Sleep
A common concern among college students is lack of sleep. Students are often pulled in a variety of directions with pressure to do well academically, participation in extracurricular activities, and the social environment of dorms/Greek housing. A good night’s sleep is often last on a college student’s list of priorities. When they do get to bed it can be difficult to fall asleep due to excessive stress, anxiety, and worry. College students often underestimate the negative effect thatlack of sleep can have on their relationships, work, and general wellbeing. Lack of sleep can lead to irritability, impatience, and depression. In July 2002, Newsweek published an article stating that experiencingsleep deprivation for more than 24 hours “affects performance as much as a blood alcohol level above the legal limit.” Research continues to show that healthy sleep patterns enhance learning as well as overall mental and physical health.
REM and the Rhythm of Sleep
REM sleep stands for the Rapid Eye Movement portion of sleep. While REM cycle makes up 25% of our sleep time, it is also the part of sleep when dreams occur. Normal sleep moves through non-REM to REM every 90 minutes or so.
In fact, every 90 minutes or so there is “window” of time during which a person feels tired and can fall asleep. When that “window” is missed, it may be hard to fall asleep until the next “window” cycles around. Keep this in mind next time you want to stay awake a little longer to read one more chapter or finish that movie. This window is also apparent during daily activities. Daydreaming and poor concentration are evident during this “window.”
It is normal to wake up several times during the night. Some people make wake up as many as 15 times. Often we don’t even remember that we were awake. When you find yourself waking up at night don’t panic about the sleep you may be missing. Accept that waking up is normal and you will fall asleep again.
Insomnia
It is not unusual to have difficulty sleeping time to time. However, if you consistently have difficulty falling asleep or if you are waking up not feeling rested you may have insomnia.
Insomnia is characterized by:
• Difficulty falling asleep
• Frequent waking and difficulty falling asleep again
• Waking up too early in the morning
• Waking up not feeling rested
Insomnia is not defined by the number of hours you sleep a night. Most people need 7-8 hours a night but some people do well with less and others need more. If you are still feeling sleepy during the day you are not getting enough rest.
Tips for Sleeping Better
1. Develop a consistent sleep pattern. When you make it a point to wake up at the same time every day soon you will find you wake up naturally without an alarm clock. Go to bed the same day you got up which means in bed before midnight. Research also shows that if you sleep on a schedule which allows you to be awake by early morning, you’ll perform better. On weekends, try not to extend your wake hours by more than a couple hours. The more off schedule you get, that harder it is to get back on schedule.
2. Exercising in the late afternoon or early evening can help. Exercise increases the amount of non-REM sleep. Do not work out any less than two hours prior to bedtime. Cease meaningful activity (e.g. homework & paying bills) at least 30-60 minutes before sleep.
3. Reduce caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine intake late in the day. Food and drinks with caffeine (e.g. chocolate, soda, tea, and coffee) may induce sleep initially but tolerance can occur and a mini-withdrawal can cause wakefulness during the night. Other drugs including nicotine may disturb your natural biological rhythm causing sleep to become less refreshing.
4. Relax before bed. Stretch, take a warm shower/bath, meditate, read, or do another activity that gets you relaxed.
5. Have a light snack (dairy or carbohydrates avoid sugars).
6. Make your sleeping place comfortable. Make sure it’s quiet, dark, and a comfortable temperature. It it’s too bright, try using a sleep mask. If noise is a problem, try using a fan, earplugs, or “white noise” machine.
7. Your bed is for sleeping. Don’t use it for other activities like doing work, watching TV, talking on the phone and worrying.
8. Leave a pad of paper and pen next to your bed. Make a “to do” list before you fall asleep so those things don’t keep you up worrying. If you wake up thinking of a new idea or something you forgot to do write it down. This will help you let go of those thoughts and fall asleep easier.
9. If you can’t fall asleep after 20 minutes stop trying. Leave the room and do something relaxing. Try reading or doing something that’s not overly stimulating until you feel sleepy.
10. Do not take naps. When you feel sleepy get up and do something. This will increase the flow of oxygen to your brain and help you to be alert. When you study get up regularly (every 30 minutes or more if needed) to walk around. If you need to nap, sleep no more than 30 minutes and try to do so earlier in the day. Long naps can contribute to difficulty sleep the next night.
11. Keep clocks out of sight. Seeing the time can cause more anxiety when you are trying to fall asleep. Set the alarm and turn the clock face away from you.
A Relaxation Exercise to Help You Get to Sleep
Body scan
Select a comfortable place to sit or lie down. If your intention is to relax and re-energize you should sit on the floor or a chair with your back straight and erect and your hands resting on your lap. If your intention is to go to sleep you should lay on you back with your hands by your side.
You can’t do this exercise wrong...it’s only natural that your attention will wander off at times...just notice when this happens and gently return to wherever we are in the exercise.
Start by focusing on your breathing, no need to change your breathing just notice the breath as it flows naturally in and out. You may notice the sensation of the air coming in through your nose and out through your mouth…or you may pay attention to how your stomach moves in and out with each breath.
Now bring your attention to your left foot…notice the sensation of your shoe on your foot, or foot on the floor…scanning your attention over and through each of your toes…your arch and heel…up to your ankle. You may notice warmth, pressure, tingling sensations…whatever, just keeping your attention on your left foot. And now imagining your in-breath flowing through your left leg and into your foot and noticing how the muscles relax on the out-breath. Breathing in and out of the left foot a few more times.
Now bringing your attention to your left lower leg, ankle to knee. Noticing the shin and calf…tuning into sensations there…warmth, tingling, tension, whatever is there, just noticing. And directing your breath into your left lower leg on the in-breath and relaxing on the out-breath.
Each time distracted, just returning to wherever we are in the exercise.
Now focusing on your left upper leg, knee to hip. Noticing sensations in the quadriceps and hamstring. Moving your awareness gently up your leg to your hip. Notice the sensation of your leg on the chair. Just tuning into sensations…tension, tingling, whatever is there. Breathing into your left upper leg and relaxing on the out-breath.
Repeat the progression now for the right leg, foot, lower leg, upper leg
Notice both legs for a moment, resting your awareness on the length and width of them, scanning your awareness up and down both legs together.
Now focusing awareness on your left hand, scanning over each finger and thumb, palm and the back of your hand. Notice sensations in all those tiny muscles and joints. Whatever is there…warm or cold…tingling…pain or tension, just noticing. Now imagining your in-breath going all the way down into your left hand and all the muscles relaxing on each out-breath.
Focusing attention now on your left forearm, wrist to elbow. Noticing sensations…whatever is there…breathing in and letting go.
Moving awareness to your left upper arm, elbow to shoulder and all the way to the back of your neck. Scanning over bicep and tricep, shoulder…noticing sensations in left upper arm…warmth, tension tingling, soreness…whatever is there…now breathing into your left upper arm and allowing tension to melt away on each out-breath.
Repeat progression for entire right arm…fingers to shoulder.
Noticing both arms and legs now...relaxed
Now becoming aware of your stomach moving in and out with each breath, not changing your breathing, just noticing movement. And scanning up your body to the chest and neck. Becoming aware of sensations in the front of your body. Breathing in and relaxing on each out-breath.
And now focusing attention on the base of your spine…moving your awareness slowly up each vertebrae and out to each side. All the way up to the back of your neck. Noticing sensations in your back, whatever’s there…making room for pain or discomfort and focusing your in-breath and out-breath to the back. Visualizing tension melting away.
Now focusing your attention on a point between your eyebrows, at the top of your nose…and scanning your awareness over your forehead to your left and right temple. Focusing on your left cheek…and right cheek. Softening your eyes and jaw. Allowing tension to melt away from all the muscles of your face…and neck. Scanning your awareness up over your forehead and scalp to the back of your neck. Noticing the left and right side of your head.
Noticing your whole head sitting firmly on your shoulders. Relaxed.
Now, finally, noticing your whole body…scanning your attention slowly, gently from head to toe…down each of your arms to your fingers. Imagining each in-breath washing through your entire body and each out-breath letting go of tension. Just noticing the sensation of your entire body….heavy and relaxed.
And…to finish the exercise focusing again on your breathing…noticing the sensation of the air in and out of your nose and mouth…notice how your body moves with each in and out-breath.
Picturing the room around you in your minds eye…and gently opening your eyes when you are ready.
B Vitamins
Adapted from “B Vitamins to Support Sleep”, MIT center for Health Promotion and Wellness
Vitamins in the B group are beneficial in stress management. They aid in producing energy, maintaining healthy nerves, and promote regular sleep patterns. Becoming agitated or anxious uses up more B vitamins through use of energy. Deficiencies of vitamin B can lead to anxiety , depression, fatigue, and irritability. B vitamins include B1, B2, B3, B6, and B12.
Folic acid – helps with fatigue and insomnia; found in meats, sprouts, sunflower seeds, leafy green vegetables, and orange juice.
Pantothenic acid – helps with fatigue and insomnia, found in mushrooms, liver eggs, and broccoli – some is found in most food.
B6 – used to convert tryptophan to serotonin. Deficiencies in B6 lead to irritability. It can be found in animal protein foods, bananas, salmon, broccoli, and sunflower seeds.
B12 – can help with fatigue, insomnia, and depression. It is found in eggs, meat, poultry, shellfish, milk, and milk products.
Getting Help
If you continue to have difficulty sleeping despite your efforts consider getting help. Call the SDCC at 508-831-5540 and make an appointment to speak with a counselor. There may be other conflicts in your life that are preventing you from getting the sleep you need. A counselor can work collaboratively with you to figure out what it is that keeps you awake at night and help you develop coping strategies that will lead to a peaceful night’s sleep.
If all else fails medication may be warranted. Medication should be prescribed at the lowest dosage and for the shortest amount of time. Long term use of sleep aid medications may actually disrupt sleep further. As always, before you use any medication or herbal supplement consult with a healthcare professional. A referral to a psychiatrist can be made by the SDCC. Other professional resources include WPI Health Services and your primary care physician.
Resources and Related Links
National Sleep Foundation http://www.sleepfoundation.org
Help Me To Sleep.Com http://help-me-to-sleep.com/
Learning Meditation http://www.learningmeditation.com/
Online Meditation Center http://www.meditationcenter.com/
The Promise of Sleep by William C. Dement
Power Sleep by James B. Maas
Maintained by webmaster@wpi.eduLast modified: June 25, 2008 14:51:20