Sleep

UHCS Services

If you have questions or concerns about your sleeping patterns, UHCS can help! We have medical staff and counseling staff who can address a variety of problems related to sleep.

Overview

Not surprisingly, evidence indicates that sleep is essential in helping maintain mood, memory, and cognitive performance. Bottom line, sleep deprivation is thought to hurt academic performance and negatively impact ones quality of life. The literature suggests that college students, on average, sleep six to seven hours each night. Interestingly, some who study sleep recommend nine hours of sleep each night. As with any population, there are those who do not need eight or more hours of sleep. Some studies report fifteen per cent of college students as having chronic insomnia. Negative effects of insomnia are well documented and attempting to mitigate the lack of sleep with caffeine and/or OTC sleep medications is not recommended.

Reasons for getting more sleep:

1. Cope better with stress.
2. Increase creativity.
3. Easier to be positive and a better friend.
4. Less anxiety and depression.
5. Get to class and work on time.
6. Less likely to get sick.

Ways to improve sleep:

1. Wind down thirty minutes before bedtime by doing something calming.
2. Avoid screens, video games and intense television programs one hour prior to bed.
3. If your mind is full of thoughts, keep a notepad by your bedside. Write down your thoughts to to-do's before bed. 
4. Create a friendly sleep environment by keeping your bedroom cool, dark, and quiet.
5. Keep the waking world out of your bedroom by tuning off all electronics at bedtime.
6. Avoid late night eating and exercise.
7. Be consistent as possible regarding your bedtime.
8. Exercise regularly.

Resources

• The National Sleep Foundation
• American Sleep Association: Sleep Disorders