Last month we shared a link via our twitter account to an article from The Harvard Law Record about a student who had given up sleep. We thought it was a pretty ridiculous article (you can make up your own mind).
Now today, we came across a report from Queen’s Journal about university changing sleeping habits. Although we disagree with the opinion that sleep problems may be down to the fact parents are no longer setting bedtimes (do parents really tell 18 year olds to be in bed by ten?), it would appear that exam and assignment stress could be a contributor.
This all sounds a bit too simple, though. Stress is a part of most of our lives – it doesn’t end once we graduate from university. Perhaps the real problem is the fact that students are now away from home (often for the first time), are making their own decisions, and starting to live their own independent lives. This can be stressful, but it can also be confusing. Students might be making bad decisions (excessive partying and drinking, no routines) which contribute to sleeping problems. We don’t think you can simply label all student related insomnia as stress-related.
That’s just our opinion, though – we’d love to hear yours.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Hmmm. Interesting thought. My insomnia is more deployment/loneliness related, I think. I know that I don’t sleep well, period, but I do enjoy longer periods of restful sleep when my husband is hunkered next to me.
Perhaps it’s because I feel safer when he’s home. Also, I am constantly listening for the kids to wake up, whereas when someone else is here they help as well. Maybe I should invest in the pillows with arms.
Thanks for sharing, Lindsay. We do hear a lot of people saying they sleep best when their partners are around. At the same time though, we also hear from people that say they get the best sleep when their partners are away!
A pillow with arms sounds like a great idea – maybe we need to put an Insomnia Land shop together!