Warning: Working and Studying Can Cause Sleep Deprivation!

I know this likely isn’t news to most of you, but working while studying for the bar exam can be a challenge. You have to balance work obligations, family obligations, and still find time to get in some quality studying. Not easy at all! But one of the first things to go when folks start trying to balance work and study time is sleep. And this can lead to some disastrous results. What kind of disastrous results? 

You can begin to break down physically.

Did you know that sleep is actually important for us to function well physically? Sure, those all-nighters seemed liked a good idea when we were 20 years old, but for most of us sleep deprivation can have short and long term consequences. Still don’t believe me? I have talked to students who have ended up at the doctor’s office because of physical symptoms and the doctor told them that sleep deprivation was causing their body to break down. Yikes, right? Remember, you need a healthy body to be able to take the bar exam. Having trouble sleeping? My friend shares some tips for getting more sleep naturally.

You can begin to break down emotionally.

If you read this blog regularly, you know how passionate I am about the mental and emotional aspect of studying for the bar exam. Turns out if we don’t sleep, we actually get more anxious and have a harder time keeping our emotions in check. And let’s be honest most of us are a little anxious while studying for the exam even in the best of circumstances. We don’t need lack of sleep to feed that anxiety and make it even worse! I have talked to many students who get just five hours of sleep consistently in order to study and then find themselves an emotional wreck, crying or feeling incredible anxiety. That is just not sustainable for most of us. You need to make time for sleep to help keep your emotions in check so you can be the best bar exam studier you can be.

You can lose your ability to learn.

Even if you don’t think physical and emotional health are all that important, what about your ability to learn and retain information? If you don’t sleep, you are going to have a harder time remembering all those rules you stayed up late studying the night before. So in the end, without getting a good night’s sleep you really aren’t even helping yourself prepare for the exam.

For many of us, the reality is it would be nice to have more hours in the day. But since we can’t make more hours appear, we have to prioritize the hours that we do have. Although it may sound simple and effective to just cut back on time for sleeping and taking care of ourselves, in fact, doing so ends up hurting us—physically, emotionally, and even in our ability to learn. Take sleep seriously and build in rest as part of your study plan. You will be thankful that you did!

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Did you find this post helpful? Check out some other great articles:

• Working AND Studying? Tips for Surviving Bar Exam Prep
• Five Tips for Studying While Working
• Working While Studying? “Play” Bar Prep Like You’re Playing Risk
• How Do You Recommend Studying While Balancing Family Responsibilities? 

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