The number of college students who experience sleep problems has increased in recent years, according to recent studies.
Author James B. Maas wrote in his book, Power Sleep, that college students are among the most sleep-deprived people in the country.
Susan Haney, nurse practitioner and outreach coordinator for GW’s Student Health Service, said she frequently has students come to her for help with disruptive sleep patterns.
I think it’s an important issue on campus, Haney said.
But for some students, like freshman Silveth Khawhaa, the problem is not an inability to fall asleep but to physically get to bed.
You think you have a lot of time during the day to do everything, but in reality you can end up wasting an entire day and end up having to work late at night, said Khawhaa.
James DeCarli, a recent graduate of GW’s School of Public Health, conducted a study on sleep deprivation after noticing a trend among his new classmates at University of Southern California, where he is studying to get his doctorate.
A lot of (Resident Assistants) had students coming to them and complaining because they have no sleep during finals and so much to do, said DeCarli, a health educator at USC’s Student Health Center.
DeCarli said one of the biggest causes of sleeping problems among college students is the irregularity of their sleeping habits. Students have a habit of going to sleep and waking up at different times each day, causing a disruption in their biological clocks, he said.
It’s like traveling in an airplane, and you’re experiencing jet lag, said DeCarli. Your clock changes.
Junior Heather Blackburn said she needs a certain amount of sleep to perform well in her 8 a.m. classes.
It’s really hard to pay attention in class when it’s that early, and you haven’t got enough sleep, Blackburn said.
DeCarli said there is no set number of hours students should get each night. The best way to gauge if students have had enough sleep is if they feel rested and alert the next day, he said.
Avoiding eating large meals before bedtime and naps during the day are some of the simple ways students can improve disruptive sleeping patterns, she said.
To improve sleep students should also avoid caffeine and alcohol, sleeping late on the weekends and pre-bedtime anxiety. Haney said students sometimes feel overwhelmed by what they have to do the next day before lying down for bed. A good way to get rid of this anxiety is to detail pressures on a piece of paper before sleeping, Haney said.
These solutions may not seem realistic to some students, but if students are feeling weary and tired, there are specific changes that can be made to improve the quality of their sleep, DeCarli said.
