Elijah Wells
Contributing Writer
The number of students experiencing sleep deprivation on our campus is greater than you think. A survey was conducted to develop a reasonable sample size of students to determine how common it is for them to suffer from sleep deprivation.
We asked 20 students on campus, “On a scale of one-five, how often have you experienced trouble sleeping within the past two weeks” (one being never, and five being extremely often). Calculating the answers received by the students, the average number turned out to be 4.05, indicating that most of these students had consistently experienced sleep deprivation within the past two weeks. Only four of the 20 students selected numbers below four, and the rest selected numbers four or five.
Kovii LaBar, a sophomore Fine Arts major said, “Personally, I have dealt with sleep issues for a while, and even still it hinders my ability to work and live as best as I can. It truly is a horrible thing to experience because the day after you cannot function well.” LaBar is a part of the students who contributed to the survey with her selecting four.
According to the CDC, at least 60% of college students worldwide have poor quality of sleep and garner, on average, seven hours of sleep per night. Studies indicate that 75% of college students reported occasional sleep disturbances, while 15% reported overall poor sleep quality.
Experiencing sleep deprivation can either lead to or prolong severe health issues for students including diabetes, obesity, depression, heart attack, anxiety, etc. It can also affect their performance in daily activities. They may experience challenging moments executing simple activities like tying their shoes.
“Not being able to concentrate in class and feeling very negative are two experiences I had during a day where I didn’t get enough sleep the night before,” said LaBar.
As LaBar stated, it is very challenging for students to pay full attention during their classes if they don’t get enough sleep the night before. This can cause students to miss important information conveyed by the professor which can affect the student’s performance for the class long-term. This information can involve lectures related to the material being taught or reminders for quizzes/tests and assignment due dates.
But why is it so common for students to experience sleep deprivation? Why is it a daunting task for students to receive enough sleep on a nightly basis? It is recommended for adults to receive anything between seven and eight hours of sleep nightly to ensure a good night’s rest, but most people fail to meet those recommendations.
However, there are many strategies students can consider to combat sleep deprivation. One of the main reasons why students have trouble sleeping is due to a poor sleep schedule. According to an article by zzzquil, developing a consistent sleep schedule will help program the body to feel sleepy when it’s time for bed and to wake up refreshed in the morning.
Zzzquil also states that it’s essential to put your phone away 30 minutes before your bedtime routine. The bright screen from your phone will make your body think it’s still daytime, resulting
in difficulty in falling asleep. If you want to read this article to discover more strategies you can use to help treat sleep deprivation, click here.
Sleep deprivation can be a huge factor in impacting a student’s academic performance for the worst. To maintain good grades in classes and to avoid health issues, it is very important to establish great sleeping habits nightly.