Better Sleep Can Improve Your Life:
5 Students Tell How They Got More Sleep and Why It Made a Difference
By Lora Rosenblum, Senior, University of Pennsylvania
How do you get better sleep in college? We went right to the source to find out: We asked real students about the problems they have faced with sleeping and how they resolved their difficulties.
Unplugging for Better Rest
Name: Allison
School: Northwestern University
Problem: Allison had a hard time falling asleep because of the distractions present in her room—namely, her television and computer. “At the end of a long day, sometimes the most relaxing thing for me is turning on the television,” she says. “But 30 minutes of TV easily turns into three hours, and before I know it, it’s past midnight and I have to get up early for class.” Each morning, Allison vowed to get up early, but the problem persisted.
Solution: Allison recognized that unwinding is just as important as working hard. “Because I find TV so relaxing, I set aside just one hour a day to watch my favorite show, and then I turn the TV off and go work elsewhere.” Working elsewhere eliminates the possibility of distraction. “I’ve also stopped turning on the TV when I get into bed for the night. Otherwise, I end up watching for the whole night instead of actually going to sleep.” By setting aside specific TV-watching time, Allison is able to follow a more regular sleep pattern each night.
A Procractinator’s Plight
Name: Tommy
School: The George Washington University
Problem: Tommy’s sleep suffers as a result of a problem that many college students experience: procrastination. “Ever since sophomore year, I’ve struggled to start working on assignments until the day or two before they are due.” As a result of putting off his work, Tommy frequently feels anxious on nights preceding big tests and due dates because he has a lot of work to do in a short period of time.
Solution: Though Tommy doesn’t feel that his academic performance suffers as a result of his procrastination habits, he knows that getting more rest would ease the anxiety he experiences prior to tests and assignments. “I wish I could sleep longer on these nights and feel more rested.” Tommy has made a goal for himself to start planning ahead of time for long-term assignments. By planning ahead, he will be able to better budget his time and no longer need to wait until the last minute. That will keep him from staying up later scrambling to get work finished, and it will allow him to sleep a bit longer on nights before tests and assignments are due.
Finding a Roommate With Similar Habits
Name: Mandy
School: Johns Hopkins University
Problem: Mandy and her roommate were both light sleepers. But Mandy would stay up late finishing homework, or return to her room late from a night out with friends. She also enjoyed sleeping late, while her roommate would be waking up for early class. “Sleep became difficult for the two of us, who shared a 9-by-13 foot room and completely different habits. One of us was always waking the other up.”
Solution: Mandy and her roommate were able to talk things out, and while they thought they might try being more quiet, they ultimately decided that living together was not working out for either of them. “We were both tired and frustrated,” says Mandy. “Even though we got along fine in other respects, we ended up amicably deciding to sever our roommate-ship in favor of living with people with similar habits.” Mandy and her roommate contacted their university and were each placed in new living situations more conducive to their unique lifestyles. Without the bother of being woken up or needing to quietly tiptoe around her room at dark hours, Mandy now feels she is able to better meet the needs of her own schedule.
Putting a Stop to Insomnia
Name: Arielle
School: University of Pennsylvania
Problem: Her sophomore year of college, Arielle suffered from insomnia. She just had incredible difficulty getting to sleep and staying asleep no matter how hard she tried. “While many students must stay up late to finish assignments they neglected to work on earlier, it is considerably worse when you have no choice but to stay up the entire night because you are unable to fall asleep.” Arielle recalls that insomnia significantly affected her daily life: “I would be too tired to even go to class or to do my schoolwork, which became increasingly frustrating and debilitating. My anxiety was inexplicable; my mind wouldn’t shut off when I needed it to.”
Solution: Some people can cure insomnia by changing habits—not drinking caffeine or alcohol close to bedtime, for example. Some find not exercising or eating close to bedtime can help, while others find warm milk or a soothing herbal tea can aid in sleep. Arielle tried different solutions, but finally elected to visit a therapist to discuss her sleep problem.
“My therapist recommended that I try meditation, as it is said to relax the mind and help one release all of his or her tension.” Though apprehensive about this approach, she tried meditation while listening to a CD of soothing music that her therapist recommended because of its success at helping others who had suffered from insomnia. Eventually, it worked. “The process to rid myself of insomnia was rather long, but once I became proactive about trying to fix the issue, I was able to return to my previous sleeping habits.” Now that Arielle is able to sleep more regularly, she feels it is easier to balance day-to-day tasks, such as class, school work, extracurriculars, and hanging out with friends.
When Sleep Issues Lead to Bigger Problems
Name: Brooke
School: Tulane University
Problem: Brooke and her freshman roommate, whom she met on a university-specific roommate-finder website, each had very different sleeping schedules. According to Brooke, “my roommate literally went out four to five nights a week until about four in the morning and would wake me up with her snoring, even when I had ear plugs in. She would then sleep until at least 5 p.m. and skip all of her classes, making me feel uncomfortable in the room.” Brooke’s sleep was disrupted because of the noise and the lights, and although she discussed the problem with her roommate, she just couldn’t break these habits. Brooke describes the worst part of her problem: “I tried to get a single after getting a Generalized Anxiety Disorder diagnosis from my family’s therapist, but I wasn’t allowed to move out.”
Solution: As she mentioned, Brooke’s problem manifested itself to the point where she was generally uncomfortable being in her room. She tried to come up with a solution with her roommate, but, in this case, it wasn’t working out. Though her initial efforts to change rooms were unsuccessful, in years following, she made sure that she lived in her own room in an environment with people she was comfortable around.
“In the end, I knew my problems were related to my roommate because now that I have my own room, I am completely fine and don’t have the same anxious feelings, or any troubles with falling asleep or staying asleep.”
Sleep difficulties can ruin your waking hours. If you are experiencing trouble sleeping, be sure to seek out a counselor who can help you determine the cause and uncover possible solutions.
LORA ROSENBLUM IS A STUDENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA STUDYING HEALTHCARE MANAGEMENT AND FRENCH. IN HER FREE TIME, SHE ENJOYS DISTANCE RUNNING, PLAYING WITH HER KINDLE, AND EXPLORING VEGAN CUISINE IN NEW CITIES.
Find Out More
Click for more on ways you can get enough sleep each night.
Click to take the NIH's Sleep Quiz to find out if you're getting enough sleep.
Click for more about a variety of sleep disorders, and what to do about them.
For more information about the importance of sleep and how to improve sleep, CLICK HERE.
