Do you know which animal sleeps the least?
I know what you’re thinking, and, no, it isn’t PA students. It’s the giraffe. The elephant and the dolphin are close behind, but the giraffe sleeps the least. In fact, for a long time, it was thought that maybe they didn’t sleep at all.
Giraffes take short, 40-minute naps just like Buddy the Elf.
Man, it would be nice to get as much done as Buddy does in one night. All those decorations and that hobby horse!
Unfortunately, you need to sleep a solid 7 – 8 hours. Less and your memory and learning deteriorate pretty quickly. Study after study shows that humans NEED between 7-9 hours of sleep to maintain good cognition.
Wonder why you keep forgetting things? (Where are my keys?)
Wonder why you keep memorizing the same lists over and over and over? Maybe if you got more than 3 hours of sleep and less than 10 cups of coffee a day, your brain would work just a little bit better.
More time studying seems like the answer, but it isn’t. Spend a few extra hours napping or in bed, and I promise you will start remembering more. It may not be obvious at once, but it will matter.
Not too long ago, we all sat down as a family to watch a movie. I didn’t even make it through the opening credits. I was gone like a snowman in the desert. Poof. I woke up at 7 AM drooling on the couch. Totally confused. I think we started the show at 6:30 PM.
I felt amazing. Unbelievable. 10 years younger. My brain was clear. I was on top of the world, and all it took was 12 hours of sleep.
Now a giraffe or an ELF may be able to get by on 40 minutes, but our brains need a little more. And it isn’t like going to the gym where you can skip out all week and put in a few extra hours on the weekends. You need to maintain a certain level of brain power by balancing your caffeine with your sleeping. For real sleeping.
This one is important. Especially as you lead up to exam days. I feel like a broken record, but a well-rested functioning brain is worth far more than any little tidbit of data you can squeeze in there at 2:00 AM.
Between some good snoozing and what I’m going to show you in this month issue of PAES, your friends and neighbors may just be wondering what’s happened to you.
Sunday at midnight is the deadline for this particular issue. Click the link there and let me help you on your next exam. I can’t take it for you, but I am going to walk you through a few techniques that I use to make sure I get enough questions right to pass.
Go on and click this link to find out more:
Physician Assistant Exam Scholars
Brian Wallace