An interesting insight into how many homeless and vulnerable adults spend their nights when they are rough sleeping…

Q) How did you feel in anticipation of sleeping out in the cold last night?

I didn’t think that it would be as cold as it was.  It was a mild evening but as the night went on it got very cold.  I woke up several times in spite of a sleeping bag and several layers.  I didn’t realize how important a good woolly hat is!

Q) What went through your mind each time that you woke up with the cold?

I would get as far down into my sleeping bag as I could and at times curl up.  I pulled my hat down over my eyes.  I wanted to get warm and go back to sleep as quickly as possible to escape from the cold.

Q) How did you feel when you woke up in the morning?

As I woke up it started to rain.  I got out of my sleeping bag as soon as I could.  I knew that if I got wet I would really feel the cold and the sleep deprivation.

Q) What effects are you noticing today after sleeping out for one night?

I do not have as much energy, I feel tired and just want to sleep.  I don’t want to take on anything too complex or challenging and I am lacking in motivation.

It is an easy thing to try out.  Simply get some cardboard and sleeping bag to experience a bit of what it is like…

Everybody who took part in the sleepout knew what the next day entailed.  For people rough sleeping that is not the case and it is very disorientating.  It is easy to slip into losing your sense of time and boundaries, becoming a blur of one episode phasing into another…