If you cannot sleep a full 8 hours, you may have this gene according to CNN. If you cannot sleep more than 5-6 hours a night and you don’t wake up tired, you may have a special gene called the short sleep gene. The idea that we need 8 hours of sleep to be productive may not apply to those who have the gene. I was listening to a podcast from Freakanomics that discussed sleep and the effects of sleep deprivation on the general population. People who have the short sleep gene don’t sleep as much and are just as productive as those getting 8 hours of sleep. If you are wondering more about this, check out this article from CNN. Living with a short sleep gene: ‘It’s a gift’ By Sandee LaMotte, CNN Updated 8:38 AM ET, Tue June 22, 2021 (CNN)For as long as he can remember, Brad Johnson knew he was different. “I’ve never been normal when it came to sleep,” Brad told CNN. “Other people, even some of my siblings, slept eight, nine, 10 hours a night. I just couldn’t do it, it was physically impossible. If you paid me a million dollars to sleep eight hours tonight, I couldn’t.” It didn’t seem to matter what time he went to bed, how little sleep he’d had or how tired he was from the day’s activities, both as a child and now, at age 64, Brad said. ‘I’d get five hours and be done. Up, ready to go,” he said. “I wasn’t groggy, I wasn’t tired, just ready to roll and go.” Read more