Uberman sleep vs. Everyman sleep, Day minus 5

A friend of mine (Judy) just told me yesterday that she had tried Everyman sleep (3 hours core sleep + 3 naps) successfully for a week and a half and the adaptation period / pain had been minimal.  She says she only fell off it after drinking alcohol.  I have asked her to comment to this post to share her experience.  In the meantime I have the following thoughts.

Given that Everyman reduces total sleep to 4 1/2 hours (versus my “normal” sleep of about 10 hours, and Uberman’s 3 hours), it occurs to me as a very acceptable alternative.  Also it has the huge advantage that one can do it while working full-time and it has less impact on social life.  Not to mention easier adaptation.  I am still personally drawn to Uberman however for the following reasons…

Success Factors & Motivation

• For the same reasons as Steve Pavlina: I am simply curious, and the idea is sufficiently radical and even “weird” to be really inspiring to me.  And as I mentioned in my previous post, the greatest predictor of success in any venture is the degree to which it inspires / excites you.
• Despite what PureDoxyk says (that only 2% succeed at Uberman), I have become convinced that it’s a lot easier than people think (and what the medical establishment and “sleep experts” write).  I am conjecturing that the main problem and reason people fail at Uberman is lack of understanding of the success factors, which seem to be (1) Good diet is key (raw foods is best and minimal or no commercial meat at worst);  (2) For Uberman, need to totally clear 2 weeks from one’s schedule.  Steve adapted after about a week but I think that is  ambitious, better to plan on two weeks; (3) It’s quite acceptable to take extra naps during adaptation, provided they are spaced no less than 2 hours apart and no more than 30 min. long; (4) Any kind of stimulant, including coffee and alcohol, is out. If you are attached to your stimulants, best forget about polyphasic altogether and avoid the disappointment. In my case specifically, I am totally addicted to coffee, everything I have tried to get off it has failed, so I am going to need a very compelling reason to quit. This is an added bonus for me.
• The idea of being awake “all the time” really appeals to me.  Apparently it completely changes one’s perception and relationship to time.  This is important to me for personal reasons which I have also shared in my previous post.  And I also really like the idea of putting in a long work shift at night time (10-11 hours) and still having all day free.  If I am sleeping at night, even for just 3 hours, I am still somewhat busy with income generation tasks during the day. I think if I can successfully adapt to Uberman, it will be much much easier to change to Everyman later, in the case for example that I would get a full-time job again, which may be necessary for financial reasons.  And I would still have the benefit of having tried the Uberman and knowing if it can work for me.
• Uberman is faster to adapt to (1-2 weeks vs. 1-2 months) however it is much more difficult.  I am the kind of person who likes to take his pain upfront and in heavy doses rather than to have it drag out for a longer time. I know it would be “wiser” to try Everyman first, and if that succeede to move on to Uberman, however “wisdom” is not a high value for me.  I like to live on the edge.
• Last but not least, according both PureDoxyk and Steve Pavlina, Uberman causes profound changes in consciousness: “increased awareness / energy, sharpened senses, a feeling that the whole world is moving in slow motion and you’re not”, etc.  As a complete “experience junkie” and out to explore the “frontiers of consciosness”, I love that.

Those are all my thoughts for today.  I will look forward to what Judy has to say.