Does your teenager walk around in a zombie-like or foggy state? Do they complain of feeling tired but can’t seem to get enough sleep? Sadly, these are relatively normal occurrences for teens in the United States. Teenagers typically need 8-10 hours of sleep to function properly, and according to the National Sleep Foundation, only 15% are reporting getting at least 8.5 hours per night. Some studies show that 60%-70% of teenagers are living with borderline to severe sleep debt. This lack of sleep affects multiple facets of a teenagers well-being including: difficulty concentrating, learning problems, increased risk of injuries (especially if driving), difficulty self-regulating, increased substance use and other risky behavior. Furthermore, sleep debt can increase teens’ moodiness and irritability with people around them (such as parents, siblings, and teachers), and can exacerbate emotional concerns such as depression and anxiety.
What is keeping teenagers from sleeping? The short answer is lots of things. Partially, biology may be to blame for teenagers staying awake and sleeping in late. The teenage years bring a shift in the production of the sleep hormone melatonin, which causes teenagers to have a delayed sleep phase, or circadian rhythm, compared to adults and children. It is often very easy for teenagers to be alert at 11pm or midnight, and sleep in until 10am or 11am. School hours are at odds with these hours, so teens are often sleep deprived at school and some try to make up for the lost sleep on the weekends leading them to sleep until the afternoon. Further, while a lack of sleep can lead to depressed mood, depressed mood and anxiety can also lead to poor sleep, creating a vicious cycle. Teenagers’ schedules are often overbooked and they have to stay up late to participate in extracurricular activities and complete overwhelming amounts of homework. Finally, technology can play a role in sleep deprivation. Teenagers often are up late talking, texting, or snapchatting with friends, playing video games, and watching videos on YouTube or Netflix. It is not just that these activities are distracting on their own, the light from the devices they are displayed on also stimulates the brain to be more alert.
What can you do to help? Make sleep a priority! Below are some tips to incorporate to help your teen get more and better quality sleep. If you are encouraging your teenagers to use these tips, it is crucial that you also set a good example by following them too!
- Keep bedtimes and wake times consistent. It is tempting to let teenagers sleep in during the summer or on weekends, but it is important for their biological clocks to go to sleep and wake up within an hour of the same time each day. Make sure you gradually adjust if the schedule becomes more lax during the summer so that transitioning back to school isn’t a harsh change.
- Take a short nap if needed. Some teenagers benefit from a 20-minute nap in the afternoon after school. Naps should be limited in duration so as not to disrupt night sleep.
- Beds are only for sleeping. We want our brains to associate getting in bed with going to sleep. This means that teenagers should not be lying in bed while they surf the internet and especially not when they are working on assignments!
- Limit caffeine intake, and avoid caffeine after 2pm if your teen is having difficulty falling asleep at night.
- No screens an hour before bed. To counteract the light that stimulates our brains into staying awake later, we need time to wind down before falling asleep. Use this time to take a shower or bath (which can help with sleep!), and do calming non-electronic activities, like reading a book or drawing.
- Be sure your teenager isn’t over scheduled. It is important to have time to complete homework and have physical activity during the day, but too many teens shuffle from one activity to another until they start homework at 9pm. By simplifying the schedule, sleep has space to become a priority and teens have a chance to relax. Getting more sleep will also help teens become more productive during their waking hours.
For more resources about sleep and teens, check out: https://www.sleepfoundation.org/articles/teens-and-sleep and https://childmind.org/guide/parents-guide-to-teenagers-and-sleep/.
If these sleep tips aren’t working for your family, it may be beneficial to talk with your teen’s doctor and/or a psychologist to rule out other concerns, such as insomnia or narcolepsy. Further, your child’s doctor may be able to suggest other options to help your teen, such as whether he or she could benefit from taking oral melatonin. As always, please reach out if you need some help. We are here to help you and your teen navigate the tricky and difficult choices that come with middle and high school!
Take care,
Dr. Morgan Grinnell