I’m so glad I found out about this. I’m extremely tired of constantly apologizing to people and being mocked for my “abnormal sleeping habits”. It’s been years of constant fighting to achieve the normal schedule people expects, with about a day or two of “success” in between months of struggle, always thinking it’s all my fault for not going to sleep like normal people does.
    The funny thing is I’ve been using chronotherapy before knowing it had a name, I actually figured it out for myself out of desperation to try and achieve a normal sleeping schedule, always with too brief successes; and what bothers me now is that my psychiatrist, even after the descriptions of the method I use to try to fix my sleeping schedule -the chronotherapy-, never told me it was actually something that existed, that it had a name, or if it was a smart thing to do in my case. I’ve been doing so much things to my sleeping schedule, pushing it, pulling it, sleep deprivation, that I’m genuinely freaked by the possibility of having broke my circadian rhythm. Now, whenever I’m not actively struggling, I always go to sleep one to two hours later than the day before.
    And the obsessing, oh dear the obsessing.
    In any case, knowing it’s not all just because I’m lazy makes me feel a bit better. Thank you.

    PS. Sorry if this reads like it was written by a 7 year old, English is not my native language, and I’m lousier at it when I’m in my zombie state :)

    Comment by Luis— 27 May 2011 #

  35. Thank you for writing, Luis. (And if this is a sample of your lousy writing, you must be a true poet when you’re in good form.)

    Learning that the monster has a name seems to be very important to most of us. Would that the medical community were better informed!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 27 May 2011 #

  36. Thank you for creating this blog. It’s nice to know we’re not alone. I have been struggling with DSPS ever since I was a child. I remember my mom dressing me for school and putting on my shoes and socks while I was still asleep. I dropped out of high school because showing up for school around noon just didn’t cut it. I have lost several 9 to 5 jobs for being late. Thank God my boss of 10 years sees my value and although he wants to kill me at times, puts up with my “relapses”. My biggest and most important issue that I have with this disorder is that I am a single parent with two school age children. When I can’t wake up in the morning, they get to school very late. I get letters from the state attorney’s office every year and even had a social worker at my doorstep one day. Needless to say, the social worker and school principal do not understand DSPS. I try my very hardest every day, but it’s a real struggle. Here it is 1:30 am and I know my children have school in the morning and I am responsible to open my office, but I am wide awake!

    Comment by susan— 31 May 2011 #

  37. Jobs are tough but single parenting must be the toughest of all. Otherwise we all tell remarkably similar stories. Thanks for writing, Susan!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 31 May 2011 #

  38. Hi, I am 40 years old and have this condition. I have had it all my life. I find that melatonin helps and normally take 3 mg at 8pm. I would also take Effexor for depression, and that has a sleep inducing effect. With this I would start yawning around 10pm, and then fall asleep 11 or so. If I would take it any later, I would still be sleepy in the morning. I would set my alarm to 8pm – take melatonin, and my boyfriend would keep asking what is the big deal with me and the melatonin. Now I am pregnant, and I don’t take the melatonin or the Effexor – and I am up all night. I tend to fall asleep 5am, but it can be 6am, or sometimes I am awake when my boyfriend goes off to work at 8:30 in the morning. It drives me nuts! It’s ridiculous – I have no control over my life. It also makes me seem like such a weirdo. I have been kicked out of roommate situations even though I was an exemplary roommate in all other regards, but staying up and sleeping in makes people think you are a major druggie or something.
    I am not working right now, but usually when I am, when it comes to later in the week, like on a Thursday, the alarm clock goes off and I try to think of every reason in the world to call in sick just so I can have another blessed couple of hours of sleep. It is like I would trade my left arm for some more soothing restful peaceful slumber. Wheres just a couple of hours earlier, I would lay awake with my mind wondering and pondering endlessly finding interest in the most mundane things. In other words, my “morning” personality and “evening” personality has almost nothing in common. My night person is charismatic and funny, my morning person is crabby and sullen. I have met people out socially that I later work with and I see them dumbfounded by the change.

    I have read that sitting in front of a computer can exacerbate the problem because of the light exposure. I could see that, before computers I would “only” stay up until 4pm.

    Comment by Alexandra G— 19 June 2011 #

  39. I feel for you and wouldn’t wish DSPS on anyone. All the same, there is a bit of comfort in knowing we are many. So thank you for your story and good luck!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 19 June 2011 #

  40. I’M NON-24 AND I DO NOT FEEL SICK!

    In fact, I enjoy life and (after nine hours of sound sleep) feel like my brain is a Mercedes and can solve all sorts of problems, write articles, work from home, correspond in seven languages (some of my clients are even awake on the other side of the planet when people here are sleeping) and set the alarm clock to jump in when friends and loved ones (the “day people”) want to socialize.

    I like what I am! I’ve contributed much to society and I’ve been able to manage my 26 hour day in order to cater to the needs of “the others”. I’m just different. I don’t have a 24-hour day and I am highly nocturnal. I can appreciate the bright light of day when my day corresponds to it. But when the painful light of morning arrives during a productive night of work and the stress, noise and ruckus begin, I don’t at all mind retiring to the dream world!

    As I read the various articles about DSPS or Non-24 (and in particular the “treatments”) my mind is drawn to those old 1950′s/1960′s movies of various barbaric “psychiatric treatments” we’ve probably all seen on TV. A lot of it sounds like desperate “witch doctor” attempts to “solve” a “problem” that has been created by a society that doesn’t fully understand the origins of non-typical rythms and wants to force everyone to have the same rythm. The only problem I see is “adapting” a non-typical day to the REASONABLE needs and expectations of the economy and our loved ones. In my case, it has been a combination of “managed daily clock docking” (i.e. temporarily interrupting the rythm in order meet with clients or attend to important tasks) and adapting my “task in life or job” to who I am so that I may offer my contributions as effectively as possible to society without setting up a potential conflict situation (i.e. like taking up a particular job that requires a “normal” 24-hour rythm). In these days of Internet meetings, virtual workspaces, etc. this should be less of a problem than it was before.

    I’ve inherited this UNIQUENESS from my father. None of us has ever been clinically depressed! It would appear that some of the greatest contributors to society have been nocturnal or had “DSPS”. And last I checked, we as a group were not noted as being cannibals, psychopaths, vampires, anti-christs, anti-social, subversives or a contagion risk! Now if someone proves to me that all of the best medical evidence shows that I have a highly-above-normal propensity to cancer due to this daily rythm or that I’m cutting 20 years off my life expectancy, then I will be all ears for finding a “treatment” (which will likely be one of the little-understood methods we’ve already read and heard about before visiting this blog). Kudos to those who want change. But in my particular case, I like having the world to myself and working and peace and quiet during my night rythms!

    Comment by VIP-NON24-NO— 15 November 2011 #

  41. I arrived here through the wikipedia article about DSPS. I am going to send this wikipedia article and link to this site to my doctor asap. I have been had this for a very long time, been fired from daytime work several times in the past because i simply did not wake up at the required time. When i keep to my own schedule (in holidays) and when i have no required time to wake up, i have no problem at all.

    Since 2002 i have been doing shift work, which went reasonably well until about 5 years ago when even the 2 morning shifts (starting work at 7am) out of 10 days became too much of a problem where i would not be able to sleep at all and became physically ill during the day to such extent that i had to be sent home on numerous occasions, or called in sick because i just didnt have any sleep at all. Been in and out of doctor, and psychologist offices for the past 5 years which had no result at all. Too bad that this work has been offshored, so now i am likely to have to find daytime work again. I so much dread that soon to come day.

    The only thing that does work to get me to sleep at my unconvenient hours is alcohol.. which i have been doing for 5 years now and it is negatively affecting my health severely.

    I have been called lazy, undisciplined and many other things in the past. No one believes me, and everyone keeps giving me (well meant) advice that is essentially useless. This situation and the 9 to 5 hour demands that society is pressing onto me is having a very negative effect on the quality of my life. And not to mention the long term effects that the (for me necessary) use of alcohol has had as well.

    Reading up on this site and the wikipedia article has opened my eyes. It was almost like it was written with me as the lab subject. Thank you so much!

    Comment by Jeroen— 21 November 2011 #

  42. Thanks for writing, Jeroen. I’m pleased whenever I hear that the blog has helped someone understand what DSPS is. Sorry about your present position!
    Some sleep specialists at some sleep clinics know about circadan rhythm disorders and that number is all-too-slowly increasing in the US. It’s our impression that Canada and the UK lag behind. Good luck!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 21 November 2011 #

  43. I am from the UK, am 17 years old and currently at boarding school. I was diagnosed with DSPS 4 months ago and although it was good to finally find out why I could never get to sleep before 5 am, I have also found it very isolating and frustrating when light therapy, sleep hygiene or melatonin did not normalize my sleep-wake cycle. In the UK, I have found that many people do not understand or even acknowledge the condition, regarding me as simply a ‘lazy’ teenager, and when trying to explain to teachers why I have made any of their lessons in 3 weeks life does become very depressing and lonely. Despite being in my last year of school I have been informed that I will not be allowed to return after the Easter Holidays, which end in a week and a half, if I have not significantly changed my sleep pattern. I am currently trying chronotherapy as my last resort and was wondering what experiences people who have tried this have had? Has it worked for you? Thanks so much for this blog, it feels great to know that I am not alone.

    Comment by Katy— 4 April 2012 #

  44. What a miserable situation! Can’t whoever diagnosed you help with an application for accommodations? Schools should be required to accommodate people with disabilities! Chronotherapy usually gives only short term help. I’ve never tried it myself but plenty of people on our mail list have; go to circadiandisorders.org and scroll down for instructions for joining the list. To make chronotherapy work for more than a week or two, you have to be VERY strict about bedtimes, EVERY night — not the typical student life. Please try to fight the school on this; some people have have successfully used a lawyer – or even just the threat of a lawyer. Good luck Katy!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 4 April 2012 #

  45. Thank you for this wonderful blog. When parents, sisters, friends, employers, colleagues or even the doctors (etc) do not seem to understand that my DSPS is not my own choice, but a disability, it is relieving to read the experiences of fellow-sufferers.

    While this blog has been a great benefit (again, many thanks!), I do have one question. In Wikipedia, DSPD is defined as evolutionary baggage (the See also -list). How so? What benefit it might have had in the past?

    And I have to say that whole of the Europe seems to be lagging in behind, not just UK. But I’m glad to hear that things in US are improving.

    Excuse me for my English, I’m not a native speaker.

    Comment by Neve— 8 May 2012 #

  46. Thank you for your very kind words! The blog serves its purpose once again, and that delights me. Your English is very nearly perfect — nothing to apologize for.

    Many lay people repeat a story of possible evolutionary baggage, but I’ve never seen a scientist repeat it. The idea is that stone-age tribes needed someone to watch the fire / look out for predators / and we are descended from those night watchmen. There does seem to be something genetic behind DSPD, but it’s in my opinion more likely just a chance mutation than evolutionary baggage. It may be fair to say that noone knows for sure.

    Thanks for commenting, Neve.

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 8 May 2012 #

  47. take a look at PER3-5/5 etc
    Sleep, Diurnal Preference, Health, and Psychological Well-being:
    A Prospective Single-Allelic-Variation Study
    Alpár S. Lázár, et al

    Comment by shimself— 17 July 2012 #

  48. Thank you very much for this blog now I’m sure we are not lazy or inconsiderate with family, friends or partners, I hope they could understand us and not just only smile when we talk about this problem

    Comment by Nina— 30 September 2012 #

  49. Thanks for writing, Nina. You’ve put your finger on a large part of the problem!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 1 October 2012 #

  50. Great blog, I suspect that I am also struggling with DSPS although I already found out about this condition 5 years ago, I just came across your blog right now, so I will go through it asap. I am still struggling with my condition (and worsening) and I suspect that it might be related to my adrenal glands which are not functioning well (still has to be confirmed by a PhD). So I performed a quick search through your site and nothing came up when I typed in “Adrenal”, so I am wondering if you are aware of a condition called adrenal gland insufficiency/exhaustion and whether this condition has been researched in correlation to DSPS?

    Comment by Johan De Cock— 12 December 2012 #

  51. Thanks for writing, Johan. No, we haven’t written about adrenal insufficiency but from quick googling I see that it is mentioned as a cause of various sleep disturbances and perhaps the daily rhythm of cortisol. Interesting. Hope you enjoy the blog!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 12 December 2012 #

  52. I wouldn’t be surprised if both conditions are interrelated or that one is the result of the other. The following links contain a good starting point and a lot of good info in regards to adrenal insufficiency, can you please have a look at them and give me some feedback? http://www.stopthethyroidmadness.com/adrenal-info/faq/ http://drsaulmarcus.com/fatigue/adrenalfatiguecortisolcfs.html http://drsaulmarcus.com/fatigue/holisticfatigue1.html http://www.drrind.com/therapies/metabolic-temperature-graph

    Comment by Johan De Cock— 12 December 2012 #

  53. About the things I mentioned about adrenal insufficiency, is there any way to get in touch with other DSPS people? I am not talking about a couple of them, but lots of them… I would love to be able to contact them (if they don’t mind of course) to fill out a quick poll (10 to 20 multiple choice questions) to determine whether there are any indications that they might also be suffering from adrenal insufficiency…

    Comment by Johan De Cock— 14 December 2012 #

  54. Getting in touch with others: There are about 4 DSPS/Non-24 groups on Facebook. As well as the niteowl mail list.

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 15 December 2012 #

  55. Thanks for the info, I already found the niteowl mailing list, but where can I find those Facebook groups?

    Comment by Johan De Cock— 17 December 2012 #

  56. If you’re a member of Facebook, just type DSPS (or Non 24) in the search box at the top of the page. I don’t remember if I’ve recommended circadiansleepdisorders.org to you; there is a lot of info there.

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 18 December 2012 #

  57. [...] DSPS, a Sleep Disorder – Delayed sleep-phase syndrome is a little known disorder, often confused with laziness or badly managed sleep patterns. This blog aims to raise awareness and help sufferers get a good night’s rest. [...]

    Pingback by 30 of the Best People to Get Sleep Training Advice From | Babysitters— 21 April 2013 #

  58. Thanks for the link!

    Comment by delayed2sleep— 21 April 2013 #


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