Need parents' wise advice on...

Parent Cafe
1

<p>Whenever I come home from school, I try really hard to start on homework, but eventually have to give up because I’m really exhausted/sleepy/tired. I have to take a nap. However, I have a lot of schoolwork/applications/exams that I have to do as you can imagine, and I can’t really afford be tired all the time.</p>

<p>Do you know of anyways I can retain more energy so that I won’t be tired when I come home from school? (And I’m not trying to procrastinate on my work or be lazy…)</p>

<p>Thanks.</p>

2

<p>If you haven’t already. You may be suffering from a variety of problems, e.g., mild anemia, mild mononucleosis, etc. It’s best to rule out any physical basis for the problem.</p>

3

<p>I’d suggest exercising for 20 minutes to rev up your engines, so to speak.</p>

4

<ol>
<li><p>Get more sleep at night.</p></li>
<li><p>If you aren’t already doing this, get regular exercise.</p></li>
</ol>

5

<p>Kissmekate:</p>

<p>Winter, even in CA, is not the best season to be feeling energetic, I would imagine, even if you do not suffer from some health problem. Make sure you get enough sleep at night. </p>

<p>It’s okay to take a short break after spending a whole day in school. You can take a short nap–maybe one hour?-- or do something relaxing and completely different from school work but that would not be so engrossing as to make you forget about time or reluctant to start your homework/college applications. Then you can start on your homework. It’s better to proceed this way then tackle homework right away but fall asleep in the middle.
Use your time well. It’s amazing how much can be wasted while seemingly doing homework or household chores or anything that seems tedious at the time. Try not to procrastinate: it creates a lot more work to keep putting it off!</p>

6

<p>I second the exercise suggestion. I come home after a busy work day and really want to crash. But if I go out for a 20 minute walk or a spin on the exercise bike it does wonders in revving me up. I am a writer and work at home, too, so I also set small goals, like, “I’ll spend 30 minutes on this report,” or “I’ll just do the outline,” or “just read and take notes on this one section,” and then I find that once started I usually just continue and get more done. Often the thought/fear of what you have to do is more overwhelming than actually doing it. </p>

<p>Naps are fine, too, as long as they don’t negatively affect night time sleeping.
And while I don’t like to promote addictive substances, sometimes a cup of tea will deliver a little energy hit that helps without keeping you up all night…</p>

<p>Good luck!</p>

7

<p>Doesnt exercise only make you feel sleepier? I came back from the gym an hour ago, and I’m really sleepy. I’ve noticed that I’m generaly more sleepy on the days that i work out as compared to those that i dont.</p>

8

<p>I think you should take the nap. Really take a nap, too. Lie down, take deep breaths and completely relax into sleep. BUT–before you start, set an alarm for half an hour or just a bit more. When you get up (don’t dawdle!), exercise vigorously–run, something like that–for 15 minutes or so. You’ll feel rested and invigorated, and while you exercise, you can focus on the things you need to do, and organize them mentally.</p>

9

<p>Excercise usually makes you more energetic unless you are working out really hard. One reason I don’t work out late at night is I can’t sleep afterwards.</p>

<p>My D in high school takes naps. Its okay. Breaks are okay, as long as you give yourself enough time to get your stuff done.</p>

<p>Vitamins sometimes help. A little extra magnesium can help. A healthy diet, heavy on the veggies helps with energy. Tea helps.</p>

10

<p>Third the exercise suggestion - not an exhausting workout, as Metallic refers to, but 20-30 minutes walk/jog/aerobics.</p>

<p>Also, review what you tend to eat around lunch time. It could be that your lunch diet is making you sleepy a couple hours later if heavy on non-complex carbs, sugars etc. and light on protein. Try and have some quality protein at that time, with those veggies that mstee is recommending alongside.</p>

11

<p>Has anyone mentioned that you should work smarter not harder? Be efficient in doing homework? My daughter was doing far more work than was necessary. Certainly I am not advocating cutting corners, but my son conveyed his system of study (it has worked for him for years) which is to take copious notes in class and only read the sections of the text that support the notes. Most teachers will impart to you in the beginning of the year, the essential areas of study ,that they will test on or which areas will be the main components of your overall grade. My daughter found that she had less anxiety when she utilized her brother’s system of study. Oddly enough now she reads the entire list of required reading even if the teacher stated that he/she would not test on it. She found she had more time with less anxiety. It may be that you are working harder and not smarter? Just a thought…</p>

12

<p>This isnt the best long term solution or the ebst for your health, but if you really have a lot to do, drink lots of coffee.</p>

13

<p>songman: That’s an excellent bit of advice on prioritizing, but I just have to throw in the necessary cautionary tale: I had a teacher who would give us very detailed and involved information in class. For the first test, many students used only their notes to study and studied the same parts in the book. Come test day, half of them failed – the teacher fully expected you to get what he told you in class, it’s true, but he ALSO expected you to have learned on your own the other material in the chapter. The fact that he didn’t cover it in class made it, in fact, MORE important than the material he did cover in class – to him, it showed you were able to apply in-class concepts to your own study.</p>

<p>Of course, every teacher doesn’t do this. But it’s wise to wait until you know your teacher to really depend on that method. I will say it’s almost always worked for me, though I usually start a semester by studying too much and then scaling back as I refine my idea of the requirements.</p>

14

<p>KissMeKate – My D is a junior in college, and these are some of the things that work for her: :slight_smile: </p>

<ol>
<li><p>Short afternoon naps. 30-45 mins. Since high school, she has set two (2) alarm clocks. She keeps one alarm close to her bed and the other on a dresser on the opposite side of the room. This keeps her from sleeping through classes and important appointments. </p></li>
<li><p>Get plenty of light and fresh air during the day. Open the curtains in the morning. Get sunshine on you during the daytime hours. Short walks between classes and sitting outside during lunch will help. </p></li>
<li><p>Don’t surf the Internet late at night. Reserve it for early evening, but set a time to shut it down. </p></li>
<li><p>Get a full-spectrum, natural light lamp. This probably falls into the category of studying smarter. D says that it really makes a difference during the winter months when there are fewer hours of daylight. She says that the light is more vibrant, it’s easier on her eyes, and it helps with the winter duldrums. </p></li>
<li><p>Watch your caffeine consumption. </p></li>
<li><p>Watch your sugar consumption. Sugar highs will make you crash sooner and cause you to feel hungry in a relatively short period of time. </p></li>
<li><p>Regulating when you eat and what you eat will help. Don’t skip breakfast, if you can help it. Otherwise, be sure to get something for brunch, so that you are not running on empty by the time you get home from school.</p></li>
</ol>

15

<p>Sometimes, my Ds take a shower, get into comfortable clothes, have a snack (almost an early dinner), and move locations</p>

<p>We have even jsut gone to the local coffee house, to have a change of scenery, to to the written work, like math or french</p>

<p>Food is important- a banana, a sliced apple, a cup of soup, find what works for you</p>

<p>But, changing out of your school clothes is refreshing, if you can’t shower, wash our face, brush your teeth, soak your feet, do your nails, 15 minutes of self pampering can make your study time more efficeint and perk you up</p>

<p>If you have a pet, take them for a brick walk or play with your cat</p>

<p>Something to break up the school day and the homework time</p>

<p>Its hard to go from all day in school and to jump right into more work</p>

<p>If we adults had to come home and do another three hours of office work or whatever every day, we would fall asleep about 7pm I would guess</p>

<p>Look at what you eat during the day at school as well</p>

<p>My Ds have decided to no longer buy the school lunches and want me to have all kinds of stuff at home (darn) but they were seeing how unhealthy they were eating when they bought the school food</p>