Sleeping is important, but sometimes it doesn’t seem like you can ever get enough. With all of the homework assignments, sports, and other extracurricular activities piled on students, they can barely keep up with their lives, let alone their sleep schedule. The ability to actually feel well rested throughout the day without copious amounts of coffee can start to seem like some sort of superpower. Jessica Gutierrez (10) agrees saying, “I feel so tired sometimes during the school year.” This obviously can’t be completely helped, but there are ways to maximize the benefits from what little time there is to sleep.

One of the biggest issues is getting into a consistent sleep schedule. This means getting up and going to sleep at around the same time each night. By doing this a body gets into a rhythm, and not only is the quality of sleep improved, but waking up will be a lot easier. Constant sleep times will eventually lead to a noticeable increase in energy that stays stable through the whole day. However, with the varying amounts of homework, and after school schedules changing on a day to day basis, going to bed at the same time each night is much easier said than done. There is only so much people can control, so if going to bed at the same time just isn’t going to work, there are still some other ways to get better sleep. Light is a huge part of being able to sleep. Keeping a room pitch black is an optimal condition for falling asleep. Even going on a phone or other electronic device right before bed can make falling asleep harder. Any light at all can trick the human brain into thinking that it’s daytime, in other words, time to be awake. This means that the brain will release hormones to keep someone alert and ready, which in turn keeps them awake.

A human brain might be flawed, and can be easily signaled into believing the wrong thing, but it can also be signaled into believing the right one. Getting into a nightly routine, whether it’s reading a book, drinking tea, or doing anything that someone finds relaxing can really aid in falling asleep. If the same action is repeated night after night, doing it cues the brain that it’s time to sleep. When the brain is cued like this it gives a natural feeling of fatigue, which makes actually sleeping much easier. While there are some factors out of a person’s control, some small changes in the conditions and actions before someone tries to go to bed can greatly improve the overall quality of sleep.