The past few days have been crazy. I've been studying a lot because I have midterms coming up. I've been pretty bad with managing my time because I found myself up until 2 am two nights in a row to study.
I don't feel any better today. If anything, I only did a little better on the quiz. Basically, staying up caused me nothing but trouble. The truth is that I could have spent my time sleeping, and I regret not doing that. It's okay to spend a couple of days studying late. However, I do have a problem with being proud of it.
The worst idea possible is to glorify not sleeping. As a pre-med student, it feels like everyone wants everyone to know how hard they have been working: "I stayed up all night studying for orgo." "I only got two hours of sleep last night!" You may have gotten a lot done, but chances are you feel pretty bad. If you think not taking care of your body is a competition, you've got it wrong.
Statements like this can make people question their choice to go to bed at a reasonable time. I know that my lack of a sleep routine has really affected my mental health. Please don't go out telling people that you stayed up all night studying. It's not something to glorify. Maybe you're a night owl and like studying late, but you still get sleep, right? Would you tell your future child to stay up all night working if that's what it takes? No, you wouldn't; you'd help him or her devise a plan to get it all done during the day.
Thankfully, I have supportive friends who help me through these times. Unless it's absolutely necessary, I don't pull all-nighters. I don't think I ever have. Stop making others feel bad for catching some Zzz's!
