Hi , i am 19 male and i have a real problem regarding my sleep timings, I wanna know actually how many hours in a day can a teenager sleep ? Moreover i wanna know the timings for the best sleep.I go to bed at 1:30 late night and get up at 7:30 . this is my routine , But the problem now is that during the day time almost all the time i feel sleepy, that too especially when i travell outside in bus or some means i feel very sleepy, Please tell me how to sleep Less ,so that i may work more. Suggestion are welcomed !!!

Reply

well i think the recommended sleeping time fr an average adult is 8 hours a day, so you should aim at more than that as you have a few years of growing left (Apparently).

Im 18 and i usually sleep up to 11 or 12 hours a day, from midnight to midday, im really not a morning person, today i start work and ive had abut 6-7 hours sleep, i get up feeling slightly dizzy and think headed and now slightly sick, purely because i love my sleep, i liken it to a hangover when i dont have enough sleep. Bad times.

I recommend modifying your sleeping pattern by exercising or tiring yourself out during the day and then going to bed early to watch a DVD or something, eventually you will sleep earlier and therefore be able to sleep longer, on a day where you dont need to get up try to get up early anyway, that way you'll be more tired by night time and to remedy tiredness during the day have a cup of tea or coffee in the morning and during the day if you need it.

If you still cant sleep early then try some medicines, no tranquillizers but other calming products before bed.

 

 

 

Reply

well lack of sleep and too much sleep has been proven to give problems. lack of sleep causes people to not function well and usually don't feel too energetic and sometimes feel sleepy in the morning. too much sleep are believed to cause heart problems later on.

the average time of sleep required for an individual is 8 hours, minimum i think is 6 hours. the amount of time we sleep usually decreases as we age (although sometimes it is related to other factors that distracts us from getting enough sleep), babies need to sleep longer so their body could develop. we need sleep so our body could repair itself and of course regain energy we need for the following day.

you don't really need to force yourself into sleeping early for the sake of sleeping. however, you could set your "body clock" by doing stuff that would allow you to sleep properly, on your preferred time. your body has to get used to you shifting schedules in sleeping (let's say from sleeping at 1:30am, you would want to sleep at around 8:00pm). do it gradually, like sleeping one hour earlier for the first two or three days then do it again and again until you're able to sleep in your desired time.

distraction is what inhibits people from sleeping on their preferred time. thinking too much, too much noise are just one of the distractions. if you have a lot of problems for the next day, worrying about it today won't help. the least you could do is give yourself enough energy so you could deal with the problem tomorrow. try writing it down on a paper or journal so you could remember what it was you're worried about the previous night. it doesn't solve the problem, it just helps you go through the sleeping process a lot easier.

try to limit the noise (if you could, just turn all the distractions off) in your room as much as possible. if others are still awake, close your bedroom door so the noise won't get in that much. turn off the lights because that prevents you from sleeping. if you're afraid of the dark, just put the light to dim. the point here is to minimize the distractions.

what if you can't sleep just yet? try reading a book and drinking a glass of warm milk. reading a book will help your eyes to feel tired, and milk has ingredients that help you doze off. don't do strenuous activities or exercises before going to bed because it will just keep you awake instead of the opposite.

Reply

I normally sleep about 7 hours and on the rare occasions when I can I sleep about 9-10 hours I also turn off every possible light and all the stuff that make noise in my bedroom ( although when I was young I used to turn on the audio system and play a disc of relaxing classical music and that's how I fell asleep than. And I was afraid of the dark also So I had a candle burning for example. But now I prefer a dark and silent room to sleep in
Yeah reading a book is an idea. It's pleasent and it helps. And if it doesn't help try reading your geography lesson It bores my to sleep even at midday
And about the time-I have heard that the most healthy time for sleeping is between 23:00 and 1:00.

Reply

I had the same problem during my Teenage Years

I went to the doctor and got full bloods done, and he put it down to a hormone imbalance.
It happens to most people in their life, it also would help to get more sleep at night, if you find that that doesn't work, then you can in the afternoon or early evening, go to bed for a granny nap, Do that every day for about a week, and you should be back in order.

Reply

Okay, I have this problem very very often. Usually what I do is smoke some weed before I go to bed and that helps me sleep a lot. If you are not into that, what I also do is just stay up all night/day some day and then go to bed at like 7PM or so. Then you hopefully will wake up at 7 or 8 the next morning. Lots of times when go to bed at a time like that I will wake up at like 11PM or something like 2PM.

NyQuil works too...lol
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NyQuil

-Seyeaiyan

Reply

as master baracca says its proved that to much sleep is bad and so is lack of sleep you should get 8 hours of sleep every night having to much can alter your body clock meaning that your sleeping patern will be... difficult, to put that in an example think about when you get jetlag when you come home from holidays etc. also your mataobolism will be off charts it will also effect your blood 02 level (oxygen) which is one thing theyve been trying to cure when i was in hospital and they've told me off cause i sleep to much Too less sleep is very dangerous even proven to restrict growth glucose production it will even effect how long you live believe it or not . if you do have lack of sleep the worst thing you can do is drink red bull, you have to replace the energy, glucose and water sometimes a pinch of salt with that, i know grose aint it
hope this helps
karlosantana
newbie me

Reply

I wouldn't think that smoking pot is a particularly good remedy for sleep...no sirree.

Nor would I go down the tablet route.

Just bear in mind that reducing your sleep can greatly reduce your physical development. Yup, that kind of physical development. Yup, that kind of physical development too Some non-jokey recommendations (since I suffered from insomnia for a couple of months about a year ago):

1 - Set a time 1hr before going to bed for getting ready for bed. Sounds stupid, but it takes me forever to do all those little things you've got to do before tomorrow.
2 - Eat some cereal before getting into bed. Your body uses energy
3 - Read for 1 hr in bed. In particular, read any revision materials you have for exams or that you want to know, but can't be bothered to. Computing texts are ideal for this. A fringe benefit of this is that you can actually gain a lot of knowledge out of this relaxing time (I've revised for all my CIW exams this way - the key is starting well ahead of time!)...though don't pick anything that is too interesting, or urgent...both of these will keep you up out of interest or worry.
4 - On days where you feel you're too tired, drink water instead of tea and coffee. You may feel more tired in the short run, as your body has become dependent on caffeine, but you will feel better in the long run. If you must drink coffee, don't drink it on your non-work days!

Reply

nirmaldaniel,

you are certainly spending very less time in sleeping during the night time. and that is the reason why you are feeling very sleepy during your work hours during the day time.

you should spend at least 7 - 8 hours of sleeping at night to get a good and a refreshing sleep and rest. this will ensure that your body gets all the rest and energy to work during the day time.

if you don't spend time sleeping at night then it will a sleepy affair for you during the day time.

not sleeping in a regular and normal manner during night time may also lead to a lot of health problems and i even read some where that you can reduce the chances of heart attack if you practice regular sleeping time during night.

it has many other benefits also.

if you still cant get enough sleep consult a doctor. he will be able to guide you.

a psychiatrist will be the best person you can approach if it is unavoidable.

good luck!

Reply

I agree. I get 7-8 every night, but I'm 17 and still growing very much. I'm 6'4" gah! Haha. I read all the posts on this topic and I must say, it is very informative. I had no idea how much sleep affects a person. o2 levels, metabolism, lifespan!? Wow. I will try and get to bed at 10 tonight. I wake at 6:50 to 7:00 am, so getting the whole 9 hours ought to do me good. Hmm. Thank you all for your opinion, and thank you OP for bringing the issue to light.

I have one question though: I am underweight, 6'4" and 142lbs. I have an ultra high metabolism. Yes, I eat. Yes, I eat A LOT. I was just wondering, can adjusting my sleep pattern help me gain weight?

Reply