How to get the sleep you need before final exams

Every semester final exams come around, like a black spot on the calendar. And every semester many college students continue the tradition of late-night study sessions and all night cramming, losing hours – even entire nights – of sleep. The next morning they shuffle off to their tests, hoping for the best.

But could the sleep sacrificed hurt your grade more than the extra studying helps?

Daniel Taylor, Sleep and Health Research Lab director, says, "Most likely, yes."

 

Getting good sleep is important for learning

"There is very good research showing that sleep actually helps consolidate learning," Taylor says. "This research shows that when you compare two groups of students who have studied a particular topic, where one group gets eight hours to sleep after studying and the other does not, then the group that slept remembers more. The same applies to shorter sleep and interrupted sleep. You will remember less if you don't get a full-night's sleep after studying.

"However, if you haven't studied yet," Taylor warns, "then the sleep won't give you much benefit. That's the reason students end up pulling an all-nighter."

 

Insufficient sleep takes a toll on the body

According to Taylor, sleep deprivation, also known as insufficient sleep, has several consequences including:

• decreased immune function

• irritability

• worse memory and concentration

• depression

• obesity

 

Physiological reactions to insufficient sleep

"Several things can occur after sleep deprivation," Taylor explains "When you finally do sleep, the body will work to reduce light sleep and ensure you get more of the most important types of sleep like slow wave (deep) sleep and REM (rapid eye movement) sleep.

"In severe cases, micro-sleeps will occur in which a person's brain activity will switch over from wake to sleep for a second or more," Taylor says. "This sometimes causes accidents, such as while driving or operating equipment.  Eventually, the body will take over and the person will have to sleep.  This is why sleep is called the "gentle tyrant."  Sooner or later it wins.

 

The Sleep Lab's battle against insomnia

The Sleep and Health Research Lab research focuses primarily on the epidemiology and treatment of insomnia. They are working to determine both causes and consequences of insomnia and examining conditions that can possibly be improved by treating insomnia, such as depression.

While the lab currently doesn't have an active clinic for the treatment of sleep disorders, Taylor hopes to open a full-time clinic within the next two years at UNT.

 

Stress feeds the insomnia beast

It's no surprise that Taylor blames stress as the greatest contributor to acute insomnia.

"Stress is our most likely stimulant for insomnia," he says. "It is evolutionarily appropriate not to sleep when you are in danger. However, in our society today most stress we deal with is not actually danger, but perceived or misperceived as life or death."

But behaviors are most likely responsible for chronic insomnia, Taylor says. "Eventually, the stressor ends, but behaviors that we sometimes adapt to cope with the short-term insomnia – such as spending more time in bed, worrying about sleep, increasing caffeine intake – are what appear to maintain chronic insomnia.  These are the targets of cognitive-behavioral therapy for insomnia, in which our lab specializes."