Somewhere along the way, college students decided sleep was optional. People wear their exhaustion like a trophy. “I only slept three hours” gets said with pride, like being tired means working harder or doing more. But it doesn’t. It just means being tired.
Sleep isn’t weakness. It’s necessary, and honestly, it’s time we stop acting like burnout is some kind of accomplishment.
So here’s this week’s self-care tip: go to bed, not just when the body gives out, but on purpose. Shut the laptop and put the phone away. Let it all wait until tomorrow for once. Finals are coming, and everything feels like it matters at once – the deadlines, the study groups and the pressure. When that happens, sleep is usually the first thing that gets cut. It feels like there’s no time to rest.
But here’s the thing – sleep helps everything else go better. It’s when the brain stores what was learned. It helps with focus, memory and mood. It even boosts immune function, which, let’s be honest, is useful when stress is high.
Pulling an all-nighter might sound like dedication, but the reality is that slower thinking equals more mistakes and needing double the time the next day just to feel normal again.
A tired brain doesn’t absorb information the same way, and no amount of caffeine really makes up for it. This isn’t a call to stop trying or to care less – it’s about balance.
Rest isn’t the opposite of effort – it’s part of it. The brain works better when it’s rested, and so does the body. Even creativity and motivation come more easily when the mind is clear.
No one is saying to sleep 10 hours a night. Sometimes the paper is due at midnight. Sometimes stress keeps people awake. But small changes help – logging off 30 minutes earlier, putting the phone across the room or letting one thing go instead of pushing through everything at once.
Even a little more sleep can change the day that follows. The nights spent resting tend to pay off more than the ones spent panicked and overstimulated.
The idea that sleep has to be earned is everywhere, especially during finals. But rest isn’t a reward. It’s fuel. No one expects a car to run without gas, but somehow, students are expected to function on four hours of sleep and a granola bar.
That kind of pace can’t last forever, and no grade is worth giving up well-being for.
Finals will pass, and so will the stress, but the way we treat ourselves during hard weeks sticks. Resting sends a message: I matter, even when everything is overwhelming.
So if things are piling up and time feels short, pause. Sleep, even just a little.
The work will be there tomorrow, and it’ll go better with a clearer head.
Sleep is not lazy. Sleep is smart. And yes, sleep is hot now.
