Women sleeping with her head covered by a pillow. Credit: Dreamstime via TNS
Lani Petruccio, a third-year in fashion and retail studies, said she typically crawls into bed around 3 a.m. on weekdays.
Just five hours later, she wakes up for every college student’s worst nightmare: the dreaded 8 a.m. class.
Even on weekends, Petruccio said she is hard-pressed to completely catch up on sleep, as social engagements and other school-related tasks keep her up until sunrise.
“When I don’t get sleep, I feel all around lazy and unmotivated and it trickles into everything else,” Petruccio said.
Like Petruccio, many Ohio State students struggle with maintaining a consistent and healthy sleep schedule, which can cause their stress levels to spiral out of control. Dr. Aneesa Das, an Ohio State professor of internal medicine, said this commonality can be better explained and understood as “social jet lag.”
“Social jet lag is when there is a significant misalignment from when we sleep on the weekends versus when we sleep during the week that makes us basically feel like we are jet lagged,” Das said. “It makes people feel tired all the time, and they often have a hard time getting sleep on the weekdays because it’s harder to fall asleep.”
Das said the negative effects of social jet lag can go beyond merely struggling to fall asleep; in fact, varying schedules can also impact students’ mental health, creating feelings of frustration and helplessness.
“That shift can cause a circadian misalignment and then stress, which, unfortunately, doesn’t disappear when you go to bed,” Das said.
Ryan Patel, a psychiatrist for Ohio State’s Counseling and Consultation Service, said sleep and mental well-being are interrelated — particularly when it comes to stress, anxiety and depression.
“Mental health conditions can contribute to poor sleep, but poor sleep can also contribute to mental health conditions,” Patel said. “So, it’s a two-way street with regards to sleep and mental health conditions.”
Patel also said college students’ demanding academic and developmental needs require them to get more sleep than the standard seven to eight hours, instead recommending eight to nine hours.
“As students, you’re spending a lot of your time studying, and high amounts and intense cognitive activity also require greater sleep demand,” Patel said. “The body and brain are developing, and a lot of that development occurs in our sleep.”
Students are oftentimes more susceptible to social jet lag because college life can be both intellectually and emotionally draining at times, Das said. With students juggling social activities and academic engagements at all hours, it can be difficult for students to maintain an adequate sleep schedule, she said.
“Early class times, in combination with later weekend times, are a particular issue,” Das said. “So, early class times might be fine if you’re keeping that schedule seven days a week, but that’s not usually conducive to college life in reality,” Das said.
Liam Walters, a fourth-year in sports industry, said he struggles with social jet lag from balancing schoolwork with his part-time job as a bartender.
“I close a bar on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday,” Walters said. “I usually don’t get home until 1:30 a.m. or 2:30 a.m., depending on what time we close. Then, I have to eat and shower. I usually stay up late on the other days of the week, but not as late.”
In addition, Walters said social jet lag can impede his ability to prepare for the future, as the present just feels too overwhelming to navigate.
“I’ve got a lot on my mind right now,” Walters said. “I’m applying to graduate school and just stressed out about life, and my sleep schedule doesn’t help.”
Das said daily moderate exercise, a hot shower one to two hours before bed and low temperatures during sleep are all habits that can significantly improve students’ sleep quality and reduce the effects of social jet lag.
“The best thing you can do is get up at a more consistent time seven days a week,” Das said.
