Hitting the ZZZ’s

Author : John Carpenter Dealey
"Hitting the books" is a phrase you hear all the time on college campuses. But "hitting the ZZZ's" is just as important! If you don't hit the ZZZ's, you won't be coherent enough to remember a thing you learn when you hit the books!College students are notorious for staying up late, losing sleep and pulling all nighters to cram for exams. Sleep is not optional, yet college students--and people from all walks of life--think it's something they can skimp on. It's just as important as eating and going to the bathroom.Do you like it when someone takes your plate away before you've had enough to eat? That's how your body feels when you deprive it of sleep.Sleep's important functions primarily involve anabolism, or the synthesis of cell structures, and building memory. Sleep deprivation can lead to exhaustion, irritability, inability to concentrate, and inability to retain knowledge.When you get too little sleep, you also decrease your immune system functioning and alter your metabolism. When you lose sleep, it's gone forever. You can't ever "make it up" by sleeping in the next day. There may be make-up exams in your professor's world, but not in the sandman's!Here are some easy ways to ensure that you're getting enough sleep:1. Try to go to bed and get up at approximately the same time every day. The exception is sleeping in.2. Sleep in as long as you can on days that you don't have to get up at your normal time. Take advantage of the weekends and those days that you don't have class until 2 p.m.!3. Get at least 8 hours of sleep every night. Listen to your body. If you need 9 hours, get 9 hours. If you feel too groggy if you sleep more than 7, sleep only 7.4. Try to go to bed an hour or two before midnight. Your body's benefits from sleep are maximized during this time.5. If circumstances truly beyond your control make you lose sleep (such as the fundraiser held by Aunt Eunice to pay for your summer abroad), try to sleep in cycles of 1 ½ hours, as that's the human sleep cycle. For example, 1 ½, 3, 4 ½, 6, 7 ½. (Really we need only 7 ½ hours of sleep, but allowing for an extra ½ hour to fall asleep is why we need 8 hours.)6. If you stay up late on Friday night and Saturday night, be sure to get back to your normal bedtime on Sunday night.7. If your dorm, house or apartment is noisy, try putting a fan in your room on a low setting for white noise.8. If your roommate is a night owl and interrupts your sleep habits, consider changing roommates to find someone more compatible with your sleep schedule.9. If you have difficulty sleeping, try Sleepytime Tea by Celestial Seasonings about ½ hour before bedtime. It will help you fall asleep easily and sleep soundly, making it less likely for you to be awakened by noise. It is non-habit forming.When you get enough sleep, you'll look great, feel great, and do great in all your classes!John Carpenter Dealey's mission in life is to be of service to people and their "honorable designs". He is dedicated both to helping people solve their problems and recognize and take full advantage of opportunities they have available to them.A lifetime Texan, he attended Harvard Business School, is a 1982 graduate of Leadership Dallas and 3 different organizations have named him Man of the Year. Widely known for his promotional and marketing expertise, he has shared the stage with Zig Zilgar, Mark Victor Hanson, Dallas Cowboy's quarterback Danny White, and other inspirational mentors.John currently has two books in print, with a third due to be released later this year. Ebooks include Steep Hills and the Words that Have Changed Lives series. He is a contributing author to "Wake up. Live the Life You Love, Giving Gratitude" along with Dr. Wayne Dyer.To learn more about how to give your high school student their best chance at success, visit his website at: http://collegesurvivalkitforparents.com/
Keyword : college,success,sleep deprivation,health,wellness