Sleep Deprivation Options

Sleep deprivation has always been one of my favorite means for achieving the 'gnostic state of mind'. I realize this is simple sensory deprivation, or the infamous 'derangement of the senses to obtain the unknown'. I think this is one of the easiest methods. My record is five days (120 straight hours). It gave me a life changing experience, and I keep going back. Most my deprivation ventures are 3 to 4 days, 5 incredibly difficult. This with no drugs or unusual stimulants to stay awake, which I feel cheapen the experience. I try to keep in the 'ritual' frame of mind, with regular meditation to reach my goal. Always a preset legnth of time for my goal, usually 72 to 96 hours. When I reach my goal, I'll end with deep meditation while candle gazing, trance inducing music quietly playing, and a pipe of marijuana. Room completly dark, except for candle. ( I wonder if ill catch heat for the marijuana) Many things reveal themselves to say the least. This method may not be plausible for many people,(familes. jobs, hectic lives and so forth). I have much free time. I do this at least once every month to month and a half. Absolutely hooked. Mind blowing experiences. To hell with instant gratifaction like hoping in a float tank or such. I feel you have to truly wack your mind out, over time for real results. On a side note i find fasting for more than 2 days incredibly difficult, and not enough for real results. Fasting while not sleeping at sime time makes you very weak, to weak to stay awake which defeats the purpose. Anyway, I would love to hear people's opinoin, beliefs, and especially experiences from dabbler's and regular practioners. Please chime in everybody. Really want to hear from the "big boys', you know who you are.

Thanxs for your time


"If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear to man as it is-infinite"
-William Blake

I tend to view sensory deprivation as a means of tuning out the "backround noise" of one's environment. In reality when we meditate our ideal surroundings are quiet and relaxing -simple sensory deprivation. The more one deprives themselves of their senses, or food or sleep, the more the brain has to compensate for it. Thus the greater amount of deprivation one induces, the greater reaction of the mind. Of course, there are health concerns as well. Deprivation of anykind should not be mis-used or over used to achieve results. Starving the body of its senses and needs is self destructive. Sometimes that is necessary to tare down old barriers that hinder new growth. But taken to the extreme, it can hinder growth.

That and, after seven days of no sleep, your mind starts to deteriorate physically.

I always wonder how safe is sleep deprivation to your health. I tend to think it takes a heavy toll on your body.

I always wonder how safe is sleep deprivation to your health. I tend to think it takes a heavy toll on your body.

Not really a toll any heavier than that incurred by a really intense physical workout, I'd say. I mean, the body can withstand a lot of damage, and usually that damage ultimately does the body good, because when it recovers, on any level, it always recovers to a little stronger than it was before - provided it was 'damaged responsibly' of course.

Fractures in the hand and wrists bones ultimately calcify in the hands of the martial artist who trains them to break bricks, etc., making them more durable. Torn muscle fibers grow back thicker than before to handle the same amount of strain with less damage next time.

I'm not sure if the effect functions exactly the same way with the neurons, but almost every 'hard' action we take supports some aspect of long term conditioning that will allow us to be more durable, and therefore more likely to survive, in the future.

I would say go no more than 24 hours once a week if you've never tried it before, and normally get plenty of sleep on a regular schedule. If you're one of those night owls that's used to only getting four hours of sleep, you could start higher, like 35-40 hours once a week. Over time, though, once your body adapts and learns to cope with extended periods of waking consciousness, you could bump it up to maybe 72 hours once a week. Although, it would make more sense to time your period so that you can spend the apex of it during the full moon or some other powerful condition in the heavens or earth.

NOTE: I would NOT suggest even attempting a 72 hour run to begin with, since you probably couldn't do it without a great deal of adrenaline or some chemical, and that's a terrible idea. Neurological damage could be significant if this practice was undertaken too often by someone not properly conditioned to withstand the duress. That should cover it.

peace

Sleep deprivation has always been one of my favorite means for achieving the 'gnostic state of mind'. I realize this is simple sensory deprivation, or the infamous 'derangement of the senses to obtain the unknown'. I think this is one of the easiest methods. My record is five days (120 straight hours). It gave me a life changing experience, and I keep going back. Most my deprivation ventures are 3 to 4 days, 5 incredibly difficult. This with no drugs or unusual stimulants to stay awake, which I feel cheapen the experience. I try to keep in the 'ritual' frame of mind, with regular meditation to reach my goal.



On a side note i find fasting for more than 2 days incredibly difficult, and not enough for real results. Fasting while not sleeping at sime time makes you very weak, to weak to stay awake which defeats the purpose. Anyway, I would love to hear people's opinoin, beliefs, and especially experiences from dabbler's and regular practioners. Please chime in everybody. Really want to hear from the "big boys', you know who you are.

Thanxs for your time
"If the doors of perception were cleansed, everything would appear to man as it is-infinite"
-William Blake

Greetings Fallen Angel,

I will agree that any type of deprivation of the Senses or deprivation of the regular cycles of the bodie's functions will result in an introspection of the Cognitive (Mental Activity). One time I had determined to try to stay awake for a 10 day period, probably not too smart on my part. But after about 6 1/2 days I had a kind of psychosis (or pure mental clarity) enter my mind where it seemd that I could actually see how every thought, word, action that I was experiencing during that time was Synchronistic with some Greater Design.

At first it seemd like it was an Enlightening Experience, where I could perceive the interdependence and interaction of literally everything that existed. It was as if the Meditations, Self Reflections and Rituals I was performing during this time held Immense Power, and Influence over existing structures of Reality. Then it turned somewhat scarey. I felt as if their were a greater mind, behind my mind, and that all this Life with its actions and experiences were a Great Illusion. To the point of absurdity. It was actually quite frightnening at that time, because, I started feeling how insignificant I actually was in the scope of the Universal Mind, and felt a great sense of my own Mortality.

Needless to say, I did not reach 10 days of sleep deprivation, I found myself after 6 1/2 days waking up somewhat in my Mediation and Prayer Posture slumped over backward from exhaustion. The Sunlight was peering through the window, and it was as if the first time I had ever witnessed a Sunrise.

The other most extreme thing I have done in my attempt to reach Enlightenement, or the Higher Levels of Consciousness, was through Fasting. I had read for years how Buddha, and Jesus, and even Eliphas Levi had fasted for a period of 40 days. From all three examples, it was said, to be the culmination of their True Spiritual Awakening. Buddha was supposed to have become Enlightned and formed the Noble Eight Fold Path, Jesus was said to have resisted theTemptaition of the Wilderness and started his Ministry on Earth, and Eliphas Levi was said to have been able to control the Magickal Energies and travel the Aetheric Planes upon the completion of his fast.

I went to an isolated place in the Mountains of Montanna, right at the edge of the East Glacier National Park by the Black Foot Indian Reservation. I hiked about 4 days into the wilderness and set about my fast. The first 3 to 6 days were complete Hell, I could not think of anything but food. I felt irritable, and could barely Meditate for hunger, and I tried to maintain a steadfast Prayer Activity with Chanting and Praying for a Vision, while stareing in the Firelight.

About the 7-8 days I felt the hunger pains cease almost completely. I kept fasting until the 12th day, when I started getting worried that the depeletion of nutrients to my body and brain may have long term effects, so I caught 1 Cut-throat Trout and ate it cooked over the fire. I went again until the 24th day of fasting and was noticing a lethargy sweep over me that I could not shake. I decided I better have another Trout so I caught and ate one more, mixed with some Dandelion Greens. then I determined I was going to Fast for 40 days and Pray fervently, Meditate and try to continue to enter Trance States until I saw a Vision that I felt was befitting the direction I desired to Travel in Life.

Of a total I went 38 days of Fasting, I quit just 2 days before the 40 day mark because I started feeling to myself like the only reason I was doing the Fast to begin with is that some part of myself (either Consciously or Subconsciously) wanted to be accounted as I viewed the Masters mentioned above. I did have a powerful vision,yet, I will keep that for a later time. In the Fasting time I lost from my 185 pounds, down to 122 pounds. this was dramatic and afterwards even 15 years later I still have a weakness in my left leg thigh muscle because of the deprivation of food. Some Doctor told me it was Nerve Damage caused by lack of Nutrition, and there are time it feels completely numb.

My advice when trying to "Push the Envolope" through deprivation of any sort for long durations. Is to Remember that you only have this one body in this Life, treat it like a Temple for that is what it is, in all Truth. I now believe Moderation in all things is the key.

Respectfully,
Helel (Joseph)

This post has been edited by Joseph: Jan 6 2007, 12:44 PM

I had started experimenting with sleep deprivation approximately 15 years ago. I began with 48 hours and after 6 months, prolonged it to somewhere around 60 to 72 hours periods, once or twice a month. I liked the clearance of thoughts that it was giving me. I agree with fallen angel, many things reveal themselves in this state of mind. I had noticed my thought were flowing easily during the periods that I stayed awake, but after sleeping the memories were blurred, so I started to keep notes. Some times it occurred to read my notes after sleeping and not remembering a word of them, having only a vague memory of writing about a subject. Without the notes, I usually were able to remember the subject, but not what I where thinking about it.

After some time I got comfortable with it and started using periods without sleep, never longer though than 96 hours, also for trivial activities, like, for example, studying to pass an exam at the university (with the condition to go to sleep after writing the exam, it was very effective method for some lessons, even though after sleeping I would remember very little of what I had studied).

Then, after 3 and half years of using this, I decided to prolong the duration of the time that I stayed awake to more than 96 hours. What I have to notice is that for me after 96 hours things always were strange. Fear crisis, agoraphobic crisis, hearing voices and remembering dreams even though I was absolutely certain that I hadn’t slept. Also, I found it extremely difficult to concentrate enough to keep notes, with the consequence not to remember much afterward. After some repeated periods of prolonged (over 96 hours) sleep deprivation, sleeping (no matter how many hours), wasn’t enough to feel rested. At the end I caused nerve damage to my nape and at that my sleep deprivation experiments ended permanently.

Now, more than 10 years later, I am very careful with my sleep regime as my nape still hearts terribly if I skip even a night’s sleep.