London man didn’t sleep for a week while planning a fundraiser — then what his mind convinced him of landed him in a mental health facility
Lack of sleep can quietly push the mind to dangerous limits. A man from London learned this after staying awake for more than a week while organizing a charity fundraiser. As per PEOPLE, Tommy Graves said the crisis started in March 2021 when he threw himself into planning the event. He worked nonstop, driven by stress and constant ideas, unaware that his body and mind were reaching a breaking point that would eventually land him in a mental health facility.
As the sleepless nights continued, his thoughts became extreme and detached from reality. Graves later explained that he believed “I was in a television studio” and that his life was being broadcast to millions, similar to the film The Truman Show. He said, “I completely left planet Earth. I had no sense of what reality was.” During this period, he thought cameras were filming him inside the hospital. “I was performing to these cameras,” he shared, describing how he sang, danced, and even attempted cartwheels while imagining an invisible audience watching him.
The episode was later described as a “manic episode with psychosis caused by stress and sleep deprivation.” Graves admitted in a conversation with Daily Mail that as he kept working on the fundraiser, “my brain wouldn't switch off.” The longer he stayed awake, the more elaborate his ideas became. He said the thoughts grew “more and more extreme,” until they no longer made sense. "Some people would say delusional," he commented. His family became alarmed by his behavior and sought medical help. Doctors eventually admitted him to a mental health facility, where he remained for four weeks while professionals worked to stabilize him.
Graves recalled how disoriented he felt during his hospital stay. “I didn't even know where I was,” he said. Medical staff gave him medication to help him sleep after days without rest. Slowly, he began to recover and reconnect with reality. Looking back, he described being placed in “the highest level of care you can get.” The experience frightened him deeply. He admitted he never believed something like this could happen to him, especially from something as common as losing sleep.
After being discharged, Graves realized he needed to change his lifestyle. His doctor warned him that he had to learn how to sleep properly or risk “losing my sense of reality again.” That advice stayed with him. He began studying sleep habits, reading books, and adjusting his routine. He reduced late nights and avoided the cycle of weekend exhaustion that once drained him. Instead of treating sleeplessness as a sign of dedication, he started seeing rest as essential for mental health and stability.
Today, Graves is a certified sleep coach who shares advice online about building healthy sleep routines. He wants people to understand that lack of rest is not something to celebrate. “I'm on a mission to make it cool to have a bedtime,” he said. He explains that better sleep does not mean less enjoyment of life, but smarter timing. He also hopes to raise awareness that sleep is closely linked to many mental health conditions.
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