Sleep Deprivation Anyone??

[MaryElizabethMahoney]

This is probably a common thread among pre & nursing students...Anywho, I 'm taking Chem 101 , Intermediate Alg and A&P II....and I have three school aged children who are pretty independent......My problem is course stress.I need to get at least a "B" average in these courses to be competitive.This mission has altered my sleep...My mind races at bedtime about what I need to study, homework, labs, exams and quizzes...I toke my first math exam yesterday 8/23 and received a 77% .I was crushed..My lack of sleep & worrying makes it extremely difficult for me to concentrate.I end falling asleep at 2am only to wake up at 6:30a to get my kids out to school... I try taking cat naps during the day and I end up having bizarre dreams....YIKES.......I need sleep!! Any suggests on sleeping aids aside from medication?

[Multicollinearity, BSN, RN]

I can't exercise before bedtime; adrenaline and endorphines get me wired. I instead workout (or try to, sometimes it's difficult) first thing in the morning. The exercise gets me in an active, alert state for the rest of the day. I find that when I don't exercise, I always feel hungry and tired.

I try to get 7 hours sleep.

My gf will go to bed at 10:30pm on a friday night and sleep til noon on sat. I think theres something highly wrong with that. What is the recommended dose of sleep for early to mid 30's?

It sounds like she has accumulated a sleep deficit during the week, and her body is making up for it by sleeping so long. It's normal actually. If I only get 5 hours per night for a few days, then I can sleep in - I'll sleep for 12 or so hours to make up that deficit.

[Megsd, BSN, RN]

I am a worrier and a mind-racer at night too. The thing that has helped me keep myself from thinking at night is to lay in bed, close my eyes, and focus on my breathing. Listen and pay attention to every breath, both inhaling and exhaling. It usually gets me to sleep within 10 minutes or so.

[lisabeth]

I am a worrier and a mind-racer at night too. The thing that has helped me keep myself from thinking at night is to lay in bed, close my eyes, and focus on my breathing. Listen and pay attention to every breath, both inhaling and exhaling. It usually gets me to sleep within 10 minutes or so.

Wow. Thanks. I do the same thing. I will give that a try. My problem doesnt keep me from going to sleep, but when I wake up at night, I start worrying, etc.