In a highschool culture devoted to constant studying for AP classes and participation in extracurricular activities, essential tasks like sleep have been monstrously neglected amongst teens. Though the CDC recommends nine to ten hours a day of quality sleep, Campo students struggle to maintain six or even seven hours of rest. The true culprit of highschool sleep deprivation is certainly time management.
Human and Social Development teacher Erin Cody explained that “[sleep] is probably one of the most critical things that teenagers can do to maintain their health and wellness which is crucial.” For teens who are in a time of very fast physical, intellectual and emotional growth, sleep is a necessary habit to allow the body time to repair. In fact, according to Stanford Medicine, “Sleep deprivation increases the likelihood teens will suffer myriad negative consequences, including an inability to concentrate, poor grades, drowsy-driving incidents, anxiety, depression, thoughts of suicide and even suicide attempts.”
Cody explained that extracurricular activities, homework, and our craving for that mental break while we study contribute to this delayed bedtime.
Sophomore Akhila Bhagavan, who gets roughly five hours of sleep each night, explained that her jam-packed schedule inhibits her ability to sleep. “I do two to three hours of volunteer work every other day and get home around six. Then I usually have PSAT or LSAT prep which takes about 45 minutes. And then after that, it depends on the day because Thursdays I have Debate from 6:30 to 8:30. Then I get home around nine and then I do homework.”
Meanwhile, Senior Sean Kim gets about six hours of sleep each school night, explaining that his two-hour water polo practice and hours of studying when he gets home around 7:30 eat up the little time he has for schoolwork.
In a hyper-competitive environment of students with high aspirations for college and future jobs, the idea that doing more and sleeping less will contribute to one’s success plays a significant role in widespread sleep deprivation. Cody added that “there definitely is a narrative within our society that productivity oftentimes equates with sleeplessness. Saying ‘I only slept four hours last night’ is not a flex, it should be a cause for alarm.”
Recently in 2022, California passed a law prohibiting high schools from starting school days earlier than 8:30 am. The legislation was aimed to combat this epidemic of sleep deprivation which according to Cody, was “a step in the right direction.” But she added that despite the change, “We [still] can’t legislate extracurricular activities and course load.”
So while it may be impossible to truly reduce the amount of time spent on after-school activities or homework, one hidden area that seems to consume a disproportionate amount of teens’ time is social media. Cody added that: “Social Media and technology can be a little insidious when you scroll on Tik-Tok for what you think is a little bit but it’s actually been 45 minutes.”
With 90% of teens saying they use social media among numerous surveys; Instagram, Snapchat, and Youtube have molded their presence in high schoolers’ lives. And while not all students claim that they are fully active on social media, the occasional glance or study-break dramatically delays efficiency thanks to our inability to truly multitask. Kim added that he will occasionally look at his phone over the course of his time studying and that “I always keep it right next to my bed when asleep”.
As much as breaks are necessary to maintain mental sanity for highschoolers after a long and laborious day, creating scheduled time to text friends online or play video games is essential to allow for an undistracted study period.
The fact of the matter is that when it comes to our after school schedules, we prioritize things like homework, extracurriculars, and our social lives to a much greater extent. In reality, however, sleep ultimately bears a greater impact on our ability to focus and concentrate in such activities. So just as we budget time studying for an upcoming test or practicing for an upcoming game, we need to give the same amount of attention to our rest.
For Cody, sleep is simply un-negotiable. “We need to start changing the narrative around the importance of sleep. It shouldn’t be going head to head against academic or extracurricular endeavors, but instead, it needs to be a consideration when we’re making those decisions.”
