Counselling
Sleep Help
The purpose of this page is to provide information and resources for students who are experiencing difficulties with their sleep pattern.
About Sleep
Sleep is not a single state of consciousness. Research has shown that sleep consists of five stages characterised by different levels of brain activity, including rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. During the night, people usually repeat a cycle of sleep stages about four times.
The cycle of waking/sleeping is part of a daily cycle of hormonal and other changes that humans and many other animals experience in response to their environment (the circadian rhythm). Readiness for sleep is associated with a drop in blood pressure and body temperature; under normal circumstances this will occur at night time.
Research indicates the quality of sleep may be more important for health and wellbeing than the quantity of sleep a person gets. Quality sleep is generally uninterupted sleep which allows the sleeper to cycle through the different stages of sleep. At certain times, people can experience their sleep as being non-restorative; during waking hours they will have similar experiences to a person who has been deprived of sleep.
Sleep Disturbances
Many people experience periodic changes to their sleep routine. These changes can be brought about by: stress; critical life incidents (such as bereavement) and adjusting to new situations to name a few.
Problems with sleep (sleep disturbances) can take a number of different forms:
- Difficulty falling asleep (sleep onset)
- Difficulty remaining asleep (frequent waking and/or waking with difficulty getting back to sleep)
- Early morning awakening
Insomnia is a combination of poor sleep (taking any of the patterns described here) and daytime fatigue. About 35% of people report problems with insomnia and about half of these people suffer from severe or frequent insomnia.
Sleep disturbances are often short-lived and when the person's circumstances return to normal, or they adapt to their new situation, they return to their normal sleep routine. For other people, disturbed sleep is part of a long-standing pattern which may be accompanied by other emotional and/or behavioural issues.
Over-sleeping is another common response to periods of stress or adjustment to new circumstances. Oversleeping is also sometimes associated with depression, especially when accompanied by low motivation and/or mood.
Poor sleep can result in difficulty getting up in the morning and being motivated for the day. You may find that your thinking is foggy, that you can't concentrate for any length of time, that you are easily distracted from tasks. In addition, your mood may be affected: you may be irritable or depressed.
Obviously, these problems will make the process of studying much more difficult than it normally would be.
If you are experiencing any of these problems, it is important that you take steps to address them. This may include consulting a doctor to determine whether there are any medical issues.
What You can do
- Have yourself checked by a doctor for medical problems such as sleep apnoea
- Keep a sleep diary. (Include your activities prior to going to bed). This can help you identify the nature and possible causes of your sleep disturbance.
- Practise good sleep habits: develop a routine to prepare for going to sleep. This can include time for relaxing and winding down, reviewing and planning, using herbal preparations, practising yoga or meditation, listening to a relaxation tape
- Attend to what you eat and drink. Many substances including caffeine, nicotine, minor tranquilisers and alcohol adversely affect sleep patterns. You may need to reduce or eliminate consumption of these substances.
- Try going to bed and waking at the same times each day to help your body establish a rhythm. Do this even if you are tired in the morning. Avoid day time sleeps. You will need to persist with this strategy for at least two weeks.
- Don't become too anxious if you are having trouble getting to sleep – resting in bed is still beneficial
- Exercise during the day, particularly in the late afternoon. This can help create physical tiredness.
- Monitor and manage your stress levels during waking hours
- Problem-solve. If you are chronically worried about a situation, take steps to address the problem. Usually, talking the situation over with a trusted friend or a professional will help.
This is not an exhaustive list of suggestions. You may wish to seek help or seek self-help information. Below is a list of self-help resources held in the CSU library.
It is important to identify the reasons for your sleep disturbance to identify the steps which will be most helpful to you. You should be aware that if your sleep disturbance is part of a long-standing pattern, it will take application and persistent effort on your part to establish a new pattern of behaviour. It is often helpful to seek professional assistance to provide ongoing direction, support and encouragement. The Student Counselling Service can help.
The CSU library holds various resources (books, tapes etc) which may be helpful.
Stealing time from the dead ends of the day is a site which gives some ideas about how to stay alert if you need to study during late night or early morning hours.