SLEEP! Are you getting enough? Probably not, because we live in a high pace world and we can’t seem to pull ourselves away from the technology that is at our figure tips. The USA Today is out with a story that is very troubling. Teens today have some many things in their rooms that truly ought not to be there that causes them to deprave them of their sleep. But that is not the topic of that article. The article deals with teens that battle depression and suicide more often, because they do not have a regular sleeping habit or discipline.
The article reports:
Teens whose parents let them stay up after midnight on weeknights have a much higher chance of being depressed or suicidal than teens whose parents enforce an earlier bedtime, says research being presented today at a national sleep conference.
As you study the benefits of sleep, the above statement makes a lot of sense. According to HelpGuide, org, the benefits of sleeping are 1.) Mood, 2.) Memory, 3.) Concentration, 4.) Immune System, 5.) Nervous System and 6.) Development.
So let’s break these down. If I am not getting the sleep that I need than I will be in a bad mood. How many times have you worked or dealt with someone that is in a bad mood, because they did not get a good night’s sleep? Or you deal with someone that went to bed late and now they are jumping down your throat, because you have the audacity to have gotten your sleep. Just think how much more important it would be for a teenager.
Memory is a big one with dealing with a teen, because they are studying for school constantly. They are sitting in classrooms, listening to lectures, reading books, writing papers, taking quizzes and exams and so much more. Teens need all the help that they can get so that when its time to perform, they have the energy to do so. Concentration is a huge factor in everything that I wrote about with memory. If you can be focused on the tasks at hand than memory kinda goes along.
Your physical health is very important. If you are not sleeping than you are opening yourself up to getting sick a lot quicker and easier. Sleep deprivation will cause you to be weak which in turns makes your immune and nervous systems weak as well. Sleep is a vital part of your development into adulthood.
So parents, why are you going to bed and allowing your teen to stay up? I believe that we can see a teen’s life by simply saying, “It’s time to go to bed!” The teens needs to turn off the cell phone and computer. Its time to get a good night’s sleep so that tomorrow they will be ready to tackle the tasks at hand and do so without fear of the body falling apart.
Having written this – I am going to bed. Sleep tight and don’t let the bed bugs bite!
