It’s a lie I’ve told myself almost every night these past couple weeks as I flip and scroll through the pages of my textbooks and online assignments, running on copious amounts of coffee, tea, and the occasional energy drink- and it’s undoubtedly a dilemma many college students experience.
My ideal self wakes up at 6am, does some 10 minute morning yoga, drinks at least one cup of water, gets ready, and eats breakfast with potentially half an hour to spare before class. Right now, the chances of this happening are not too promising; as a self-proclaimed night owl, I’m here to confess that breaking late night habits is tough to say the least.
At the end of my freshman year, I’d committed myself to several “practices” that would keep me functioning optimally. Adequate sleep, as you might have already guessed, topped my list. I’d come to this conclusion after restless nights of incessant study sessions during exam weeks. There was nothing worse than the mornings I’d drag myself out of bed with a “foggy” headache and return home that evening with body pain- BODY PAIN! All because I didn’t get enough sleep. I vividly recall, pretty late into the spring semester, flipping out going down the rabbit hole of chronic disease diagnoses while browsing the side effects of sleep deprivation online (I’m in no way saying that people who consistently sleep less than the recommended number hours will all develop heart disease, but you get the gist). Now this was definitely a turning point; I needed to give my body a break, and sleep was definitely going to be prioritized to accomplish this.
This did not go as planned, however, and in retrospect, I realize how unrealistic that goal was without proper time management. Not even two weeks into the fall semester, I found myself crawling back into long nights of intense studying, followed by throbbing morning grogginess involving me struggling to get out of bed, quickly showering, and dashing across campus to my 8am classes. Unfortunate, I know.
For those of you suffering from an irregular sleep schedule, I want to remind you, that sleep, as you probably know, is just as important as eating well, and possibly more important than having a thriving social life or getting an A on an exam. It’s so easy to get trapped in the cyclical nature of sleep deprivation, and it’ll take time to dissociate from these addicting habits. But this time, I’m willing to make the necessary changes if not for my long-term health, then for my sanity.
With that, I wish you all good night and, please, go get some sleep- you need it.