I’m sure you’ve heard people advise you to get more sleep. Sleep is one of the most important mechanisms of human beings that support one’s physical and mental health. To give you a glimpse of possible consequences from sleep deficiency, research shows that a lack of sleep can boost the chances of susceptibility to heart disease and high blood pressure. However, it’s not really just about how long you sleep, it’s the quality of your sleep that matters.
Today, we’ll delve into what sleep hygiene is and how students can best benefit from building habits to avoid compromising their fundamental sleep schedule to survive hectic lives.
Today, we’ll delve into what sleep hygiene is and how students can best benefit from building habits to avoid compromising their fundamental sleep schedule to survive hectic lives.
Building optimal sleep hygiene essentially means to create a normal routine to prepare for sleep and recover from sleep. As you may have predicted, sleep thrives in partnership with consistent routines. One of the most important habits to establish is determining a time to go to bed and wake up everyday. This allows for your body to adjust and adapt to the normal range of rest you get. Another widely popularized advice is to keep away from blue light exposure by avoiding screen time before sleep. While these facts are crucial, we’ve heard it a thousand times by now. So instead, let’s delve into specific sleep conditions we have commonly faced.
Have you heard of Revenge Bedtime Procrastination? The following refers to a tendency for people to compensate for their busy schedules at work, school, and other professional settings by sacrificing sleep to gain a couple hours of entertainment through social media or watching TV for example. While in the moment the decision brings surges of satisfaction by gaining time to wind down, in the long run it in itself is another method of further damaging physical and mental health. Do you recall the last time you went on Youtube to watch one video to laugh off your stress but ended up watching for an hour? I don’t know about you, but this has been a normal trend for me. We all know we wake up groggy the next day, thinking, “I should’ve slept earlier last night, UGH.” It becomes an ongoing cycle of self-disappointment, complaints, and a lack of self-control.
One way to combat and overcome this persistent struggle is to be strict with yourself and make sleeping a non-negotiable resource. Although sleeping early may feel like a reluctant sacrifice at night, waking up rejuvenated the next day becomes a reward that supports you for the entire day. In addition, try to steer away from drinking caffeine in the later half of your day. Falling asleep can be one of the hardest tasks, especially when you want to sleep but your body simply cannot relax and enter the sleep zone. This brings us to a common sleeping disorder experienced by one in four people each year: insomnia. Individuals who experience this condition struggle to transition into sleep or have difficulty staying asleep throughout the night.
There are two types of insomnia: primary and secondary. Primary insomnia arises from particularly stressful events or jet lags but secondary insomnia stems from other underlying mental or physical conditions the individual may be experiencing. As someone who has experienced insomnia in the past, the constant battle with sleep can become exhausting and even discouraging over time. However, know that improvement is possible! Here’s where sleep hygiene matters. For example, exercising in the day-time, setting a relaxing pre-sleep activity for each night, and keeping a dark sleep environment to properly release melatonin sleep hormones are some important ways to improve sleep conditions. Remember, quality sleep comes with practicing consistent habits. Moreover, if sleep is a constant challenge that brings a toll on your daily life, I recommend speaking with a specialist or your primary doctor to explore what underlying conditions cause these difficulties.
All in all, sleep struggles are real. Conditions must be acknowledged and remedied, especially for students who depend on mental health to persevere in rigorous classes and schedules. Sleep hygiene is as important as typical hygiene practices. Just like exercising and eating healthy are prioritized by students despite busy schedules, sleep must become a non-negotiable daily practice to equip our bodies with strength to prosper both in and outside academic settings!
We hope you enjoyed this article. For more content on how to find your academic success, check out some of our articles here on StarryScholar. If you have any questions/comments, feel free to leave them in our “Community Discussion” tab, or email us at @[email protected]! Remember, you got this ☆