It’s everyone’s favorite time of year, and no I’m not talking about summer. I’m talking about finals! It’s that week long period that everyone dreads. While it only comes around twice a school year, it seems like a never-ending cycle. Night after night we slave ourselves over our schoolwork. Trying to cram every last bit of information in before the big test. Some take it to the extreme and choose to pull all nighters, but is it really worth it?
According to Dr. Chiara Cirelli, from the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, we seem to undermine the negative effects an all nighter can have on our body. These effects range anywhere from unstable emotions, weight gain, depression, even it has even been linked to potential increases in drug abuse. While we may think these all nighters are benefiting us, they’re doing nothing but hurting us. The physical and emotional toll of an all nighter isn’t worth it. Not only do our brainwaves slow, but also our body begins to shut down on us completely making it hard and hard for us to focus.
If you know you have a lot of work ahead of you, try planning everything out. Set specific times for your different activities and study periods. If you manage to stick to your schedule, your all nighter won’t be necessary. Not only will you feel well rested on the big day, but also you will find that you know the information a lot better than you would have if you crammed last minute.
Next time you consider pulling an all nighter, do your body a favor and just go to sleep! The negative effects of an all nighter can far out weigh the positives. Trust me, I would know.
Wow, this blog is extremely relevant to me. I completely agree with your post! I just convinced my friend to get some sleep tonight instead of pulling an all nighter. I stayed up all night once and it did me absolutely no good. I could not focus on my statistics exam and I did not get a good grade either. Also, I got a cold after it and spent two weeks recovering during my winter break. I also think that all college kids need to manage their time so they do not have to resort to all nighters before exams.
ReplyDeleteI believe that sleep is a definite friend! I personally commit to getting 10 hours of sleep per night. I know that experts claim that over sleeping can be hazardous to one’s health, but it’s honestly different for every person.
ReplyDeleteI know that if I go to sleep and don’t set an alarm for the next morning, by default I will wake up 9-10 hours later.
In college, all-nighters are relatively simple to avoid if you just treat the school day like a work day and commit to finishing work sooner than later, you will have enough time for sleep!
I agree completely! I typically have a 1 to 2 AM cut off at night so i can at least get 6 hours of sleep every night. However, the night before my psych final i decided to stay up until 330 studying and i set my alarm at 7 so i could have an hour to myself before my exam. Well my body didnt think that was good enough and i awoke at 9:10 realizing i had turned my alarm off in my sleep!! Thankfully my teacher was more understanding than most but i can honestly say thats the last time i try to stay up late studying.
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