Sleep deprivation as Penance

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I’m well aware of clickbait and traffic driving. I have worked in the software industry for years and been on the web for decades.

We have had users on the forum whom I suspected of clickbait (one persisted for years before the moderator sent them packing) and they weren’t posting discussions about penance and St. Peter of Alcantara.

If you have a concern about this you’d be best off flagging a user and writing a note to the mods and letting them sort it out. Calling out a user on a thread runs the risk of you yourself getting flagged or moderated. I have not flagged you or the OP and don’t plan to do so, so I’m just offering this as a caution here.
 
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Ok, just check the profile topics list. All are news and/or ‘wow‘ topics (even this is ‘spiritual’ but about sleep depravation, certainly unusual and makes you curious about the saint that didn’t sleep). Hopefully the moderators will check too.
 
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St. Francis of Assissi repented of being too hard on his body with penances and penance won’t lead you to perfection.

If you want to devote time for sleep to prayer instead, rise 15 mins earlier in the morning. Let that be your penance. St. Therese of Lisieux turned everything she did into an act of love for Jesus and she lived a very ordinary life in a monastery. Sweeping the floor? She swept out of love for Jesus. Setting the table? She set the table out of love for Jesus. Making her bed? You get the point? We don’t have to do great things to be Saints. Choosing an unusual penance is more likely to foster pride than humility but by all means, ask Christ to enlighten you as to a sacrifice you can make that would plesse Him.
 
I think some people are not careful with their penance and do their body a good deal of harm. Remember that your body is a gift and that it is not yours, I wish I had the saints who specifically said this I’ll look it up and reply with that info BUT there have been saints that before passing they say that they wish they had not been so harsh on their bodies. There are other forms of penance. God is not asking you to hurt yourself for him like that
 
Hey Op. Interesting post. I worked in a medical sleep lab for five years. During that time I saw many sleep deprived patients, and my own sleep habits were obviously challenged (worked graveyards). Sleep depravation can have real and tangible negative effects on people. I would definitely not recommending using it as a penance specifically. Perhaps as a one night thing to go to a vigil or something sure, but not intentionally for longer than a few days.
 
Some people in the past may have been given heroic abilities, it is possible.

For a typical person, serious sleep deprivation can lead to psychological harm. This is the kind of thing cults do to people to achieve mind control.
 
Going for long periods of time without sleep is never a good idea, for any reason.

I used to work as an in-home caregiver. Some of my assignments meant staying overnight for several nights in a row, so I made sure I packed everything I was going to need before I started out.

The problems occurred when the person I was caring for kept me awake all night, hollering and complaining. I tried my best to accommodate her, but no matter what I did, she wasn’t satisfied. She was very picky about her bedclothes being tucked in just a certain way, and when I finally succeeded in getting them right, she suddenly told me she had to use the bathroom, and I had to rip it all apart so she could get out of bed. When she returned, I worked until 5 a.m. that morning trying to get her bedding right for her, and finally I just told her, “This is the best I can do. I HAVE to get some sleep.” Her daughter was due back that morning, and took over when she returned. I was drowsy all the way home. Hadn’t slept a wink that night. I could have fallen asleep at the wheel, but managed to make it safely.

On another assignment, the old man frequently needed help during the night, so I learned to “sleep” with one eye open and one ear cocked. I was happy to help him, but got very little sleep and it did affect my ability to stay alert and think clearly during the day…

There were several assignments like that, and after awhile, they took their emotional and physical toll on me, and I had to quit, altogether.

I don’t think God wants us to harm ourselves doing penance. Prayers of contrition and some other means of atonement should suffice, especially when done with a sincere heart.
 
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The most important thing is to do God’s will, otherwise all of our “sacrifices” are worthless. As Jesus said to Sor Faustina

you give Me most glory by patiently submitting to My will, and you win for yourself greater merit than that which any fast or mortification could ever gain for you. Know, that if you submit your will to Mine, you draw upon yourself My special delight. This sacrifice is pleasing to Me and full of sweetness. I take great pleasure in it; there is power in it ( Diary, 904).
 
It is used as a reference from where the passage came from. Sor Faustina kept and wrote many things in her diary.
 
Sleep deprivation as Penance (Copied title)
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Yep, I guess I am doing penance without even seeking it.🙅
 
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