A fulfilling student life through the study of sleep!?
Yuta Takashima
4th-Year Student at the School of Sport Sciences
I am enrolled in a seminar in which students mainly study sports and sleep. The seminar is taught by Professor Sunao Uchida. This seminar made me realize that many of my preconceptions were mistaken. For example, it is generally thought that exercise will lead to sound sleep, but this isn’t always true. In this way, I learned that there are so many aspects of sleep which are misunderstood.
I decided to enroll in this seminar because sleep is an extremely large element in human life. Indeed, assuming that a person sleeps for 6 hours a day, one-fourth of his lifetime is spent sleeping. Despite such importance, I realized that I had never given much thought to sleeping. I gradually developed an interest in sleep and decided to take this seminar. Another reason I chose this seminar is that I found other seminars taught by Professor Uchida—for example, Sports Medicine Course C and Sports Counseling—to be very interesting. For students planning to enroll in Practical Exercises I (Mind, Spirit and Sports), I also recommend enrolling in related classes at the same time. This will enable a more in-depth study.
Sleep provides hints for a fulfilling lifestyle
This seminar allows students to start learning from the basics of sleep. Everyone has heard of REM sleep and NREM sleep, but what exactly are these stages of sleep? How do REM sleep and NREM sleep occur while sleeping? Students study such topics related to our daily sleep patterns. Personally, I have become conscious of taking steps to improve the quality of my sleep. I now avoid taking a bath immediately before sleeping. I also open curtains to bathe in the sun immediately after waking up. Why is it hard to concentrate at classes first thing in the morning? Why do we feel so drowsy in class after lunch? By learning the answer to these questions about sleep, a more fulfilling student lifestyle is possible.
