Eyes Wide Shut

SINCE the LINES BETWEEN WORK and REST TIMES HAVE BLURRED, a TROUBLING NEW PHENOMENON has ARISEN — WORK-FROM-HOME INSOMNIA

- CHELSEA TANG

The second time I opened my eyes after finally dozing off at 4 am, was 7.03 am — if I remembered correctly what my iPhone screen flashed. It was the first thing I’d reach for, to check on the hours of sleep I’d clocked after multiple sleepless nights since my bedroom started doubling up as my office space. The number see-saws between three and four; I’d hit five if my body (and mind) were feeling generous.

I would rouse even to the softest and slightest of sounds — the high-pitched chirping of birds, the whirring of the standing fan or the faint rumbling of a passing train. After that, it would be impossible to fall back to sleep again, and one of two scenarios would take place — one, trudging through the day in “zombie” mode (body feels tired, but mind doesn’t want to rest) and eventually sleeping only in the wee hours of the morning again; or two, succumbing to my fatigue and sinking into a comatose sleep for seven or more hours by noon… leaving me wide awake at night. And the insomniac cycle repeats. Considering I’m not someone who usually has problems falling asleep — I don’t even take coffee — this is a literal eye-opening experience.

It’s a topic I’ve raised with friends and colleagues who are working from home as well. Of a small group of 20 thereabouts surveyed, all of them reported the same issue. “I’ll close my eyes and tumble around for half an hour,” a close friend shared. “When I still can’t get to sleep, I have to force my mind to rest [at least].”