When you’re in college, it’s easy to end up staying up all night partying and studying and find yourself having much less sleep than usual as a result. This is particularly the case when you have to get up early most mornings to attend classes or go to a job.
It’s vital not to get to the point of exhaustion or burnout, though, as this can make you physically, emotionally, and mentally unwell. Pay attention to signs that you’re not getting the right amount of sleep, even if some of them may not be so obvious.
Falling Asleep Right Away
It’s nice not to have to toss and turn trying to get to sleep at night, but most of us don’t realize that falling asleep as soon as our heads hit our pillows can also be a sign that we’re not getting enough of the sleep we need. If you fall asleep when watching TV, on car rides, on public transport, during meetings, or other times when you wish you didn’t, too, this is a sure sign that you need more sleep in your life.
Lowered Sex Drive
While a reduced sex drive can occur for many reasons, one of these is if you’re not getting the right amount of shut-eye. You need adequate sleep to have a healthy libido since rest helps with hormone production in both men and women and is a critical component of avoiding erectile dysfunction for guys. Read more about erectile dysfunction on CBDClinicals.com
Feeling Anxious
Anxiety can come on at any stage of life and for all sorts of different reasons. If you’re feeling anxious of late, though, and can’t figure out why, it could be because sleep and mental health are so closely related. They share a cyclical relationship, and if you’re sleep-deprived, you’re likely to become much more stressed out and be vulnerable to developing anxiety.
Getting enough REM sleep every week is necessary to enable your brain to process emotional information. If you don’t get what you need, this influences mood, memory, critical thinking skills, and other factors that influence mental health. There are however many things you can do to tackle this issue, and reading up on articles from Rolling Paper may be something you find useful if you’re trying to find help and advice for your anxiety.
Trouble with Focus and Concentration
Similarly, if you’re finding you’re struggling to focus and concentrate like never before, consider whether your recent sleep patterns could have anything to do with it. If you don’t get quality deep sleep each night in the proper doses, your mind and body can’t operate at their peak. You’ll find it challenging to stay alert and be productive, particularly handling those tasks that require logical reasoning and deep concentration.
Unhappy Skin
You might spend hundreds of dollars on skincare products every year, but if you’re not getting enough sleep, your skin likely won’t look its best no matter what you slather on it. Quality rest needs to be a vital component of any skincare routine as it’s during sleep that collagen production occurs, and the skin rejuvenates.
Plus, people who are sleep deprived get dark undereye circles and puffy or red eyes that affect their appearance. If you want a fresh complexion and healthy, happy skin, try to get the deep sleep you need in the necessary quantities.
Dehydration
While we know that drinking too much not long before we go to bed can lead to interrupted sleep due to the need to get up and pee, it’s not such common knowledge that insufficient sleep can lead to increased thirst. Short sleep durations can make you more at risk of inadequate hydration because it’s believed that the key hormone we produce more of during sleep to prevent dehydration, vasopressin, is affected negatively. The hormone doesn’t get released as it should when your sleep is disrupted, making you more prone to being thirsty the next day as a result.
Other signs of sleep deprivation include food cravings and weight gain, bodily aches and pains, difficulty shaking illnesses, and moodiness. To combat the issue of not getting enough sleep, take steps to help your body rest more effectively. For instance, ensure your bedroom is dark with blackout or other blinds or drapes, etc., and use heating and cooling options and the right bedlinen to be comfortable enough to fall and stay asleep.
You may like to utilize supplements such as a sleep tonic with CBD and melatonin in it or take magnesium just before bed. If worrying about your to-do list or other factors negatively impacts your ability to get quality sleep, spend time writing out what you need to do the next day before you go to bed or keep a journal to get challenging thoughts out of your head.
Keep work tools out of your bedroom and avoid looking at screens an hour or two before you want to sleep, as the blue light can signal to your body that it’s actually time to wake up rather than rest.
Take as many steps as you can to enjoy deep sleep nightly, and you should find that at least some of the signs of sleep deprivation clear up for you soon.
