Sleep Deprivation High Amongst Teens

Whether you’re the parent of a teenager or a teenager yourself, you know just how hard it is for a parent to try to wake up their teenage child in the morning so they don’t miss class. Many parents just think their teen’s sleepiness is a behavioral problem and that their child is getting lazier and more lethargic with age. But, this couldn’t be further from the truth. It’s because like everything else in a teenager’s life, their sleep patterns are changing.

First, there is a lifestyle component as to why teenagers are so tired. A busy school life with athletics, cheerleading, student council, and of course, study and homework can keep a teen up late at night. There are also tons of social engagements to attend, late-night phone conversations and, for many teens, a part-time job. For most teenagers, there just aren’t enough hours in the day. Also, the average school day begins at around 8:00 am, so a teen has to be up early to get to school on time. This is where new changes in their body clock begin to negatively affect their sleep habits.

The average adult begins to feel like they need to wind down at around 7:30 at night. But, changes to a teen’s body clock may push this back to around 11:00 in the evening. According to a Stanford research paper, “Sometime in late puberty, the body secretes the sleep-related hormone melatonin at a different time than it normally does. This changes the circadian rhythms that guide a person’s sleep-wake cycle. For instance, if you told your teen to go to bed at 10:00 p.m., she may end up staring at the ceiling until 1:00 or 2:00 a.m. waiting to fall asleep.”

According to the National Sleep Foundation, “research indicates that adolescents require at least as much sleep as they did as preteens, 8.5 - 9.25 hours per night, fewer than 15% of adolescents report that they sleep at least 8.5 hours on school nights and more than 25% report that they get less than 6.5 hours of sleep on school nights.” This lack of sleep can have very negative effect on a teen’s studies. Sleep deprivation can impair memory and creativity making it a lot harder for the student to learn and remember their lessons. Sleep deprivation can also make it more difficult for teens to process their stress and emotions which is already a common struggle for that age group. Chronic sleep deprivation can even lead to depression and make teens more susceptible to illness.

What can parents do to help a teenager get the best night’s rest possible amongst the chaos of teenage life? First of all, teenagers should stay away from caffeine and nicotine which are both stimulants as well as alcohol. Avoid arguing with your adolescent just before bedtime. Make sure your teenager turns off the television or computer before going to bed. Let them sleep in on the weekend, but no more than two or three hours later than their usual awakening time or it will disrupt their body clock. Lastly, it’s very important to understand that your teen’s sleep behavior is changing and to learn to be flexible and try to accommodate of these changes – both for your sanity and your child’s.

Sources:
National Association of School Psychologists, January 2005
Stanford, October 1999