CAUTION: Mandolins NOT good for curing insomnia!

[darthstar]

Please let me know if I'm placing my ramblings in the wrong forum...there are so many here at mando-cafe, and I kind of defaulted here to 'equipment'...

Anyway, it should be noted that trying to put oneself to sleep by playing the mando for fifteen or twenty minutes does not work. After having a lovely dinner with a gal I'm quite fond of, I found myself far from sleepy, so at 12:30 last night I thought, pluck the mando for a bit, you know you're tired...

...fast forward to 2:30 am. I begin to put the mandolin away (after having successfully plucked away at Working Man's Blues) and realise the folly of my intended task.

Someone really should have warned me about this.

Again, if there's a better place for such small-talk as I've posted above, please let me know, as I'm sure some people will begin to think, if not say, 'this forum's for discussing strings, frets, mics and a-holes' and the last thing I want to do is spread a negative vibe here.

Thanks in advance. --what I really, really need right now, especially since I have a performance review with the boss in an hour.

[John Flynn]

I am not sure the "Equipment" section is the right place, but don't sweat it, it's close enough. I hear what you're saying. I travel for a living and have for many years, although ironically, I don't sleep well in hotels. I travel with a travel mando and sometimes I play it late at night, which is a mixed blessing in terms of getting to sleep. Now that I think about it, it probably creates even greater challenges for those in the adjacent rooms!

Here is my take. Insomnia can be caused by anything and while there are several things that can help you get to sleep, some work and some don't on any given instance. It is as likely that your "lovely dinner" was at fault if it involved rich food, it caused you to eat late and/or it involved even a little alchohol. As to the mando playing, it may have to do with what you played. This is just MHO, but I think that playing relaxing music that you can play easily is more conducive to sleep than playing exciting music, especially if it music that stretches your abilities. Save the latter for early in the evening. Even better for me, though, is to listen to music to help me sleep and I find it's best if it is music that I don't play and don't normally listen to. I think it has to do with keeping my mind from getting so involved with what is going on in the tune and just letting myself drift with the music. I can't do that with the kind of music I play. I keep wanting to analyze it. FWIW, and your experience may vary, but the best "sleep music" for me is anything by Enya. I don't mean to suggest she is boring, she's not, but her music is so far from what I play and so soothing that it really helps me just drift off.

What I've read, and it jives with my experience, is that the best way to try to ensure a good night's sleep is to stay on a consistent schedule for the time you go to bed and the time you wake up and not do anything that challenges or excites your body or mind within about 3 hours of going to bed, including eating, exercising, watching TV or anything stressful. That's hard to do in this modern age, I know.

Good luck with your performance review (mine is next week!) and sweet dreams!

[Mando4Life]

I suffer from sleep problems as a result of my job....well and cats too... I find that trying to play myself to sleep does not work for me. Playing gets the brain working and its too easy to say "I'll just try the next few measures or this variation" and soon 2-3 hours pass by....

I agree with jflynnstl that music works well. I find that if I put on music with the sound just loud enough to hear I'll be out within probably 20 minutes 80% of the time...doesn't always work though. In the extreme cases, two fingers of fine single malt does the job...

Equipment related: Just recently got some Ultex 1.0 picks....sound pretty good...I actually put the TS away for a while

WBL

[grant_eversoll]

I can not listen to music and fall asleep. I can watch TV but if I listen to music I find myself listening to the music and not getting sleepy

[darthstar]

I suffer from sleep problems as a result of my job....well and cats too... I find that trying to play myself to sleep does not work for me. Playing gets the brain working and its too easy to say "I'll just try the next few measures or this variation" and soon 2-3 hours pass by....

I agree with jflynnstl that music works well. I find that if I put on music with the sound just loud enough to hear I'll be out within probably 20 minutes 80% of the time...doesn't always work though. In the extreme cases, two fingers of fine single malt does the job...

Equipment related: Just recently got some Ultex 1.0 picks....sound pretty good...I actually put the TS away for a while

WBL

Oh, hell, I think part of the reason I couldn't sleep is I was thinking about the gal I had dinner with. Normally I fall asleep around 9:30 or 10:00 (hence I haven't seen an entire episode of CIS NY).

Playing normally doesn't affect my ability to sleep...I just can't believe I sat there for two hours torturing the tips of my fingers (guitar callouses are no protection against mandolin strings). I did pour a Manhattan (and smoke a bowl of pot) as well, though that didn't help me sleep, either. I'm all out of single malt...need to get some this weekend.

There is one good thing about staying awake playing the mandolin though...I didn't dream about it.