sleep - should I pull an all-nighter for that exam?

next time you consider studying versus sleeping, read this first...

I can tell you sleep is absolutely critical. There's no getting around it. The are many scientific theories around sleep and what it actually does. Some say the brain is reenergizing itself, others say it is cleansing the unnecessary information out as well as consolidating the necessary information together. I can tell you that my many years as a clinical psychologist and adjunct professor confirm the importance of sleep in consolidating information. There really is something to the idea of "I'll sleep on it and let you know in the morning." We can try to learn something the night before and struggle with it terribly, then wake up and it seems to all make sense. That is evidence for the consolidation theory around sleep. I have personally experienced this many times in my own like as an adult learner as well. As a result, it is my opinion that a person is far better off skipping the extra couple of hours of reviewing information you get from an all-nighter and instead refresh your brain with some important rest. All nighters really are not supported by the science and you'll go into the important day of the test, job interview or whatever you are cramming for with heavy eyelids and a slow brain. Chances are that rest will help you more!

​Quick sleep hygiene tips!

• don't study where you sleep
• don't watch TV or use your computer where you sleep
  
• have a regular night-time routine that is calming and primes you for sleep
  
• put away blue lights and other highly stimulating, anxiety producing things a couple hours before bed
  
• use nighttime grounding tools (I have an article coming out on that soon)
  
• ​if you can't sleep, don't toss and turn...get up and read something BORING (not something you like) such as an encyclopedia or something else....once you feel sleepy again go back to bed - repeat if necessary
  
• have a journal next to your bed to write down any worry thoughts that come up - tell your brain there's time to worry about them in the morning and you won't forget because you wrote them down.  
  

Having sleep problems? Contact KML - we use CBT-I evidence-based insomnia treatment.