Dear LPG, 

It is as if I just can’t help it these days.  As soon as I decide to do something where concentrating comes into play, it gets to me.

I seem to have become a serial ‘nodder-offer’.  When I am doing something which involves physical work like washing up, hoovering or a bit of gardening I seem fine, but when I decide to finish off that crossword, read a bit of the book I am trying to get through or while on the way home on the bus, I just have this tendency to nod off.  I have even missed my stop more than once recently.  I even have trouble staying awake long enough to be able to see my favourite soap opera on telly, and more than one of my friends have told me that sometimes when we are on the phone they become aware that they stop getting answers to their questions before hearing a bit of light snoring.  And that is really embarrassing.

There are two big conundrums really.  

The first is that, when this is happening to you, it is very gradual but, often you are the only person that can’t see it coming.   Most of the time we have one of those head-jerk type reactions that can bring on the awareness that it is happening although it often doesn’t; that instant that your head drops and you have the presence of mind to stop it from falling any further, although I have been known to nearly fall off a chair before it happens.

The next thing is what can you do to stop it once you have worked out that it is happening.  I have found a few solutions to that one for anyone who is a bit like me and I hope that LPG will add them at the bottom of my message. 

If nodding off when you least expect it becomes a more regular thing, you might need to get a few extra hours during the night (which can get harder as you get a bit older).  The internet has taught me that it might be a good time to mention it to your GP just in case you are suffering from the beginnings of narcolepsy. 

But if that can be ruled out I have also found a few online suggestions for getting it sorted, the most interesting is that as soon as you notice the drooping-dropping head and eyelid thing happening, the answer might be to spend a few seconds looking upwards.  I am definitely going to try that in the very near future.  

HJ, Mottingham.

HJ offers some solutions …

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..some reasons why you would need them…

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