Illustrated by Abigail Dannatt

How to sleep the weeks before uni

The weeks before starting university can be hard, filled with a mix of worry and excitement of the unknown and…

The weeks before starting university can be hard, filled with a mix of worry and excitement of the unknown and this can make it harder to fall asleep. Especially if you’ve decided to move out – this huge change could change your usual sleep schedule, which is super important for both your mental and physical health. This article will share a few ways to help fall asleep in the weeks leading up to university.

Have a routine

The first tip is to figure out a routine. This could be doing things like your skincare, reading before bed and limiting your phone time. Getting into a bed routine will alert your body that it’s time to feel tired and help you to wind down in a calm manner.

Limiting phone use can help to stop panic scrolling and ensure you get to bed at a reasonable time. Having it placed away from you during the night can also help to prevent you from going on it if you wake up during the night and scrolling for hours.

Write down all of your worries

Another tip is to write down all of your worries, thoughts and questions surrounding university. Instead of being kept awake with these thoughts, write them down. This can help to ease any worry since it can help you to put things into perspective and sort through each issue one by one. Sharing these worries with someone else or asking questions about the source of your worries to someone already at university or on things like the student room can help to show you you’re not alone and that these worries are normal.

Create a to-do list

You could also create yourself a to-do list for university. This could be a list of things you need to get, events you’d like to go to, group chats you’d like to find and join or things you need to do before then. Writing these down can stop any worrying building from forgetting things. It can also show you how much you’ve achieved as you tick them off one by one, allowing your mind to register that you don’t need to worry about it anymore as it’s been sorted.

Try mediation

Finally, for actually falling asleep, meditation could help in reducing sleep anxiety. Apps like Calm can help to guide you through this, along with endless free YouTube walk-throughs, some even about sleeping for moving away from home! Putting all of these tips together can help you to achieve a good night’s sleep, which can be very challenging as you enter a completely new period of your life. But you’ve got this!

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