Med Students: How much sleep do you get?

[Mastashake]

Just out of curiosity, how much sleep to you all get on an average night? You hear horror stories of people getting 2 hours a night during med school, so it got me wondering.

Mastashake

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[thackl]

Same amount I've gotten my whole life... about 7.5hrs. This is especially true during test weeks. Most of the tests at Tech require thinking and have lots of 2nd and 3rd order type questions. Your better off with a good nights sleep than extra studying.

 

[dmitrinyr]

It really matters on the person, that person's study habits and how fast he/she retains the material. Some people retain new material quite fast and can afford to sleep a regular 7 hrs a night. Many people, at least in my school, aren't so lucky. Many people need to study many hours to master the material which cuts down on your sleep time. I don't know exactly but just to give u a ball park, probably most people get between 4-6 hrs per night tops and this number decreases dramatically as we get closer and closer to test time. I get about 4-5 hrs on a weekday normally and about 7-8 on the weekend. The week before the exam, I get maybe 3-4 hrs per night. Sometimes I study throughout the night and then I sleep during the day. let's just say, it's hard to get 7 hrs a night consistently. But people manage to do it. Good luck

dmitri

Just out of curiosity, how much sleep to you all get on an average night? You hear horror stories of people getting 2 hours a night during med school, so it got me wondering.

Mastashake

 

[grayce79]

7-8 hours/night

 

[MGoBlueDO]

6 hours during exam weekends...if I just have class then 7-8 hours and then I sleep in class...if its really a monotone lecturer...

 

[anamarylee]

Around 6 hours on weeknights (with the ocasional nap here and there in the afternoons) and around 8-9 on the weekends before exam. Regular weekends my be up to 10-12 hrs/night.

 

[DHMO]

7 to 8 hours everynight. It's more effective to sleep, rather than study while you're tired.

 

[kc361]

It really depends on which year you're referencing. During the first two years of med school, with the exception of exam periods, there's no reason why you shouldn't get a decent amount of sleep.

In third year, however, it varies tremendously with the rotation. During clinic months, about 6-7 hours a night. But there were times on Medicine and on OB/Gyn, specifically call nights, when I just never went to bed (literally). And on off-call nights, there was still so much work to do that I was lucky if I got four hours nightly.

 

[DarksideAllstar]

1st 2 years (not going to class):7 hrs per night, going to class: 5-6
3rd year: between 6 and 7

 

[Heal&Teach]

Does the fact that I'm up at 2:30am say anything?
Ditto to UCSF's comment on the first two years...

 

[pillowhead]

7 to 8 hours everynight. It's more effective to sleep, rather than study while you're tired.

I get about the same. I don't know how people study effectively (or do anything effectively) on less than 6 hours of sleep every single night. I get about 8-9 on weekends. Of course, third year is approaching very quickly, and I know it will change then.

 

[ddmo]

6 hrs on avg. but not due to studying, mostly watching TV and wasting time after getting home from studying. Although, I do take an hour nap most days.

 

[OSUdoc08]

Just out of curiosity, how much sleep to you all get on an average night? You hear horror stories of people getting 2 hours a night during med school, so it got me wondering.

Mastashake

7-10 hours (I sporadically attend class)

 

[DOCTORSAIB]

First semester when I wasted my time and went to class...6 hours/night.

After I stopped going to class cold turkey...7.5 hours/night. That includes exam and non-exam weeks. You'd be surprised how much more you can learn and how much less you're stressed when you're well rested...

 

[siempre595]

During regular class weeks I get about 6-7 hours, sometimes a nap in the afternoon. During exam weeks, I sleep from about 4 am to 7:30 am, which totally sucks, but has resulted in my best exam scores.....oddly enough. you get used to it.