Transforming Night Owl Habits for Better Sleep

Field Notes

Standing on the Ledge — Rebuilding from the Rubble. Another post for today.

Yes, I’m getting into astrology and tarot and that kind of stuff. It’s not that I’m just getting into it. It’s always been there in my life. I’m just talking about it a little bit more than I used to.

My zodiac sign is Cancer. And today’s horoscope reads like this:

You may have gotten a rough or delayed start with a new endeavor, dear Moonchild. This may be something you are counting on to provide either income or something else that you want or need. Now that you have gotten started, or you are about to, you need to leave regrets and worries of this kind behind. You have a fresh start in front of you, and it has the potential to be wonderful for you and to provide even more than you have been hoping for. Just put your best foot forward and start believing this is going to be a good thing, and it will be.

I’m gonna hang my hat on that particular hook and focus on that — that it will be a good thing. That kind of deliberate focus is basically cognitive re-framing in plain language: choosing the frame that keeps me moving instead of spiraling.1

Life changed dramatically for me a month ago — a little over a month ago — with losing my cleaning contract. Job hunt has been going on. We think we have landed a job. I’m still waiting for confirmation on that from the employer, and I’m hoping that’s a good thing.

And I’m not sure whether this particular horoscope for today is referring to that… or the other matter through which I signed documents recently to start proceedings of a legal nature. Don’t know yet. We’ll see.

With the loss of contract, of course, my work has been non-existent. I was primarily a night person. I worked overnights on the contract. And when I needed to, days or evenings — meetings, store issues, paperwork, payroll, the whole deal.

Working 16-hour days some days, some days seven days a week… for the last two months of the contract, I went close to two months with only two days off. There’s a name for that kind of wear-and-tear: chronic stress load accumulating in the body and mind, the “allostatic load” effect.2

The Sleep Problem (aka: “Why am I awake when the world is asleep?”)

Being an overnighter — and being that one other person who resides at this address also worked with me and worked primarily overnights — the house kind of got onto a routine: up at night, asleep during the day. That was fine.

We have dogs — or I shouldn’t say we have. One of the tenants has dogs. Five of them. And they have a doggy door they can go in and out as they please. Unfortunately, that doggy door is directly above my bedroom. And because it’s not a finished ceiling, I get to hear them rip in and out when I’m trying to sleep.

Now I’m trying to get myself onto a normal schedule: sleep at night, awake during the day. A schedule. A rhythm. And the rest of the house hasn’t adjusted to that yet, even though one of the other people here should be flipping to a normal schedule and has not. Their mother (the other tenant) has not either. Which means whenever I’m trying to sleep, they’re getting up in the middle of the night… which means the dogs decide that’s when it’s time to play.

It has been annoying as hell.

I realize it takes time to adjust, but after nearly five weeks you’d think they’d start catching on. They haven’t. And any time I try to say something, they look at me like I have two heads — like they don’t understand — and it’s getting annoying.

There’s tons more I wish to say on this subject, but I’m not going to. And if they happen to be paying attention to my blog… maybe they’ll read this and realize they are frustrating the fuck frig out of me right now.

I don’t know what to do in this situation, but hopefully they start adjusting — because really, they should be.

A Quick Soc/Psych Lens (because I can’t help myself)

On the psychological side: shifting from night work back to “normal” hours isn’t just a preference — it’s biology. Shift work and schedule flips can mess with circadian rhythm and sleep quality, even when you’re trying hard to do the “right” thing.3 And when sleep is fragmented, everything gets louder — literally and emotionally — because your tolerance and recovery capacity drop.4

On the sociological side: this is also a household “time culture” problem — competing rhythms under one roof. People don’t just share space; they negotiate norms (quiet hours, routines, expectations) whether they realize it or not. And when one person’s schedule changes, the friction shows up fast because the old system keeps trying to reproduce itself.5

And somewhere in the middle is the role-shift I’m living through: I was “the overnighter,” “the contract guy,” the one running hard. Now I’m trying to become “the daytime worker” again — while the house is still treating me like the old role never ended. Role exit is real, even when it’s not a ceremony—sometimes it’s just you trying to sleep while a pack of dogs throws a rave above your head.6

Anyway. That’s all for now.

Godspeed.

Note: References are included for context and reflection, not as medical or legal advice.

References

  1. Lazarus, R. S., & Folkman, S. (1984). Stress, appraisal, and coping. Springer. ↩
  2. McEwen, B. S. (1998). Protective and damaging effects of stress mediators. New England Journal of Medicine, 338(3), 171–179. ↩
  3. Åkerstedt, T. (2003). Shift work and disturbed sleep/wakefulness. Occupational Medicine, 53(2), 89–94. ↩
  4. Walker, M. P. (2017). Why we sleep: Unlocking the power of sleep and dreams. Scribner. ↩
  5. Thompson, E. P. (1967). Time, work-discipline, and industrial capitalism. Past & Present, 38, 56–97. ↩
  6. Ebaugh, H. R. F. (1988). Becoming an ex: The process of role exit. University of Chicago Press. ↩

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Published by Lugh Sulian

Lugh Sulian Standing on the Ledge · Rebuilding from the Rubble Lugh Sulian is a working name for a working moment. This profile exists to hold Standing on the Ledge: Rebuilding from the Rubble—an ongoing, real-time record of what happens after collapse, when old rules stop functioning and new ones haven’t yet earned trust. This is not myth reenactment. Not spiritual bypass. Not curated healing. It’s a field journal from the threshold. The name Lugh points toward skill, clarity, and responsibility carried with awareness. Sulian gestures toward sight—what can be seen when illusion drops away and pretending becomes too expensive. Together, they frame the posture of this work: to look clearly, act deliberately, and refuse to rebuild what already failed. Through short-form video, spoken reflection, and long-form writing, this project explores: Collapse without spectacle Responsibility without authority Burnout as a systems problem, not a personal flaw Pagan cycles as lived practice, not aesthetic Small fires instead of grand rebuilds This space is intentionally unfinished. It documents: Standing still without freezing Moving forward without rushing Learning from rubble instead of hiding it Unplugged-Pagan.com serves as the grounding—seasonal awareness, ritual stripped of performance, and meaning built from experience rather than doctrine. Standing on the Ledge is one expression of that grounding, focused on the human cost of broken systems and the slow work of rebuilding integrity. This is not a teaching platform. It’s a shared watchpost. If you’re here, you’re likely between versions of yourself—tired, alert, uncertain, and still standing. You don’t need answers yet. You need honesty, boundaries, and permission to move at the speed of truth. No conclusions offered. No certainty promised. Still on the ledge. Still watching. Still working the rubble. Godspeed. Optional Short Versions (for profile headers or bios) Short bio (Facebook / site header): Threshold work. Pagan-rooted, process-driven. Documenting collapse, clarity, and the refusal to rebuild what failed.

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