The Indy’s Sleep Guide

When did sleep deprivation become a badge of honor? Throughout secondary school, it was almost the norm for the most studious and eager of us to pull all-nighters, then champion them as signs of success the next morning. Earning high grades and leading student organizations was not a good enough consolation prize for these sleepless nights, nay—we needed to brag about how hard we were working to our friends, too. However, this pride taken in sleep-deprived “grinding” should dissipate in college. Now, we are forced to reckon with the fact that waking up exhausted in Lamont is not ideal. Harvard’s Gen Ed course on Sleep also makes clear to students the potentially harmful health consequences of poor sleep habits. 

So, the question becomes: what steps can a student take toward optimizing their quality of sleep from a dorm room? While this may seem like a daunting task, there are a few dorm room essentials that can be used to finally rest easy away from home. Welcome to the Indy’s Sleep Guide:

An Electric Kettle

An electric kettle is the perfect solution for making the midday switch from coffee and energy drinks to herbal tea. D-halls offer delicious tea packet options that go well with the fall and winter holiday season, such as Cinnamon Apple and Mint. With a kettle in your dorm room you can make tea even when the d-hall is closed. You can also purchase and experiment with different flavors of non-caffeinated drinks like Swiss Miss hot chocolate from CVS or Korean Honey Citron tea from H-Mart. These are all delicious ways to enjoy a hot drink without consuming enough caffeine to disturb your ability to fall asleep quickly. Just make sure your suitemates can keep a secret… 

A Fan

Whether it is a ceiling fan that came with your dorm room or that box fan you bought at CVS during the back-to-school rush, a fan is a must at a school with no dorm air-conditioning. Having this invaluable tool improves comfort while sleeping by cooling your room to a more ideal temperature. Secondly, fans provide gentle white noise that may help you stay asleep. Say goodbye to randomly waking up in the middle of the night soaked in your own sweat!

A Mattress Pad

If you don’t already have one, get one! The added comfort of a mattress pad (also known as a mattress topper) can transform your Twin XL from a hard block into a soft place to relax after a long, tiring day. Mattress pads can also make your bed more supportive of your body, allowing you to focus on sleeping well instead of tossing and turning as you descend into slumber. Just because you are given a standard Twin XL mattress doesn’t mean you need to accept discomfort as your expectation for rest.

Pillows (To Your Taste)

One of the best ice breaker questions is “How many pillows do you sleep with, how, and why?” My response is “two, fluffed and stacked on top of each other, because it makes my neck and head feel supported when I sleep on my side.” Experiment with different pillow configurations to determine which style best suits your sleeping style. Some days, you may find that one arrangement leaves you with a persistently annoying kink in your neck while another makes you so comfortable you never want to leave your bed. Different people need different numbers and textures of this sleep-time essential. From memory foam to down feather pillows, there are plenty of options.

Vitamins (With Caution)

While vitamins can not replace a balanced, nutrient-filled diet, they can help fill in the gaps in our nutrition. Some vitamins have also been linked to improved quality of sleep. In my own previous experience, taking my multivitamin right before bed helps me sleep more soundly throughout the night. Some of my classmates and I have also found that over-the-counter vitamins such as Melatonin and Magnesium have helped us achieve better sleep quality. 

Note these are not to be overrelied on. Side effects may include nausea, headache, dizziness, and constipation. Make sure to evaluate your own health needs and concerns before you try a new vitamin or supplement, no matter how innocuous it may seem. If you are looking for a place to start, CVS has a great variety of vitamins and supplements.

A Diary

One of the worst interrupters of sleep is stress. Maybe you have an essay you have not started, a p-set you’re completely lost on, or a serious ordeal with family or friends. Any stressor has the potential to keep us awake and compound emotional exhaustion with physical exhaustion. One way to help manage stress and emotions is to journal your thoughts and experiences in a diary. A physical diary also helps reduce screen time and blue light exposure before bed! Jot your worries down tonight so you can take them off your mind for now. You can do the same thing should you wake up (possibly from a nightmare) in the middle of the night.

Sleeping better will change your life by elevating your mood and your overall health. While it is still easy to feel tempted to forgo sleep to complete more work, experiencing better sleep must be prioritized for health and even happiness. Fortunately, it does not take many adjustments to improve your quality of sleep. With the simple, accessible tools from this article at hand, you do not have to miss out on the benefits of sleep in college. Instead, you can finally appreciate sleep as a foundation for wellness as opposed to a barrier to productivity.

Adedoyin Adebayo ’26 (aadebayo@college.harvard.edu) will text you back when she wakes up.