The audience I am trying to reach is college students.

I am hoping to get my article published in

the RU Connect Newspaper or a magazine article. I would like more college students to be aware
of what poor sleep schedules can do to the body. In this writing I am informing students on what
sleep habits can do to their overall health and giving tips to from a healthy sleep routine.

College Students are Struggling to Get Enough Sleep

By Faith Hallums, USA TODAY

Have you ever gotten three hours of sleep and then wonder why you feel sluggish throughout the
day? Sleep deprivation amongst college students is becoming a growing concern to
professionals. Students are unware that if they consistently get less than six hours of sleep per
night it can begin to affect their school performance and their overall health. According to the
article “Sleep Rocks” on the University of Georgia’s Health Centers homepage, students get on
average six hours of sleep per night due to an overload of activities. This overload being
extracurricular activities, social events, distractions or partying. It is important to realize your
sleeping habits now before they begin to severely effect you further down the line.

Sleep deprivation is happening in all colleges worldwide, college students don’t realize the toll
lack of sleep has on their mind, body and academic performance. It can begin to affect your;
grade point averages, risk of academic failure, compromise your learning, impairs your moods,
and increases the risk of motor vehicle accidents. One way to understand the importance of sleep
deprivation is to understand what happens when we do not get enough sleep. When you don’t
give your body the chance to sleep you are not giving it the chance to take a break. REM stands
for rapid eye movement which is also known as the deepest form of sleep, it can only about 90
minutes after you fall asleep and you enter REM several times throughout the night but for short
periods of time. REM sleep is the deepest sleep you can reach, and it helps your brain separate
important information’s and helps your body restore itself.

Allure Williams a college student at Radford University says she rarely gets six to seven hours of
sleep per night due to a heavy workload and other activates.

“I always feel tired,” Williams says. “I feel like it’s impossible to get that much sleep with the
work load I have.”

College students get overwhelmed, they try to balance their social life with their work load
which causes late nights and even earlier morning. This is what starts the trend of a poor sleeping
habits. Waking up early and going to class may be challenging but imagine partying or studying
all night and then waking up for your 8 a.m., these are some of the things that can cause sleep
deprivation. Not only if your mind tired but so is your body. Ignoring the fact that your body and
mind need to go through REM will hold your body back from reaching its full potential
throughout the day. So how can we change this? What tips can we give to help students want to
get more sleep and form a healthy sleep routine?

Devaughn Carson, another college student at Radford University, agreed that he does partake in
a lot of partying and other activities and it does affect his sleeping routine.
“Thursdays and Fridays, I normally stay out until 2 a.m.,” Carson says. “I’m always tired the
next morning, but I didn’t know it could cause long-term effects.”

Breaking habits and creating new ones is never easy, so let’s begin with a positive mindset
towards developing a healthy sleep routine. Allow yourself at least three nights a week to do any
of the following. It may positively impact your sleep routine. A few hours before going to sleep,
avoid eating greasy foods, drink alcoholic beverages, and nicotine. These can be a significant
factor in being able to fall asleep. If you have a hard time relaxing before your set bed time, try
doing relaxing activities. Such as: reading a book, taking a bubble bath, stretching, or listening to
peaceful music. Lastly, making sure you aren’t getting an overload of sleep, taking multiple naps
a day, and eating a few hours before your bed time will help you get a good night’s rest.

I am in high hopes that this article will help you be more aware of your sleep routine and offer
tips to help you get a better night’s rest.