by Pippa Wysong                               

     There was a time when 13-year old Kelsey Eyl, From North Platte, Neb., didn’t know what a good night’s sleep was.  Because of a complex medical condition that affected her breathing at night, she could never get good quality sleep, even if she went to bed early.  She spent most days feeling tired, was unable to focus in school, and was moody.  The sleepiness led to difficulty paying attention in class and lower grades.

     Kelsey’s experiences reflect what the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) says about teens and sleep.  Not getting enough sleep can create problems with listening, concentration, learning, and problem solving, according to the NSF.  Indeed, the amount of sleep teens get has a huge impact on how well they do in school.

     “Sleep affects learning and memory,” says Kelly Byars, a sleep medicine psychologist at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.  The body needs sleep, and so does the brain. 

     Most teens need nine hours or more of good uninterrupted sleep each night, according to the NSF.  But studies show most teens get only about six and a half hours of sleep on school nights.  One study found almost 46 percent of teens are sleepy during the day, and 55 percent have trouble concentrating in school at least one day a week.  Many teens who are regularly tired have lower grades than students who are well rested.

     Lack of sleep affects behavior.  It can make people aggressive and likely to feel angry or impatient.  Lack of sleep also lowers the immune system’s ability to fight off disease.  A tired person’s reflexes and reaction times slow down.  That can affect how well the person does things like class participation and playing sports.

     Ideally, you should feel awake first thing in the morning.  If you can wake up on time and feel refreshed without the help of multiple snooze buttons, then you’re getting enough sleep, Byars says.

    Sleep-deprived Kelsey eventually underwent surgery to correct a bone problem that caused some of her nightly breathing issues.  Once her sleep problem was solved, school became a different experience.  “I could understand what was going on because I could focus better, and I can remember stuff.  It was hard doing that before,” Kelsey says.

You might say she woke up to a whole new world.

Reprint from Current Health 1

TIPS FOR A BETTER NIGHT’S SLEEP    

• Establish a routine bedtime and wake-up time, and stick to them.
• Finish doing sports or exercises more than three hours before bedtime.
• Limit caffeine and sugar intake in the evening.
• Spend the hour before bedtime on quiet activities. (No TV, computer games, or wrestling)
• Create a bedtime ritual.  This helps cue your brain that it’s time to sleep.
• Don’t eat or drink within a couple of hours of going to bed.
• Make your bedroom a relaxing place. Keep it cool, dark, and quiet.

Resource: by Carole Kline, Nurse Practitioner in sleep medicine, Children’s Hospital of Denver,  Reprint from Current Health 1