TLDR: Any tips for overcoming being bored, sleepy while reading books? Even though you enjoy reading but when you are experiencing this, how do you overcome it.
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I struggle to read books even when I enjoy them, it is very conflicting and somewhat irony. I find it hard to read books over an hour non stop, and few hours of reading makes me feel very sleepy and tired. (while I have a stamina to run Half marathons)
This confliction happens when reading descriptions, like the ones in Lord of the Rings and Wheel of Time. I actually like imagining descriptions, but the process of reading those long passages of description (whether the scenery, looks and clothings, movements etc). makes me sleepy and bored. (And after managing to read those, I actually get satisfied from being able to imagine it vividly)
Also happens to explanations, long explanations which aid the story, such as about the whale and whale hunting etc in Moby Dick and magic systems like from the Wheel of Time.
I love history, and have a lot of questions, (like how WW1 and WW2 broke out, Eropean history, Japanese and Chinese History etc) and learn a lot, but the process of reading makes me sleepy, like absorbing lists of information feels so mundane and monotonous while I am enjoying being more knowledgeable.
I don’t know if I have dyslexia, but physical reading makes me more tired and slow, so I nowadays listen to audio books at 2x speed (get less tired from the things above when listening), I listen to it in bed before I sleep. But personally, I can’t seem to enjoy or understand in depth when just listening, so listening only goes for light experiences.
Maybe it’s because English is not my native language but have to currently use it as my main language.
by unknownbeing17
3 Comments
I know when I first started reading in a second language I got sleepy a lot too, I don’t think it’s unusual. You’re also reading more complex texts, so between the two your brain is working a lot.
It should get better slowly over time. One thing you could try is to just read and if you fall asleep let yourself nap a bit then pick it back up when you wake up. You can also try shorter reading sessions or reading when you’re not likely to want to sleep like shortly after getting up in the morning, or reading at night when you want to go to sleep anyways.
Make sure you’re getting enough sleep, this has gotten a lot better for me except when I’m low on sleep.
I experienced very similar symptoms of getting sleepy when I would read for long periods of time, even just 20+ minutes. I went to the eye doctor for a yearly check up and learned I have an astigmatism in both eyes. Once I got the correct prescription for my eyes, I realized my eyes no longer had to use so much energy to focus on reading the words, so I didn’t get nearly as tired. I could read for an hour or more without getting tired. It was fascinating to discover! It could be worth looking into eye health and seeing if you need glasses.
Sunflower seeds keep me from dozing off while reading. Or hard candy. Really anything I have to unwrap or crack open.
Kind of the same with audiobooks. I need to be walking or doing something with my hands and I listen on 2X speed too.
I think we might have a little ADHD