Exhausted and Hungover... but at Least They Have A's!

On a typical Friday night in Sacramento, from Old Roseville to Downtown and everywhere in between, the bars are usually crowded with college students. Shots of yummy poison are downed, bar tabs add up quickly and there’s always a feeling of excitement and crazy carelessness in the air.

Fast forward to Monday morning and a harsh reality sets in. The same students that were pouring vodka tonics down their throats and partying until the sun came up are now regretting their decision to forgo sleep and studying for a weekend of fun. Sleep deprivation and a hangover set in and it’s a race to complete last week’s reading assignments. Hilarious pictures were taken and unforgettable memories were made, but is it worth the constant fatigue and stress?

The dilemma of balancing a social life and school is one that many college students face and exhaustion seems to be a rapidly-spreading epidemic. Just take a walk around Sac State on any given day or hour and you will see hundreds of students with a death grip on their iced white mochas, caffeine the only thing helping them sleep-walk through law classes and fraternity meetings.

While this state of exhaustion isn’t unique to Sacramento by any means, the importance of partying and good times seems to be promoted more often than in surrounding areas. A new bar, club or lounge seems to be popping up on every corner of downtown every month. It’s hard to focus on school when the week’s parties are strewn across the ground and under your windshield wipers on postcards in addition to being broadcast all over the radio.

To make things even more stressful, many students have to balance part-time or full-time jobs, sports, children, volunteer work and Greek activities alongside their academics.

“I know that I shouldn’t go out as much as I do but I work about 40 hours a week and have school, homework and fraternity events. Even though sometimes I’m so exhausted that I pass out in my second beer, looking forward to fun times with my friends keeps me going,” said Christopher Berry, a junior Business Major at Sacramento State.

One reason many students feel the need to spread themselves so thin is attempting to become the ideal 20-something. It’s not enough to be a responsible student and work enough hours to eat and barely make the rent. Gone are the days when “student” is an acceptable profession.

Many students hold sales or real estate jobs on the side to pay for expensive car payments, weekend trips to Vegas, and ridiculously expensive nights out to local bars and clubs. Forgoing a flashy ride and a social life to hit the books has become a the exception rather than the norm.
It seems to be an evil cycle that just keeps spinning. By the end of the week, you’re so exhausted that all you can think of is closing your eyes and curling up into the fetal position in your bed.

You’re driving home, in anticipation of some much-needed REM sleep, when you hear your cell phone ringing. All of your friends are meeting up at the Park (the lounge on 15th and L, not the one with swings) and want you to join; they won’t accept no for an answer! That’s when the reasoning starts in your head: maybe 5 hours of sleep is sufficient; class doesn’t start until 10:00 anyway and an hour is definitely enough time to write the final draft of a term paper.

Who needs sleep when there's so much fun to be had?