It’s a Friday night and you’ve had another long, sleepless week. Midterms forced you to stay up late studying, and all you really want to do is get some well-deserved rest. However, you forgot that you promised your friends you’d go out with them to celebrate the completion of this seemingly never-ending week. What do you do?
While spending time with friends is important, it is just as important to take into account your personal well-being. Thus, it is completely okay to say ‘no’ to a night out. As Northwestern students, we think we can do it all; school, sleep, and on top of that, have a social life. However, as the fall quarter comes to an end, one thing is becoming evident: that’s not always possible. And tha’ts completely okay.
We all have a natural drive to succeed, which often makes us overextend ourselves– both academically and socially.
According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, after two weeks of less than six hours of sleep per night, students feel and perform as poorly as someone who has gone without sleep for 48 straight hours. Rest is important, and students underestimate the importance that sleep has on their everyday capabilities. On average, college students require about eight hours of sleep each night. This allows our bodies to restore energy so that we can think clearly and be happy.
Sure, there’s always something happening on campus, but it’s not essential to attend every event. There’s a reason there are so many different activies scheduled in the first place: if you miss one, there’s always an opportunity to attend the next.
FOMO might be a real concern, but your prioritizing health can truly make a world of difference in energy-levels, sleeping patterns and overall mental and physical health.
Make time for me time! Whether it be catching up on sleep, or simply relaxing in your room with a nice cup of tea, it is essential to pause and take into account what’s best for you. School is challenging, and there’s no need to give into the burn out, especially if you have the opportunity to do a little somethinig to take care of yourself. Friends will understand if you need to stay in for the night.
So, stay in on Friday night. Relax, catch up on some sleep and recharge yourself. After all, there’s always Saturday night too.