In less than two weeks I will turn 20. Twenty. How crazy is that?! Maybe it’s not that crazy to you since that is a very reasonable age for a sophomore in college. But to me, it’s wild. Part of me is excited, part of me is nervous (cue existential crisis), and another part of me feels ready. For most of my life, I have felt younger than I actually am. Perhaps it’s my high-pitched voice, my innocence, or my love of boy bands and coloring. Whatever the reason, adulthood has seemed like this far-off thing, a mystical age meant for people wiser and more mature. And now, it’s two weeks away.
Turning 20 doesn’t necessarily mean that suddenly I am a full-fledged adult. I’m still young, hip, and fun (hopefully), but something about the age makes me feel like I should be more “adult.”
One of the ways that I am doing so, is through an effort to sleep earlier and spend a bit of time relaxing before. This means that I can’t procrastinate my work. If I do, I miss out on those glorious twenty minutes of shutting my phone off, opening a book (or sometimes the Netflix tab on my laptop), putting on a face mask won’t happen.
That little change, stemming from my efforts to be more grown up, has made a world of difference. Research shows that when you take time to destress before turning off the lights, you will get a better night’s sleep. With better sleep comes a happier and healthier life. Plus, what could be more grown-up and responsible than better rest? Nothing, absolutely nothing.
I recently read that one third of Americans don’t get enough sleep. That is a HUGE number of people. Tragically huge. Sleep is important and yet it constantly gets pushed to the end of our list of priorities (after the week I’ve had, I know just how easy this is to d0). It isn’t healthy
confetti kindness 