A lot of students in college complain of not being able to get a full night's sleep, what with books and papers piled to the ceiling and multiple exams and due dates looming on the horizon all demanding to be finished right away. Between work, school, meetings, and trying to maintain bits and pieces of a social life, students often have to sacrifice hours of sleep to get homework done. By the time that essay for tomorrow is done, odds are you are too awake to go to sleep anyway, and just end up staying up later. But for people like me, staying up is often not our choice.
I have insomnia, which means that my body struggles shut down and sleep, at times. It is a common disorder in our stress-driven society that many people suffer from. I will say insomnia is not an easy disorder to live with. There are nights that I will go to bed at four or five and get up for my morning classes at seven or eight. In those cases, staying awake with a busy schedule is extremely difficult, if not impossible at times. I have developed a caffeine addiction that I'm starting to think might require a trip to rehab to cure. Not too mention the constant feeling of exhaustion that hovers over every hour of every day. I have spent many a night doing homework, watching Netflix, reading "Game of Thrones," listening to music -- just waiting for sleep to come. I can be absolutely dog-tired, but there are nights when I quite simply cannot fall asleep.
As rough as insomnia can get, I have to say it has its perks. There is so much I can do with my insomnia that I would not be able to do, otherwise. So, here are some perks of being a sleep-deprived human being.
1. You can function relatively well in situations where most people would fall apart.
After two hours of sleep, I can still carry out a full work and class schedule, eat well, work out, see friends, and do homework to the best of my abilities. It took a while to get there, but now it is practically second nature.
2. Over-sleeping your alarm is very rarely a problem.
It is incredibly hard to oversleep if you are not sleeping in the first place.
3. You quickly figure out where all the 24-hour places in town are.
Coffee shops, study rooms, pizza places, and campus buildings soon clutter your list of where you can go at three in the morning.
4. There is always time for homework.
You can be leaps and bounds ahead of your classmates when it comes to classwork. Readings, papers, and even extra credit work are a great and productive way to fill those late nights.
5. You are always up to date on your favorite Netflix shows.
Who doesn't watch television or Netflix when they have a late night? Pop culture trivia is the easiest thing in the world for you if you have seen everything! You always look cool when you know what is actually going on in the social world before everyone else.
5. If you ever become a vampire, the shock of having to exist only at night will not be as hard of an adjustment for you.
I'm not saying that you should be a vampire, but in the event that you find yourself becoming one, it will be a much easier transition for you as opposed to those who are used to sleeping through the night.
6. You always have privacy and time to yourself.
No one is awake in the wee hours of the morning. You can finally have a few moments of peace and quiet!
7. This is a great time to recharge.
With no one around, you are free to do what you want, whatever that may be. Even if you just sit at home watching movies, it gives your body and mind a change to reset after the constant stress of living in our busy busy world.
Being an insomniac -- for me at least -- is a gift. While I hate feeling tired all the time and sometimes I wish I were normal, I have the chance, and the time, to do things that I would not be able to during the day. I can take care of homework with ease, watch the movies I want to see, and finally have time just for me. What some people see as a curse, I see as a blessing. It is all in how you use it!
