So you’ve developed an awful sleeping pattern university. You’ve experienced late nights, all-nighters, early starts and so much more. While most of these come as part and parcel of the university experience, it still can get on top you.
To maintain a good sleeping pattern at university you ideally need to get around 7-9 hours of sleep each night. Just in order to function properly and stay on top of our game. If you don’t you can expect not only your uni performance to suffer but your health will too.
Getting into a proper sleep schedule is essential, even as a student, so read on for our top tips for fixing your sleep pattern during university.
Set a Schedule (and Stick to It)
The first way to start getting into a proper sleeping pattern is by setting yourself a sleep schedule – and sticking to it. Set yourself a time to go to bed each night and set an alarm to wake up in the morning.
Don’t let yourself hit the snooze button, just try to get up as soon as your alarm sounds. By setting a consistent sleep pattern, your body learns to function better and you’ll feel a lot better for it.
It’s hardest to do this when you first start, but it does get easier. Try meditation before bed to help relax your body and make it easier to fall asleep.
Remove Technology
We’ve all sat there in bed scrolling through Twitter or Instagram endlessly. But what starts as a quick check turns into hours of endless scrolling, and suddenly you don’t even feel tired anymore.
The blue lights on our screens trick the brain into thinking it’s day time. This means that our bodies decrease the amount of melatonin secreted, making it harder to fall asleep.
Put your phone on silent at the other side of the room, or even better leave it out of the room altogether. This will help your brain realise that it’s night time and make it a lot easier to fall asleep.
Limit Your Caffeine Intake
Lots of us love a good cup of coffee to start the day, but sometimes we can end up drinking endless cups throughout the day. But drinking too much caffeine – especially in the afternoon – can make it a lot harder to fall asleep.
Try to avoid drinking caffeine from 4 pm onwards and if you’re feeling tired, go for a quick 20-minute nap instead. Caffeine increases your brainwaves and will not help your body to fall asleep.
Keep a Tidy Room
The environment we fall asleep in makes a huge difference in the quality of sleep we actually have. If you sleep in a room that is dirty and messy, it makes it a lot more difficult for your mind to switch off properly.
If you study in the same space as you sleep, that can also make it hard for your brain to switch off as it associates that space with work time. Try to separate the parts of your uni room into the work zone and the sleep zone and avoid doing work in your bed.
This will help your mind and body relax as there is no chaos or work to be done, making it much easier to fall asleep.
Get Active
One reason you might not be getting as much sleep as you want to, or have some trouble falling asleep, is because you aren’t super active. If you spend a lot of time sitting down or generally not exercising enough, your body still has reserves of energy it isn’t using.
Try to take up exercises that tire out your body. Going for a run, joining a sports society, working out in the gym – these are all great ways to get active and tire out the body.
You’ll find that not only are you sleeping better, but your body and mind will feel a lot healthier and you’ll feel great overall.
These Are the Best Ways to Fix Your Sleep Pattern During University
If you’re having some trouble getting into a regular sleep pattern during university, these tips will help you out a lot. In no time you’ll find it easy to get up earlier and earlier and you’ll have so much of the day to be productive.
Need some advice on how to stay healthy at university? Check out our blog post for more great tips.
