ROdown Blog
Sleep talking
There were many awesome sessions that I attended at the Youth Health: it’s totally important! 2011 conference in Sydney from 11th – 13th November. The one I want to share with you the most was a keynote speech by Dr Chris Seton from the Sleep Unit at the Children’s Hospital at Westmead, titled: Adolescent sleep: the perfect storm.
As young people, some of us might think that feeling sleepy is totally normal right? That our patterns of late nights and sleeping in until lunch time on weekends is just part of our functioning (and our right!) as a young person…? Well we were told this is not actually so – that we don’t have to feel tired all the time – and that quite often this culture of poor sleep actually damages our health, and can be harmful to good brain development! And yet, this culture of sleeplessness stops young people from asking for help about their sleep – even though tiredness is one of the top symptoms that people mention to their doctors!
Youth delegates were thoroughly entertained throughout the session, although some thought it was ironic that we were all tired and operating on varying amounts of sleep ourselves (the lack of sleep we’d all had the night before was the hot topic on Twitter during the presentation). Dr Seton discussed the impact that a 24 hour culture has on our sleep patterns as young people; one that differs quite significantly from the world our parents grew up in. The constantly accessible internet, more accessible unhealthy food options and in many cases less exercise, are all factors in our sometimes poor sleeping habits. And heaps of us are not getting nearly enough sleep and are trying to make up for it on weekends!
Interesting fact:
Lots of people have later sleeping rhythms, making it harder to wake early, but meaning that we are more alert later in the day. This has prompted many sleep specialists to advocate for later school start and finish times across the country, to accommodate for when we are functioning most effectively.
Sleep is so important for us to be able to function and develop effectively – what are you doing to make sure your body gets enough?
- Circadian rhythms + depression (Factsheet)
- Insomnia (Factsheet)
- Sleeping problems (Factsheet)
Email this page
Not a member?
Join Reach Out to access a range of great member features.
Forgot your password?
0 Comments
Log in to join the conversation. Join Reach Out.
There are no comments for this Blog Post.