Can I improve my brain

[ThisPinkBee]

Bear with...I'm mid 40s and have had a fairly appalling relationship with sleep since my early 30s. I'm not interesting in the terrible effects of not having enough sleep - I know these, the statistics etc.

However I'm wanting to know if I can improve my short term memory and general verbal fluidity if I get more sleep. I have to write everything down and I don't feel like I have much of an internal monologue - I'm sometimes really blank in response to people unless I'm in a familiar interaction with familiar people. I've started a new job so it's irking me.

How do I go from c4-5 hours sleep a night (usual bed time is around 11 or 12 then I try to get up really early as I'm needing to do additional reading and admin for my new job (things like organising my to do list and typing up paper notes of meetings or organising my online notebook where I've made notes of meetings, working out follow up actions and putting them on to my do list in the right place).

I also feel like I have a fairly slow cognitive processing speed. I used to be really fast, like I would jump from holding lots of information to knowing what to do, without really being able to explain my thought process. I'm not so fast now I'm older. I also feel like I developed without some thinking skills. In my 20s I only ever thought one year ahead and moved around from job to study to job to job, also location to location. I know that's probably quite normal but I also had quite a big sector leap in my early 30s, to a very different job. I suppose I feel like I'm always trying to create something and at the same time aware that I'm deluding myself as I'm not smart. I feel like I'm not very consistent and not very smart and I'm wondering if it's too late to change.

There's a lot of info in my new job and I do recognise maybe imposter syndrome is playing a part. Also my diet has been appalling recently- I've triggered massive sugar addiction and not sure how to end it.

I do have inattentive ADHD (dx 2019) before anyone suggests it, and am medicated. The medication also doesn't help my sleep so I may need to look at that.

TLDR -

1. can sleep improve my memory
2. how do I sort my sleep routine
3. how to break sugar addiction -step by step guide that worked for you please
4. is it possible to become a more consistent person and more confident in my intelligence in mid 40s and beyond

Check out the many Huberman resources on this... he's got all the research and protocols to try.

In short yes you should see improvements very quickly if you get more sleep and his summaries of the key scientific research in the area give you a lot of things to try which are proven to help reset your relationship with sleep

I’m not sure what you’re asking.

You ask how to get more sleep. But you go to bed quite late and you say you like to get up early.

You know you need more sleep….so you need to go to bed earlier?

Comments like these say nothing about the person you're directing them at, and everything about you, your mindset, traumas you've been through and haven't resolved.

I think it's best that you speak to someone irl about why you hate women because trust me it is not our fault.

They’re doing a spate of unimaginative trolling, ignore… sorry OP

@ThisPinkBee
Comments like these say nothing about the person you're directing them at, and everything about you, your mindset, traumas you've been through and haven't resolved.
I think it's best that you speak to someone irl.

They have been reported.