Dear Year 7 student,

I am a year 9 student that needs your advice regarding my sleep routine. Since the beginning of this year I have returned back home late at night and slept around 11:30 pm and 12:30.

Firstly, this year I have never slept excellently during the week, not one single night. I also can’t change my routine all of a sudden, because I practice sports until a late time. Furthermore, as I get less hours of sleep than the recommended to my age, my performance at school gets drastically worse. In addition, I can not pay attention to the classes very well and get even more tired in school, due to the lack of sleep I had the previous night. 

Even though I head back home exhausted, I also have problems falling asleep. For example, there was a day that it took me almost four hours just to start sleeping. Consequently, sometimes I have to take some medicine (melatonin) to get sleepy. Moreover, I am afraid that my condition will get worse, because next year I will have to wake up one hour earlier than I did this year, due to the time class starts at the high school I am going to.

I would really appreciate your help to make me have a better sleep routine.

Best regards,

Anonymous

Dear Y9 student,

It seems to me that your problem is that you go to sleep extremely late every night, due to having activities until very late. In addition you also have some problems with falling asleep, and sometimes have to take medicine (melatonin) to get sleepy. Your struggle is very real, and to be sincere is very normal for people your age. I will try my best to help you. How about trying a nice sleep hygiene and routine? you may be less tired during the week. 

If you practice sports until very late, you  sleep less.  If you sleep very late, after practising sports, your body is agitated, making it harder to sleep. Before or after sports it is common for people to eat a lot. That is not very recommended after 5pm. One idea is that after you finish practising your sport, stretch for 5-10 minutes, so that your body can cool down. After stretching, try eating a light and healthy meal. As stated by life time, “spend the first five minutes after your workout bringing your heart rate down to baseline levels with low-intensity cardio.” If you stretched for 5 minutes after practising sports, you would be more relaxed to sleep.

I could observe that you have problems falling asleep, causing lack of sleep. You also have to take medicine sometimes and you are afraid that your condition will get worse. According to Stanford medicine,  “sleep deprivation increases the likelihood teens will suffer myriad negative consequences, including an inability to concentrate, poor grades ...”If you sleep every day at the same time, your body will get used to it. You could try to maintain a good sleep routine, that means you should cut screen time 30-60 minutes before going to bed. You should also keep your bedroom cool and quiet, so that you have a safe environment to sleep. Besides that, avoid heavy meals and caffeine after late afternoon. If you kept a good and steady sleep routine, it would be easier to fall asleep.

If you sleep late, your performance in school gets worse. You told me that because of your lack of sleep, you are very tired in the morning, and can’t pay attention in class. That can also mean that you don’t have a lot of time to study. If you keep a steady morning routine, you will be more active in the morning.  Try waking  up in the morning, taking a shower and eating a nice breakfast. It’s usually a good idea to stretch after waking up. Another thing that may help you is drinking water throughout the day so that you can get more strength and focus. According to Pub med, “This means that doing aerobic exercise 

— especially when performed regularly, such as in the morning — enhances executive functions, which include attention, memory, and focus.” 

Remember that after finishing practising sports late, try stretching for 5-10 minutes, that’s a nice way of cooling down your body. At night, you should also have light meals and avoid caffeine. Keeping your room a nice and cool environment before sleeping, can make you more relaxed. Try cutting screen time 30-60 minutes before going to bed. During the morning try taking a shower, have a nice breakfast and stretch after waking up. These morning habits will keep you more active. In conclusion, keep a steady sleep and morning routine. Trying yoga could also work out for you. You could try to look for a doctor, in case your problem doesn't get better. I really hope you can get a better sleep routine by following this advice.I am rooting for you to improve! I hope your condition gets better next year. Good luck in high school. I wish you the best.

Sincerely,

Y7 - Beatriz Peterson