“I fell asleep while on the wheel! Every time I remember that, I am so thankful that nothing unfortunate happened to me or to the other drivers, vehicles and passengers around me.

At the dinner table with my in-laws, the children were raising their hands and saying, in rapid succession, that they all had either cough, colds or both. We got to talking about what each of us needs to do to help boost our immune system. Topmost on my list is to get plenty of sleep. The adults at the table all agreed that a good night’s rest is crucial for one’s overall health and well-being. Coming at a close second and third are vitamins, especially vitamin C and lots of water.

During my time in high school, I remember calling it a day by 9 p.m. at the latest. These days, secondary school students whom I know get home around 6 or 7 p.m. depending on after-school rehearsals, traffic and whether they need tutorials or not. Time also has to be set aside for doing homework, reviews for quizzes, preparing for performance tasks and, of course, eating dinner. A quick Q&A with a few high school students revealed that most of them go to bed between 10:30 and 11 p.m. That gives them from seven to seven-and-a-half hours of rest as wake-up time is at 6 in the morning.

Through the years I have personally worked out that eight hours is my ideal length of sleep time. Less than that and I notice that my immune system weakens.

I have been told by elders that as we advance in years, the less sleep we need. One of my aunties says if she gets a good five hours of sleep each night, she already feels well rested.

Dr. Eric J. Olson says though that, in general, “Older adults need about the same amount of sleep as younger adults. As you get older, however, your sleeping patterns might change.” The older adults tend to sleep more lightly and for shorter time spans than the younger ones, according to mayoclinic.org.

Kidshealth.org states that teens need at least eight-and-a-half

hours of sleep each night. The Mayo Clinic reports that “while sleep needs vary significantly among individuals,” there are general guidelines for different age groups. From 6 to 13 years of age, nine to 11 hours is recommended. Those from 14 to 17 years old would need about eight to 10 hours of sleep. The recommended amount of sleep for adults is from seven to nine hours. Using this suggested timetable as guide, my nieces and children are sometimes getting sufficient hours of sleep, but are often barely meeting the minimum number of hours.

I do not need to belabor the point. We all know that sleep is important and yet, why is it that many continue to run out of time for it?

In an occupational health and safety training I underwent for work in the early 2000s, sleep deprivation and having a sleep deficit were likened to driving under the influence of alcohol. We were warned that what may seem like harmless lack of sleep can have serious consequences on one’s health and safety. I only had to hear this once for me to take heed.

The National Sleep Foundation cautions that driving when you are feeling drowsy is dangerous because lack of sleep can have similar effects on your body as drinking alcohol. “Being awake for 18 hours straight makes you drive like you have a blood alcohol level of 0.05. For reference, 0.08 is considered drunk,” it says.

I knew it to be true. I had a personal experience of it back in my university days. I had studied for a particular exam well into the night and early the next morning of the exam day. I did not have much sleep. As I drove from Ateneo de Manila after a long and tiring day, I opened my eyes to see that I was at a traffic light close to home along Marcos Highway, Antipolo, Rizal. How I got from one point of that stretch of road to the next is a mystery to me. It seemed like just an instant, but I could not recall how I had driven and suddenly arrived at that particular traffic light. I fell asleep while on the wheel! Every time I remember that, I am so thankful that nothing unfortunate happened to me or to the other drivers, vehicles and passengers around me. It was as if I had been woken up just in time to calmly step on the brakes at that intersection. I never drove drowsy ever again! At times that meant parking at a secure corner or side street and taking a 15-minute power nap before going behind the wheel again.

Whether for health, well-being or safety reasons, get that much needed sleep. For your sake and those around you.