This fall, the Counseling Team at St. Andrew’s (Pam Brownlee, Whiz Hutchinson, and Lindsay Roznowski) have been bringing speakers to campus to speak with students, and in particular, student-athletes, about everyday wellness habits. One such visitor was Dr. W. Chris Winter, a renowned sleep researcher, neurologist, and author, who gave a presentation to students in Engelhard Hall this past Tuesday, November 3. 

Winter has worked in the field of sleep research for 28 years and currently owns and practices at Charlottesville Neurology and Sleep Medicine Clinic in Charlottesville, VA. He has worked with over 30 professional sports teams—he sported one of his World Series rings while on campus—and is the author of two books: The Sleep Solution: Why Your Sleep is Broken and How to Fix It and The Rested Child.

Winter touched on many areas of sleep, and highlighted three specific topics both in his keynote talk in Engelhard and in his smaller meetings with athletes, coaches, and students throughout the day. First, he suggested students establish a consistent routine every night and morning. Even on the weekends, it is important to maintain the same sleep schedule, varying only by about a half hour. Second, he spoke about the “fear” of not sleeping, and/or not falling asleep because our minds are thinking. A lot of people think if they lie awake before they fall asleep, this is a bad thing. Turns out it is normal and something that only becomes detrimental if we stress about it. Third, he encouraged students to find time during the day to rest and/or meditate. Winter framed this rest/meditation time as “practice” that affords us the opportunity to learn to control our brain, the same way we would a muscle, and ultimately helps us sleep better each night. 

While on campus, Winter met with athletes across multiple sportsThey learned a lot about what they are doing well currently for sleep and how they need to improve. Gibson Hurtt ‘24 (soccer, squash, crew), Zhenia Khalabadzhakh ‘22 (ballroom dance, crew), Caroline Meers ‘24 (cross country, squash, tennis), Lucas Ochis (cross country, crew), and Gavin Frazer ‘22 (cross country, crew) shared what they learned from the sessions. 

“I think that I'm doing a good job of not staying up super-late,” said Gibson Hurtt ’24, who plays soccer, squash, and crew. “I definitely need ten hours of sleep to function. So I've been getting to bed at a good time, and I think that really shows up in sports.” Zhenia Khalabadzhakh ’22, who rows crew and participates in professional ballroom dancing competitions, realized she does have a consistent sleep schedule, but learned she is not the only person on campus who takes a while to fall asleep. “It was eye-opening to me [to hear] that it's not a bad thing to just lay down and think about what happened during the day, and to zone out and slowly fall asleep,” she said. “I think I'm quite disciplined with the hours I go to bed, but if I cannot fall asleep, now I understand that it's not a terrible thing.”

“Creating consistency not only [helps] your sleep patterns, but also your academics,” noted Caroline Meers ’24, who runs cross-country and plays squash and tennis. “You're not going to crash halfway during the day. If you're all over the place [with sleep], it's not going to be sustainable and your performance in academics and athletics will fall off.” 

Students walked away from Winter’s talk with tips for how to better their sleep habits. “I took a few notes about how humans need 2000 lux to wake up,” Caroline said. “Screen time is something that's obviously a huge part of all of our lives, but I’m going to try to limit it before I go to bed and when I wake up. Going to get my phone out of the hallway first thing when I wake is obviously not going to help me wake the same way natural light would.” Lucas Ochis ’24 notes that he wants to work toward better sleep habits on the weekends. “I learned it is very important to stay consistent on Friday and Saturday nights,” he said. “Normally, I'll go to bed two or three hours later than normal, but I learned that gets rid of a long period of where my growth hormone needs sleep. Even if I sleep the same amount of hours but shift the start time, it messes with the recovery and repair of my body.” 

“I like the idea of dedicating 15 minutes of rest each day,” Zhenia said. “I can do it during the long lunch, between classes, or before practices. I'm going to make time for that now, especially since we now know the positive effects of daytime rest for athletic performance.”

“My roommate and I have a lasting argument about whether we should have a fan on while we sleep,” Gibson added. “I think we shouldn't, and my roommate thinks we should. I asked Dr. Winter about it and he said you do not want to rely on something to help you sleep. He recommended that silence is the best for sleep and to always rely on something is not good if it’s not available to you.” 

Dr. Winter also demonstrated use of a muse—a brain-sensing headband—during his talk in Engelhard. “I meditate a lot, so it was interesting to see it on a graph,” said Gavin Frazer ’22, who wore the muse during the on-stage demonstration. “I had rapid spikes that were connected to my attention. I would be calm and the graph was low, then it would shoot way up because I’d be distracted by Dr. Winter talking to the audience. It shows that consistent focus is really important, and really hard.” 

But hey, teenagers already love their sleep! The Counseling Team now hopes students take Dr. Winter’s advice, and apply it in a productive way that helps them to perform better in the classroom, on the fields, and in everyday life.

Watch Dr. Winter's talk in full here.

Other speakers brought to campus by the Counseling Team this fall have included Cristina Hoyt— an integrative nutritionist and certified health coach who specializes in intuitive eating, eating disorders, anxiety, and gut health; Hoyt spoke with athletes about how to fuel their bodies properly to maximize athletic performance—and Dee Spagnuolo, an attorney with Ballard Spahr in Philadelphia who has worked with St. Andrew’s faculty, staff, and students for many years. Spagnuolo spoke with III and IV Form students on boundaries and healthy relationships.