How to get by with less sleep: A Question many students face

This post from cnet grabbed my attention today because sleep has always been a topic of interest as well as an enemy that I constantly battled with when trying to study. In addition I find myself incredibly busy sometimes and sleep often does not make its way onto the list of things to do. I think its a subject many students must deal with and I think the summer months are a perfect to time to evaluate their sleeping habits!

Just the other day I found myself waking up early for a meeting and then agreed later that night to watch a midnight showing of a movie which I knew would lead to very late night drive home. I essentially had to stay awake and be alert for 24 hours with very little time to let my mind rest. A difficult task usually but a position that I am pretty familiar with. As a college student, and one that once was seeking to go off to medical/dental school, the time often required to stay up late studying often battled with the physiological aspect of my body telling me to get the appropriate amount of rest. I always knew I wasn't making the most of my time when I forced my body to study into the early morning hours but I also knew I wasn't completely comfortable with the material so I wouldn't be able to get a good nights sleep anyways with my mind constantly being occupied with worries of poor grades. It's a scenario many students face so any topic related to sleep and performance of school always captures my attention.

This post points to two great links. One about how much sleep the body needs ( a question I've always asked myself) and another that gives a few pointers on how to become an early riser.

The ability to wake up earlier is especially of interest to me as I know that within a year I'll be out working in the real world and my current schedule of going to bed at 4 am and waking up a 11am will no longer cut it in the professional world. I really need to change my habits! I think the summer is a good time to go about changing these habits as I don't have the pressure of school right now and can afford to go a few days of sleepiness while my body slowly adjusts to a new cycle.

I encourage all students to evaluate their own sleeping habits as so many studies have shown the link between performance in college and having a well rested mind. It amazes me that so many medical school students and interns are forced to go days with so little sleep! As doctors they know the importance of it yet they ignore their own studies and facts. This is just one of the reasons for my decision to pull out of a graduate school degree. I can't and don't won't to live life (even if it is just for a few years) that way and I really hope the system changes soon for the sake of all my friends that will be facing those challenges very soon!

Anyways the summer is a great time to take a look at note-taking methods, studying habits, organization skills, future career goals as well as figuring out the best way to keep a clear head and receive the proper amount of sleep!

posted by Jason Dorko at 12:19 PM 0 comments links to this post