I wonder, can we prioritize sleep? I mean this sincerely. Can we really value it? Sleep is one of the essential parts of being human yet unlike some of the other essential things (think food, exercise, oxygen, or shelter) no one seems to give us credit when we sleep. Come about age 11, kids start to be praised for their achievements more than their skills in self-preservation.
Like most busy moms, I speak from an experienced place–I’m up early today after going to bed late last night. With the dog awakening us with vomiting at 2:30am, I clocked in under 6 hours of sleep when the alarm clock broke the silence this morning. Clearly it is our own responsibility to find ways to prioritize sleep. No one will do it for us. So, how we both model sleep and also advise our children as they grow matters. It is well understood that sleep deprivation isn’t good for us. It’s not good for our performance, our driving, our friendships, our mood, or even our waistlines.
In clinic, I ask teenagers what time they go to bed. I ask them if they sleep with their phones, if they wake up to an alarm, and how easy it is to fall asleep. I ask parents and I ask about the little ones, too. But it’s the teens (and parents) I worry about most. Those little 6-month-old-midnight-screamers, they’ll figure it out. The over-subscribed-stressed-out high-(or-low)-achieving teens? They need a little time on this…A study published this month only confirms my concern. Read full post »
