Teen is Hyper, Can’t Sleep, and Can’t Pay Attention

Reader’s Question

I Am almost 16 and have something wrong: I am always so hyper and shaky, and I talk a lot and have poblems concentrating. You would think that I would be tired because I play 2 sports every day and to to school but I’m not. I often run on 3 hours of sleep and can’t pay attention in class. Do you know what this might be?

Our Consulting Clinical Psychologist’s Reply

You are experiencing anxiety and stress related to your busy schedule and number of activities. We often think of stress as related to something bad happening — like worrying about a test or having family problems. Good things are also stressful including lots of activities, lots of responsibilities, doing everything in a hurry, and having lots of friends to call/email/text. When we have so many activities and responsibilities, the brain increases its output of chemicals to cope with the schedule. When this happens, the energizing chemistry makes us hyper, shaky, and we can’t sleep well. You’re having a hard time calming down.

You need to:

1. Study stress and how it keeps the body hyperactive,
2. Research and use ways to reduce your stress including exercises, meditation, etc.
3. Look at all your activities and responsibilities — are there things that can be reduced or eliminated. If you have a girlfriend that calls 6 times a day, that’s stressful. Try to lighten your load of responsibiltiies and activities.
4. Develop a nighttime ritual — something you do each night to calm down for sleep. Dim lights, maybe music/hot bath, etc. The idea is to remind the brain it’s time for sleep. Stop accepting calls after a certain time as phone calls only keep the brain on high alert — in case something interesting is said (most of which can wait until morning).

Dealing with stress and responsibilities is something everyone must do. The better we understand and deal with it, the easier our life goes.