We all complain about how little sleep we get in college. I’ve been guilty of it too. As students, we have to change that attitude and take better care of ourselves.
It’s midterm season and I constantly smell coffee in the air like the perfume they pump out in shopping malls. Last week, I saw a guy pour a Red Bull into his coffee and knock it back like a shot of tequila. I was disgusted by the combination and impressed by his dedication to finish a term paper he had neglected to start before the approach of the due date.
The real casualty in all of this is our sleep schedules. Our culture praises sleepless nights and burning the candle at both ends. This is extremely harmful to our quality of life. Most people generally need as many as eight hours of sleep a night to feel well-rested and alert throughout the day.
According to research at Brown University, at least 11 percent of students report good sleep and 73 percent of students were found to have sleep problems. When I’m stressed with group projects and exams, sleep is the last thing on my mind. I’ll stay up all night and convince myself that I’ll make up the difference after I turn in my work on Blackboard.
That is a bold-faced lie to myself. I’ll look at the dark circles under my eyes and accept the broke and hungry raccoon I have become. Next thing you know, I’m on Buzzfeed at night taking a quiz to see what flavor of Poptart I am. I’m brown sugar cinnamon, in case you were wondering.
There are ways which we can improve our sleep and quality of life as college students. We need to treat our bodies with kindness. You can try out any of the following to work towards a well-rested mind.