Just writing about sleep is making me sleepy! Something I believe I am excessively deprived of.

Quality sleep today has become a luxury most of us can’t afford. People in my friends and family circle regularly come back from work at around 8:30 pm. And after quality time with their families go to sleep around 1:00 am.

In Karachi at least, the general public goes to sleep at around 1:00 am. That means approximately 6.5 hours of sleep if you wake up at 7:30 am to get ready for work; even less if you wake up for fajr.

Now the question arises, are we getting enough sleep? As I mentioned above, I believe I am excessively sleep deprived because on weekends I get even less sleep due to my party animal lifestyle. However, let’s see what the experts have to say!

Are we getting enough sleep?

I went through a few studies and articles in my research on this topic and after 5 excruciating minutes I slammed my laptop screen down! I couldn’t take it anymore. These researches are worse than our politicians.

There is extreme polarization in the findings. One states that:

“People who sleep between 6.5 hr. and 7.5 hr. a night, live the longest, are happier and most productive”.

Another one says that:

“12-18 years old need 8.5-10 hours of sleep and 18+ need 7.5-9 hours of sleep”

And yet another says that there is no magic number, rather

“… to determine how much sleep you need, it’s important to assess not only where you fall on the ‘sleep needs spectrum,’ but also to examine what lifestyle factors are affecting the quality and quantity of your sleep such as work schedules and stress.”

That’s when I slammed the laptop screen down and went out to enjoy the weather.

There is however, one thing that I did find which was interesting and I would like to share that here with you.

Indications that you are sleep deprived

The following symptoms indicate a strong possibility that you are suffering from sleep deprivation:

  • You require an alarm to wake up on time
  • The snooze button is your best morning mate
  • You have difficulty getting out of bed in the morning
  • You feel sluggish in the afternoon
  • You feel sleepy in meetings, lectures, or warm rooms
  • You get drowsy after heavy meals or when driving
  • You need a nap just to get through the day
  • You fall asleep watching TV or while relaxing in the evening
  • You feel that you need to only sleep on weekends
  • You fall asleep almost immediately after going to bed

To me this sounds like most of the Pakistanis I know. Does that mean we as a nation are all sleep deprived?