It’s no secret that college is full of a lot of meetings, all-nighters and study sessions. Or that the common college student gets at least 3 if not less full nights of sleep a week. However, not getting enough sleep can really hinder your body a lot more than you think. Insufficient sleep makes it difficult for you to focus on your task, remember simple things and increases your risk of doing everyday things, like driving or running. Personally, I caught myself this semester falling short because of my lack of sleep.
Having two internships and a job during a semester is not easy especially when one of your internships requires you to get up super early. One morning I had to arrive there at 2 A.M. and while the drive there was fine the drive back was terrible! I found it hard to keep my eyes open on the road and it left me praying in the name of Jesus for 30 minutes that I would make it home safely. After that day I knew something had to change. Not only was I risking my life by driving tired, but the lives of all the other commuters on the highway that day. Therefore, I looked up tips to help with my lack of sleep and they are below, so that you have them.
Step 1: Create a sleep schedule.
To some people, this may seem hard because in college you have events, meetings, study sessions to attend. Which can push back your homework time causing you to go to bed later. However, if you still set a bedtime alarm internally your body will start to relax after time that alarm goes off.
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Step 2: EXERCISE!
This step is already an import one to do daily, but especially in college. If you exercise at least two hours before you go to bed by the time your alarm goes off, you will be ready to knockout. The two-hour period gives your body time to unwind before you go to sleep. Which makes it easier to say bye to the phone and hello to those eyelids.
Step 3: Slow down on the Caffeine.
A lot of people rely on coffee to begin their day or at least a caffeine boost in the middle of their day to continue it. However, there are more natural ways to increase your caffeine intake high also known as tea. There’s a lot of teas that can wake you up and get you right before your day starts so that you don’t have to have an espresso. But, if you feel the need to still satisfy that coffee urge, make sure your last coffee for the day is before 2 P.M, so that the caffeine doesn’t affect your sleep time. A good suggestion for an energy lift later in the day would be taking a walk or nap, but keeping your naps 20 mins short.
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Step 4: Get rid of the distractions.
It’s important that you power down all your electronics that stimulate your brain at least 30 minutes before you sleep. This not only helps your brain take a break, but also helps your whole body start to relax. Now since it’s college most of us have roommates, so when you want to go to bed they might not want to. However, that problem is simply fixed with a sleep mask and earplugs. With these bedtime essentials you can block out all of that energy and catch them Z’s correctly!