If your winter break was anything like mine, there were a lot of late nights, later mornings, random naps, and even a few days slept entirely away. Although I was immensely excited to get back to school, I had a bit of a rude awakening (an iPhone alarm at 8 am, to be specific) that reminded me I actually have to get up and go to class while I’m here. Getting back into the swing of things for a new semester can be tough, and maintaining a practical and regular sleep schedule with an active college lifestyle can be even tougher. However, the benefits of resting and rising at around the same time every day with eight hours in between are innumerable. Getting good sleep is good for your mind, body, heart, and more. When sleeping til noon sounds far too appealing or pulling an all-nighter feels like your only choice, remind yourself of these amazing perks a proper night of sleep can get you!
1. Improve Memory
Our brain does this really cool thing when we go to sleep called consolidation, where we unknowingly practice skills we’ve learned while awake in our sleep. It also processes the information from the day and makes connections with feelings, sensory input, and past events. Not only will constant sleep prevent memory loss in long run, but a full rest before that Italian exam in the morning will reinforce your vocab memorization, too!
2. Weight Control
Lack of sleep can slow down your metabolism, as well as imbalance hormones that control your appetite. Studies have shown that people who get less than 7 hours of sleep are more likely to be overweight, but also that oversleeping will leave you feeling more tired (meaning less motivated for gym time) in the time that you are awake. Stop counting calories and start counting hours.
3. Strengthen Your Immune System
…which is a big plus while living in such close quarters with such a large amount of people! No one likes to be sick, and a healthy night of sleep every night will help you fight off all those unwanted viruses and infections.
4. Improve Appearance
The term “beauty sleep” can be taken very literally, because your skin and muscles restore and repair during sleep, leaving you brighter and more rejuvenated when you wake. Lack of sleep can actually speed up the aging process and cause wrinkles and dull skin. Another good reason to stick to your bedtime, sleeping beauties!
5. Alertness and Productivity
What good is an all-nighter if you’re struggling to keep your eyelids from shutting during your exam? Regular sleep makes your brain more attentive and sharp and ready for the day, so you’ll be jotting down notes all morning and still focused enough to read them back during your afternoon library sesh.
6. Reduced Risk of Depression
Lack of sleep equals lack of serotonin levels. Serotonin keeps you happy. This does not, however, condone you to stay in bed all day. Moderation is key!
7. Creativity
Yet again, your brain is doin’ its thing while you’re sleeping away, re-organizing itself and whatnot while you’re off in dreamland. There’s a reason for the commonly used phrase regarding big decisions or projects to “sleep on it.” Grasping for ideas for a research paper? Tough calculus problem you just can’t figure out? Go to bed and look at it with fresh eyes in the morning.
On top of all this, sleep is good for your cardiovascular health, prevents diabetes, and makes you live longer. However, more sleep does not mean more of all these great things, just enough sleep does. And as much as we wish it would, trying to make up for lost sleep one night by sleeping more the next simply does not work. We’re in college. We’ve got tests to cram for, parties to attend, noisy roommates, and too much free time to nap. It’s not realistic for me to advise you to go to bed at 11-12 and wake up at 8 every single day, but I must say it’s what you should try to approximately aim for. Pull on the cute new sleep mask Santa left you and set your new iPhone’s alarm because you’re a full-time student again! Sweet dreams, Collegiettes™!