Acorn

William Shakespeare, Judy Garland, Teddy Roosevelt and Michel Gondry have all had obsessions or problems with sleep. Gondry's recent film "The Science of Sleep," said to be an insomniac's chef d'oeuvre imaginatively explores the ebb and flow of dream states in the life of a melancholy print shop worker. Garland's addiction to amphetamines and sleep aids ended her career and her life. Roosevelt thought the best sleep aid was a glass of milk and a shot of cognac.

  Apart from these famous names, college students are a unique sleep demographic. The all-nighters, the late classes and the coffee addiction these are the stereotypical behaviors of the campus crowd.

  Psychologist and doctors stress the necessity of sleep and its effects on nearly every aspect of health. Sleep is physically, emotionally and socially necessary. Drew's Healthy Transitions webpage states that the healthy amount of sleep for most ages is between seven to nine hours.  Optimum sleep also comes from moderate and rather than excess alcohol use, and consistency in times of waking and sleeping.

  Though there is an awareness of the importance of healthy sleep, the awareness still poses a conundrum for the college student. Junior Ceallaigh Pender sums up: "With everything going on-classes, activities, even friends, sleep just takes a backseat."

  Sleep in college age students is erratic. At the age where they are constantly juggling extracurriculars, partying, and studying ( or focusing on one of the three ) getting enough sleep requires an effort some are not willing to take.

  Technical Director for "Siren Song of Stephen J. Gould," and the upcoming "Talking With" Pender's involvement in theater coupled with her class work severely cuts into her sleep time.

  "I usually just get between three or four hours," Pender said. A lot of the times six. But, when I come home from being [at Dorothy Young Center for the Performing Arts] until 2 a.m., I still have to study."

  "It's like you can always tell yourself that you can sleep later," freshman Becca Wang said.

  "When you're doing work and you feel exhausted, you still have to get everything done. I can't go up to my professor and say, 'Sorry, I needed to get sleep.' You have some coffee and get through it."

  Caffeine is a widely used remedy for getting through the weeknights. College kids unabashedly turn to a bottle of Diet Coke, double Venti whatever, green tea, Jolt gum, Sugar-free Red Bull or whatever stimulant they can get their hands on.

  "Dr. Pepper and coffee," Pender said. To her, caffeine is just a tool to get the job done. "Sometimes a shot of espresso [works]. They call them eye-openers," she said laughing.

  But according to Wellness Program Coordinator Kathy Werheim and the Healthy Transitions webpage, the temporary fix of caffeine is not helping anyone's sleeping situation.

  "Not sleeping will catch up with you," Werheim said. "[Caffeine] is stimulating initially, but will make you tired later. To modify a quote from the Earl of Derby 'Those who cannot find time for sleep now will have to find time for illness later.'"

  Sleep deprivation wreaks havoc on the metabolism causing weight gain, weakens the immune system, hormones (read: breakouts!) and seriously damages the ability to succeed academically.

  "Sleep deprivation causes health problems in every sense, but in college students, it increases likelihood for short-term memory loss, loss of concentration inconsistent performance, poor productivity and loss of some forms of behavioral control," Werheim said.

   "[College students] have the control to evaluate priorities and manipulate class schedules to accommodate healthier sleep habits.  Take advantage of it."

   The Healthy Transitions webpage notes certain foods that aid sleep such as, bananas, beans, potatoes, and turkey as well as more obscure stimulating foods like  avocado, figs and horseradish.

   Werheim recommends establishing a routine to help fall asleep-a warm shower, music, tea, or anything relaxing. If anxious, write down racing thoughts to clear the mind. And, if possible coordinating sleep schedules with your roommate might make life easier..

  "We got really lucky," said freshman Suzie Leinwand of her situation with roommate  freshman Mariana Marchese.

  "We're both big fans of the naps," she said. "If it's raining or dark out, that means sleep."

"We don't sleep much during the week, but we usually go to sleep at the same time," Leinwand said. "We're like a married couple. It's pretty funny."

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