When it got dark, they would go to bed, sleep for about five hours, then get up. They would then stay awake for an hour or so – doing household chores, visiting friends or enjoying a bit of intimacy – before heading to bed again for 'second sleep'.
Prof Ekirch believes that the pressures of the industrial age and the arrival of electric lights changed all that. Once people began having to clock on to work and artificial light meant they no longer went to bed soon after dark, sleeping continuously became the new normal.
As the practice of sleeping continuously became more widespread, the idea of a 'first" and "second" sleep faded from public consciousness. Now it is seen as a sleep problem, something that needs to be "cured".
Yet, according to Professor Ekirch, it was once an accepted way of life.
A GLASS OF MILK AND A BORING BOOK
Other recent research has suggested that this form of biphasic sleeping (sleeping in two chunks) may be more natural and each of the two sleeps has an important and distinct function, aiding the body's repair processes, helping sort memories and also emotionally process the events of the day.
Buoyed by these discoveries, I decided that rather than fight my "old-fashioned" sleeping patterns, I'd work with them. So these days I accept that I will probably wake at about 3am and plan accordingly. If I have a 7am start, then I aim to be in bed by 10.30pm. This gives me roughly a four-and-a-half-hour "first sleep".
When I do wake around 3am, rather than lie there fretting, I get up, quietly, and have a glass of milk (containing tryptophan, a sleep-inducing amino acid), listen to music, meditate or read a really boring book. I have a special collection of books I keep for this purpose. When I start to feel sleepy, which is normally after 40 minutes or so, I go back to bed for three or so hours of "second" sleep.
Between my first and second sleep, I take care to avoid doing anything exciting or stimulating. I take particular care to avoid any screens.
There is some evidence that the blue glow they emit mimics early-morning daylight – tricking the body into releasing waking hormones. Just really don't do anything that will keep you awake. Your goal should be to bore your brain into going back to sleep.
Since I have, slightly reluctantly, accepted that I am unlikely to return to sleeping for a whole night without a break, I've felt more rested, less stressed and much less likely to nod off during the day. Try it for yourself, and let me know how you get on.
... AND WHILE YOU'RE AT IT, TRY EATING LIKE A VICTORIAN TOO
According to a study published by the Royal Society of Medicine, How The Mid-Victorians Worked, Ate And Died, a combination of lots of physical activity and a diet rich in fruits, whole grains, oily fish and vegetables meant that Victorians suffered from fewer chronic, degenerative diseases than we do today.
There were fibre-rich vegetables in the markets, including onions, cabbage, carrots and turnips. Fruits were apples in the winter and cherries in the summer. Fibre-rich nuts, such as chestnuts and hazelnuts, were bought roasted from street-corner sellers.
Meat was expensive so they ate plenty of omega-3-rich oily fish and seafood. Studies suggest consuming fish may help us get to sleep faster and sleep more deeply than those fed the same amount of calories in the form of meat.
