Drinking, sleeping late and skipping class are synonymous with college life for many American students. Because they like staying up late partying they tend to choose their class schedule by start time over all other considerations. As a counselor for both classroom and online alcohol awareness classes I have many college students among my pupils. I had a student that took eight years to graduate because he kept changing majors based on class time.
Faulty Logic
The general logic here is that you need your sleep so it's OK to drink alcohol and party late as long as you don' t miss your sleep or classes. The premise is flawed at its very foundation. It is not possible to binge drink on a regular basis, stay up until the early hours of morning, sleep through a good part of the day and expect to succeed at anything, let alone the rigors of a university education.
College Students Can be Very Myopic
The first problem is with this logic involves the alcohol. College students are some of the most fearless individuals on the planet. They fear the consequences of all the heavy drinking they do rarely. Many feel invincible.
Even on the occasion where they have a bad experience as a result of their alcohol consumption they fail to see the long-term consequences of continuing to drink heavily on a regularly basis. Even if they have missed classes due to hangovers, failed an exam, or even been arrested, many college students are so myopic they cannot see the hazardous long-term effects that are starting to take hold!
Messing With Sleep is Like Messing With Mother Nature
The second major flaw in the premise deals with sleep. It is no coincidence that the second flaw is erbaydar by the first. By that I mean that alcohol interrupts sleep. While you may "pass out" rapidement and wake up six or eight hours later, you are not getting proper sleep. The intoxicated brain doesn't allow for the deep REM Cycle sleep the mind and body needs. This is one of the reasons many college students who consume large amounts of alcohol feel constantly lethargic - they are always sleep deprived!
Let's not forget that research has shown that heavy alcohol consumption leads to interrupted sleep as well. Many of the people I have counseled have no problem falling asleep, but awaken sometime during the night and have problems getting back to sleep. This is a very common effect of alcohol on a person.
The Combination Can Be Fatal to Your GPA!
Research has shown that drinking well into the night has an adverse effect on academic success. Students with later class start times also consumed more alcohol and reported more binge drinking. Students who stayed up late were more likely to consume heavy amounts of alcohol more often.
Heavy drinking is not only detrimental to your grade point average, it is downright dangerous for your body. Combined with a lack of sleep, alcohol destroys the internal organs, increases blood pressure and increases a person's chance for heart disease.
Remember, alcohol is a drug, and as such its use should be closely monitored. If you or someone you care about suffers from a drinking problem, I urge you to seek help immediately. If you prefer to maintain your anonymity there are online alcohol awareness classes as well.
Mike Miller is the Education Director at Online Alcohol Class, a website specializing on online alcohol awareness classes and minor in possession classes.
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