Stress is Related to Sleepiness in NSU Undergraduate Students

Stress is Related to Sleepiness in NSU Undergraduate Students

College students often suffer from chronic sleep restriction and up to one third of college age adults suffer from excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS). The finding that high numbers of college students experience EDS is very problematic as this is a population that uniquely requires optimal cognitive functioning to successfully complete course material. One possible cause of EDS from chronic sleep restriction in college students is the high levels of stress experienced by this population. In fact, changes in the stress- related hormone, cortisol, have been previously shown to greatly affect sleep in clinical populations. Here, we hypothesized that subjective levels of stress would positively correlate with subjective reports of chronic sleep restriction in NSU undergraduate students. Participants completed two previously validated self-administered surveys. The first survey was the Perceived Stress Scale which uses a rating system measure of the degree to which situations in a person’s life are perceived as stressful. The second survey was the Epworth Sleepiness Scale which provides an assessment of a person’s subjective sleepiness level. The data indicate that large amounts of stress experienced by college students leads to poor sleep habits and chronic sleep restriction. The results provide important information in understanding the complex relationship between stress and chronic sleep restriction in NSU undergraduate students.