The amount of sleep high schoolers need, compared to what they actually get, is dramatic. 

The recommended amount is nine and a half hours for teenage brains to function well and be able to pay attention in school. 

After taking a poll, it shows that freshmen get about nine and a half hours of sleep, sophomores and juniors get  seven and a half hours, and seniors a staggering six and a half hours. 

It is proven that there is a two-hour shift in teenager’s mental clock during puberty. 

So, someone who is able to go to sleep at nine, suddenly can’t until 11. 

It also means waking up two hours later than normal. And as a result, high schoolers are very sleep deprived. 

High school is an important time, preparing for college, building important life skills, and overall the time to mature. So being well rested for a long day of classes is crucial. 

Even though students can’t control when school starts to accommodate their sleep schedules, they can take steps to go to sleep earlier, organize their lives so they aren’t as stressed, or just help themselves get into a positive routine.

When students are stressed they are unable to think about anything other than their cause of stress, causing a snowball effect, thus creating more stress. 

When students are unable to sleep because of stress, they don’t get enough sleep to be prepared for the next day. When students are unprepared for the next day, it causes them even more stress which makes students stress even more. 

This creates a loop which is hard for high school students to break out of.

Not getting enough sleep can have pretty bad consequences for high schoolers. It can limit the ability to learn, cause students to forget important information, like dates, events or when your homework’s due. 

It can also make you more prone to acne or other skin problems which causes even more self-esteem problems among students.

Naps help students for days when they have limited time for sleep. Naps also provide students a great way to take a break from studying and focus on themselves. 

Whatever ways that students decompress make sure that it does not create even more stress.