Whenever I ask a fellow college student how their semester is going, they say “Oh it’s great! Just
haven’t slept in a few days.” This is the stereotype of every student in college these days. Why,
though? Why is it that you have to completely destroy your sleep schedule to seem normal?
Personally, I need at least 7 hours of sleep every night in order to function correctly. When I tell
my friends this, they’re shocked. Most of them run on 4 hours of sleep every night. They are
always up super late at night doing homework or studying. I ask them how they can successfully
get anything done and they always say it’s no problem for them to stay up forever. If you are
someone who has to get more sleep than the average college student, you’re not alone. One of
my friends in high school always used to say “If I don’t know it by 11 pm, I’m not going to know
it by midnight.” That didn’t always make the most sense to me but as I began my college journey
it kept floating in the back of my mind. As I started to learn the crazy student life, I found that
late night study sessions were not for me. My mind works best in the afternoon and deteriorates
in the evening hours. Then by the end of the day, my mind can’t take any more.
My best advice for those of you who experience this feeling is to listen to your body. I know
when I am beyond exhaustion, I get a massive headache. My eyes start to hurt, and I start to fall
asleep where I am sitting. That is my body telling me it is time to shut it down. I learned about
diminishing returns in economics this year. What’s funny about that concept is that it applies to
me when I study. The more I force myself through hours of studying, the less I end up
remembering at the end of the time. You retain more information when you have more rest.
Keep in mind that it’s not a bad thing if you need more sleep than those around you. It’s just as
important as studying, eating and exercising. Take care of yourself and get into good habits now.
They’ll pay off later. Good luck!