To sleep, perchance to dream

@deanhobart
That explains biphasic sleep which is requires a stretch of the imagination to consider that an endorsement for everyone to adopt.

@kjoed53
Which is why people have to decide for themselves what works best for them considering where they live, what schedule they have, and what their personal biology and issues are. Again, the whole point of this thread is that someone was troubled by not sleeping a single sleep because they have moved into a biphasic sleep pattern due to chemo are was worried about that.

My response was that biphasic is actually more natural and if that works for her, then adapt to that routine until and unless her treatment stops and she goes back to a full night sleep in one session.

Many people don't realize that we only started sleeping in one session about 150 years ago (4 to 5 generations), so there is nothing alarming about it reappearing under certain circumstances.

@kjoed53
No. People did not sleep for a full approx 8 hour session until about 150 years ago because of changes in technology and work schedules. If they did it was considered a malady and a concern about listlessness.

@kjoed53
No one is suggesting that one style is better than that other. You need to read the citations you demanded of me to find out that what is better depends on the individual biology, environment, schedul, and geography. It is just a fact that we as in most of the industrialized world only started doing it culturally in the 1800s.

@ray666 I love your term "overhangs". Also, unresolved problems should not be brought
up right before bedtime. My husband will sometimes do that . I tell him to wait until the morning. Take care.

@bethyh79 My overhangs are nine-times-out-of-ten unmade phone calls, usually a call I need to make to a friend about some icky issue that lies between us, or, as was the case a few days ago, to a contractor whom I've paid but the job's still not done, or, for example, a potential overhang that will bccome a real overhang if later today I don't make a call and ask for an extension on a job I'm doing. // Here's wishing you a good day! –Ray (@ray666)

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Now to bring this discussion back on topic:
@deanhobart thank you for the references to biphasic sleep and how are sleep patterns have changed over time.

@1995victoria, sleep advice often states that 7-9 hours of sleep is the optimal amount for our health. Our personal sleep patterns can change over time. Me personally, I've never been able to sleep straight through the night. We're all different.

I can imagine that you yearn for that solid sleep you used to get. So accepting a new pattern can be hard. I actually bookmarked this podcast from Mayo Clinic to listen to, but haven't yet. Maybe it has some words of wisdom for you:
- E59 The Sleep Paradox: Why Trying Harder Makes It Worse https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/e59-the-sleep-paradox-why-trying-harder-makes-it-worse/id1807400122

Are you still getting 7 to 9 hours of sleep in a 24 hour period, but now it is broken up by waking? Are you tired during the day and unable to function as you would like?