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National Sleep Awareness Week

Konawaena High School

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Why Sleep?

Sleep is vital to your well-being, as important as the air you breathe, the water you drink and the food you eat. It can even help you to eat better and manage the stress of being a teen.
Biological sleep patterns shift toward later times for both sleeping and waking during adolescence -- meaning it is natural to not be able to fall asleep before 11:00 pm.
Teens need about 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night to function best. Most teens do not get enough sleep.
When you are sleep deprived, you are as impaired as driving with a blood alcohol content of .08%, which is illegal for drivers in many states. Drowsy driving causes over 100,000 crashes each year. Recognize sleep deprivation and call someone else for a ride. Only sleep can save you!

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What Happens When We Sleep? Your amazing body explains

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What is Blue Light?

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What is Melatonin?

The "Dracula of hormones" - it only comes out in the dark.

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Sleep Does Not Come Easy For Teens

SCREEN TIME

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Getting Back on Track

No pills, vitamins or drinks can replace good sleep. Consuming caffeine close to bedtime can hurt your sleep, so avoid coffee, tea, soda/pop and chocolate late in the day so you can get to sleep at night. Nicotine and alcohol will also interfere with your sleep.
Establish a bed and wake-time and stick to it, coming as close as you can on the weekends. A consistent sleep schedule will help you feel less tired since it allows your body to get in sync with its natural patterns. You will find that it’s easier to fall asleep at bedtime with this type of routine.
Don’t eat, drink, or exercise within a few hours of your bedtime. Don’t leave your homework for the last minute. Try to avoid the TV, computer and telephone in the hour before you go to bed. Stick to quiet, calm activities, and you’ll fall asleep much more easily!
If you do the same things every night before you go to sleep, you teach your body the signals that it’s time for bed. Try taking a bath or shower (this will leave you extra time in the morning), or reading a book.
Listen to music...

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CAN MUSIC HELP YOU CALM DOWN AND SLEEP BETTER?

Studies show that people who listen to music before they sleep:

Sleep longer
Fall asleep faster
Wake up less during the night
Rate their sleep as more restful

Music has great effects on the body

It slows your heart rate
Slows breathing
Lowers your blood pressure
Triggers your body to relax

What type of music helps?

Whatever is relaxing for you!
Slow tunes are ideal (60-80 beats per minute)
Classical, jazz, folk

Having trouble sleeping can have wide-ranging, negative effects on your health, so it's something that you should take seriously. For instance, it makes you less safe behind the wheel and increases your long-term risk of medical conditions such as obesity and heart disease. Though medical sleep aids may work quickly to help you drift off, they can have side effects and aren't good to use in the long term. Luckily, there is another treatment for sleepless nights that's cheap, isn't habit-forming, and has absolutely no negative side effects: music.

Music is more than something that's simply enjoyable to listen to. It has a direct effect on the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps your body relax and prepare for sleep. Older adults who listen to 45 minutes of relaxing music before bed fall asleep faster, sleep longer, wake up less during the night, and rate their nights as more restful than when they don't listen to music. Similarly, when younger adults are given the option to listen to classical music, books on tape, or nothing before bed, the ones who relax with music see the greatest improvement in sleep quality.

If you feel calmer when you're enjoying good music, it's not your imagination. Music has the power to slow your heart rate and breathing, lower your blood pressure, and it may even trigger your muscles to relax. These biological changes mirror some of the same changes that your body undergoes when you're falling asleep , making music the perfect preparation for restorative slumber.

Choosing a type of music is a personal preference, and you're most likely to relax while listening to familiar music that you enjoy. But keep this tip in mind: Slow tunes are ideal. Look for a rhythm of about 60 to 80 beats per minute (BPM), which you're likely to find among classical, jazz, or folk songs.

Once you integrate music into your bedtime routine , stick with it. The positive sleep effects can build over time, as listening to your relaxing sleep soundtrack becomes a habit that cues your body to prepare for shuteye.