Sleep: Everyone needs it, but most of us struggle to get enough. For those having trouble falling asleep Melatonin, podcasts, and temperature regulation can be helpful; however, these methods only work for a comparatively small subset. Many others spend sleepless nights in search of a sleep solution. For the students at Cascade High School, sleep is essential to academic life. Sleep aids with stress and difficult classes. Common problems facing students regarding sleep include an inability to fall sleep, getting enough sleep, and struggling to wake up early in the morning.
Many students at Cascade High School suffer from a lack of sleep. “Sometimes it’s hard to fall asleep because I’m just not that tired and sometimes I have blue light on before I go to bed,” explained sophomore Cole Slette. Slette’s sleep problems are not uncommon. CHS psychology teacher Dwayne Allen suggested that Slette, and other students in the same predicament, "must [first] establish a routine. Your body is like a machine for that needs to run on a schedule. At around the same time every night your brain produces neurotransmitters and if you get into a schedule, your brain will function well even when it's not at its best.”
Many high school students, even those with good schedules, struggle to avoid distractions when trying to get a good rest. “My mind is full of thoughts that won’t go away. I stay on my phone too much and I mess with my brain,” said sophomore Melvin Northrup. The phone and its relation to sleep has been a subject of concern in society for years and is all but universally mentioned by CHS students when asked for a cause of poor sleep. Cascade Medical Center doctor, Jerome Jerome III, advised that, “One way to get better sleep would be limiting your screen time prior to bed, turning off the phone one to two hours before bedtime. Also make sure you have a good sleep environment: a cool room with not a lot of lights.”
After a student has established a good routine and removed distractions, they must next combat the early wakeup time required by the high school bell schedule. High school students face a variety of stresses. With the new late policy in place at Cascade High School, it is now imperative that students wake up on time. “I struggle getting up in the morning because usually I’m really tired and I don’t want to come to school so I dread getting up. I have a ton of alarms just in case I sleep through a couple,” said sophomore Shane Slette. For the average high school student, this is a real dilemma. With more and more students coming to school late, the detention levels are rising. This is a headache for staff and students alike.
“I believe that kids have trouble getting up in the morning because they are still involved in deep restorative Rehm sleep. It's hard to come out of that sleep because it is restoring your brain power and muscles and is busy helping you recover from the day before,” explained Dr. Jerome. Dr. Jerome emphasized that to be fully through that deep sleep one must go to bed early and pass through all stages of sleep.
For students to get better sleep, professionals say that they need to do three things: get into a schedule to let their body produce neurotransmitters, put down their phone one to two hours before bed, and sleep in a dark, cool room. Lastly, getting to bed early is imperative to achieving that deep period of sleep needed to wake early enough and feel good.
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