Sleep Deprivation

O

Overwhelmed

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How much sleep do USNA midshipmen typically get?
My friend said he only got 3 hours a night when he attended in the 90s.
 
Current mids and grads will surely offer authentic inputs. In my observations, plebes during PS will get the most sleep, interestingly enough, because they are so regimented and overseen.

The rest varies with personal discipline, time management, sport commitment, major and ability to multi-task and prioritize.

There are those mids who seem to float through the academics, athletic and military commitments, have a social life, score 7 hours a night, AND sleep between their sheets. The rest - well, you should get some interesting posts. The sponsor mids at our house on the weekend alternate sleeping with homework, laundry and eating.
 
Building on @Capt MJ, time management drives sleep amounts. Those who prioritize well, focus on what matters most, pick their activities carefully — they get the most sleep. Frankly, not that different from regular college.
 
When I was in college, my priority was sleep. Sometimes didn’t wake up until the afternoon. :p
 
DD is a D1 athlete, ranked overall in the top 80 with a STEM major - goes to bed every night at 10 pm and gets up around 6 am. This has been her routine for her first 2.5 years at usna.

It’s all about time management
 
If I were to guess, I would say median 5 hours during heavy academic weeks.

A mid with a Group 3 major, intramural sports and no ECAs, who takes voluntary summer school to lighten the academic year course load, will have the most flexibility for rack time logged. A varsity athlete with a heavy travel schedule and a lab-heavy major and multiple ECAs and in-company leadership positions, will theoretically have less free time.
 
I slept about 6-8 hours a night when I was a Mid. 3 hours isn’t sustainable regardless of what your buddy says. I would say most Mids average 5-8 depending on the day, semester and week. If it was the night before a game usually lights out by 10. Some Mids can tend to get in a bad spiral of little sleep at night then a long nap after class, especially when there is no drill and intramurals only a few times a week. You eventually learn a balance and realize that staying awake in class and being rested enough to take it in is just as valuable as an hour of studying at night. Some Mids will play video games or social media half the night too. It’s all about how you manage your time. Plebe year is more managed than the others, but like any other school, no is going to hold your hand.
 
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Thanks for your responses.
I think the compactness of USNA is also an advantage. DD attends a large state university with many campuses. She spends a considerable amount of time on a bus each day.
 
Like most college kids... Mids are always tired. Part of it is self inflicted and part of it is schedule. Most are 18-23 years old and indestructible and can consume mass quantities of caffeine. Plebe year you sort of feel like a constant zombie, but it’s gets better as you have more freedom to schedule your time and activities. Mids can amaze anyone with their ability to fall asleep anywhere within seconds and sleep 14 straight hours on the weekend or on leave.
 
Our DS, a Plebe, is now a cold coffee drinker. Never would I have thought he would drink coffee, but there you go. I do think he gets a decent amount of sleep, but like others said, as a Plebe they have a lot on their plate.
 
[QUOTE="MidCakePa, post: 653246, member: 42892" not that different from regular college.[/QUOTE] Totally disagree with this comment. Guess that is why they say NOT COLLEGE!
 
@parent, as it is in college is also true in N*OT COLLEGE: Those who manage their time smartly tend to get more sleep than those who don’t manage their time wisely. N*OT COLLEGE in many regards, but very much so in this one.
 
This is something that varies wildly and it really depends on what your priorities are. Most people I know sleep around 6 hours a night. If you've got really ambitious goals for your GPA or you're an in season varsity athlete, it can be challenging even to get that much.
Many mids only get 3-5 hours and supplement with naps throughout the day. Then there are some that hardly sleep at all during the night and sleep during class. Personally I get 6-7 hours a night, going to bed by 11 and getting up around 5:30. I was used to getting 8-9 hours as a civilian, but the body is pretty adaptable and I do fine on 7 hours now. Getting that much just depends on time management.
 
Current Mid here,
I would say 5-6hrs is pretty common for Plebes because Plebes usually have morning workouts at 0530 and extra trainings during the day. Upper class are usually in the 6-7hr range but that somewhat depends on the difficulty of their major.
 
DS is a current 2/C engineering major. From what he has said to me over the past few years, it somewhat depends on your major and a lot depends on time management. He averages about 5 hours nightly; his economics major roommate usually can get 7-9 hours of sleep. Less when projects are due in a few days.
 
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