Sleeping Myths: 7 Secrets to Getting your Best Nights Sleep

I spoke with Kristina Grabnickas, the advanced registered nurse practitioner for UCF Health Services, and Dr. Ruiz Rodriguez, the medical director of sleep medicine at Orlando Regional Medical Center to uncover some myths about sleeping that may have been keeping you awake.

Myth #1: It is worth cutting back on sleep to study.

Fact: While your body rests during sleep, the brain remains active and gets “recharged.” Harvard medical school researchers found that students who stayed up all night after learning a new task showed little improvement in their performance.

“A week of sleeping less than six hours every night equals a BAC of .1 percent” Grabnickas said,

Dr.Ruiz Rodriguez adds, “There is clinical research done on medical residents where residents that keep working past 24-hour shifts perform as bad on tasks as someone that is legally drunk. For that reason, doctors in training are not allowed to work anymore post call. They are sent home to sleep”

Myth #2: It’s ok to drink a glass of wine or a beer before bed.

Fact: According to the National Sleep Foundation, a foundation dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of sleep and awareness, some people feel that alcohol is a sleep aid on its own. However, while alcohol may calm you and speed the onset of sleep, it actually increases the number of times you awaken during the night.

Myth #3: You can train yourself to need less sleep.

Fact: “In the general population there is a misconception that when we are young adults, we don’t need much sleep to function properly during our daily living. The truth is that in the general population including young adults and college students, the required average sleep time is around 8 hours. This is the general time of sleep no matter if you’re 20 years old or 75 years old.” Dr. Ruiz Rodriguez said.

You can choose to sleep less but not to need less sleep. To find the sleep you need, Grabnickas says to try sleeping until you wake on your own, without an alarm clock. If you feel rested, then that’s your sleep need.

Myth #4: If you miss a few hours of sleep one night, you can catch up the next night without any negative impact.

Fact: The sleep you miss is gone forever. You can get back on schedule the next night, but you cannot “catch up” without a negative impact on your health and functioning. “It is most important that you establish a sleep and wake up time and try to do it every day,” Grabnickas said.

According to Harvard neuroscientist Robert Stickgold, many college students suffer from a kind of sleep bulimia in which they binge and purge sleep time. They try to get by on three to five hours a night during the week and sleep long hours on the weekend, thinking they will be fine. However, much of the information learned during a sleep-deprived week will not be well-integrated into memory circuits.

Myth #5: It doesn’t matter when you sleep, as long as you get eight hours.

Fact: It is important to maintain a regular sleep-wake schedule in order to establish restful rhythms, even on the weekends when the temptation is to sleep in. It is also natural for humans to sleep at night; several short periods of sleep throughout the day do not have the same positive effect on learning and performance.

“Establish going to bed around 11, before midnight, it takes you about an hour to unwind, shut off your cell phone and establish a nightly ritual (wash face, take a hot bath, etc.) and put it in your schedule. Establish a going to bed time and get ready for it an hour before,” Grabnickas said.

Myth #6: If you wake up in the middle of the night, it is best to lay in bed, count sheep, or toss and turn until you eventually fall back asleep.

Fact: “If you do not fall back asleep within 15 to 20 minutes, you should get out of bed, go to another room that is dimly lit, and do something relaxing such as read or listen to music. Return to bed when you feel sleepy and avoid watching the clock.” Grabnickas said.

Myth #7: Men and women are affected the same way by insomnia.

Fact: According to the National Sleep Foundation, insomnia is nearly twice as common in women as it is in men. A woman’s sleep is uniquely influenced by her menstrual cycle, biological life stage, stress level, health, mood, parental status, work hours and other life responsibilities.

Here are some tips from Dr. Ruiz Rodiguez for women college students trying to get better sleep:

1. Keep a regular sleep-wake schedule.

2. Avoid caffeinated and nicotine products in the evening.

3. Exercise regularly but not in the evening, this can impair your sleep.

4. Keep your bedroom quiet, cool, and dark for sleep.

5. Use your bedroom only for sleep (no TV or studying in the bedroom).

6. Avoid bright lights before going to bed (including electronic devices).

7. Avoid the use of alcoholic beverages to induce sleep.

8. Do relaxing activities prior to sleep period.

9. Don’t eat immediately prior to sleep period, especially if there is past medical history of heartburns.

10. Avoid long naps during the day as this may impair night sleep period.

12. If taking any prescription medications, consult with your physician if any affects sleep.

For tips on waking up earlier, check out Ali Strominger’s article here!

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