It’s the dreaded end-of-year essay season. This is unquestionably worse than the mid-year essay season because, instead of the Christmas lights at the end of the tunnel, once these essay deadlines are met, it’s exam time. At this point, the stress levels of Trinity students are reaching their peak. If you feel like you couldn’t possibly have a spare hour on campus, then you should make one, as winding down is just as important as getting wound up over college work. After all, there is no use pulling an all-nighter to get an essay written on time if you end up so tired you sleep through the deadline. Here to make life a little easier and finding sleep time a little more manageable is the Trinity College Dublin Students’ Union’s (TCDSU) official nap room.
Last year, when Aoibhinn Loughlin was elected TCDSU Welfare Officer, there was no doubt that one of her most popular campaign promises was a nap room. Now the long-awaited nap room has finally become a reality. In the immortal words of Lizzie McGuire: “This is what dreams are made of” – in this case, both figuratively and literally. Loughlin fully plans on establishing more nap rooms, but this is a great start. The much-anticipated nap room is situated in the Parlour beside the SU Café in Goldsmith Hall, so if you have a spare hour on campus, it’s in the perfect spot to grab both a snack and a quick 40 winks.
The nap room is equipped with two full-size loungers as well as an assortment of large comfortable chairs, blankets, pillows and black-out blinds to make the most of the sleeping experience on offer. In her latest report to TCDSU’s council, Loughlin explained that the nap room “will essentially run like the respite rooms of the Disability Service” but will be open to all, as not everyone who suffers from fatigue is registered with the Disability Service, and there are some of us dealing with run-of-the-mill tiredness who just need a break from the hectic college day. Loughlin also noted that they will soon be offering sleeping accoutrements such as earplugs to students in the nap room.
It is recommended that we get seven hours of sleep each night in order to achieve full productivity during the day. For most students, especially during busy academic periods, getting a full, seven-hour-long sleep feels like a distant memory. Spending your spare hour in the nap room will help keep your energy levels up, both mentally and physically. So the next time you have an hour to kill on campus, and you just can’t bring yourself to spend it staring at another computer screen, head over to the nap room in Goldsmith Hall, and treat yourself to a much-deserved break.
