“Dude, you think you’re tired? I only got, like, one hour of sleep last night. I’m totally crushing it.”

We all love to brag about how we aren’t getting any sleep. It could be because we have too much homework, too much drama, or we just love Tik Tok too much. Under-eye bags have become a badge of honor. 

Only sleeping one hour a night is not something to brag about. Sleep deprivation is a problem, and it needs to be recognized as one.

“Sleep is fundamental to most of the body’s systems,” sleep scientist at the University of Oxford Dr. Paul Kelley said. “It will be damaging to your health, your mental health and your performance if you don’t get enough sleep.”

We all know that sleep is one of the most important factors in living a healthy life. We don’t need a scientist to tell us this. However, despite its importance, the majority of high school students are still not getting enough of it.

According to a study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 72.7 percent of high school students are not getting enough sleep. Looking at the statistics, you are not special when you say that you are sleep deprived. Most of the time, everyone you are bragging to is in the same boat as you.

I have my own fair share of things to do. Still, my bedtime is 9:30 pm. Yes, you can laugh at me, I know you think I am a grandma. However, I work to go to bed early. I make sure that I am getting enough sleep so I am able to be productive the next day. What is the point of working yourself to the bone for a few extra hours if you won’t be able to do anything of quality the next day?

Also, bragging about being tired is bragging that you are bad at time management. The time you sleep is not up for grabs. That’s not optional time that you can give up for another activity, it is required time you need to be a functional human being. Lacking sleep is just proving that you don’t know how to organize your time.

Next time you’re about to tell someone that you only slept a few hours last night, ask yourself, is this something I should be bragging about?