In Kashmir too, young people are suffering from the pressures imposed by a highly competitive, technology-driven world. One consequence that deserves more attention is sleep deprivation
There was a time, just a few decades ago, when life was relatively simple. Facilities were limited, technology had not invaded every corner of daily life, and opportunities were fewer. However, people often had something that seems increasingly rare today: peace of mind and contentment.
Families spent more time together. Evenings were shared with neighbors and friends. Conversations took place face to face, and life moved at a slower, more natural pace.
Today, the younger generation lives in a completely different world. Social media, intense competition, financial uncertainty, and rapidly changing relationships have created a lifestyle in which the mind is constantly kept busy but rarely at peace. The paradox is striking: despite improved connectivity, increased convenience, and improved opportunities, many young people increasingly feel anxious, anxious, and unable to isolate themselves.
In Kashmir too, young people are suffering from the pressures imposed by a highly competitive, technology-driven world. One consequence that deserves more attention is sleep deprivation.
Sleep is not a luxury. It is a basic physiological need that is essential for the healthy functioning of the body and mind. It supports memory enhancement, emotional regulation, focus, and overall physical health. However, many young people reduce their sleep hours, often without realizing the consequences until late nights become a habit.
When the phone replaces sleep
One of the most obvious reasons behind this changing sleep culture is the nocturnal use of smartphones and social media.
For many young people, bedtime no longer means putting away the phone. Instead, it becomes the beginning of hours of scrolling, watching short videos, responding to messages, browsing social media platforms, and consuming an endless stream of content. What starts as “just five minutes” can easily extend beyond midnight, 2 a.m., or even later.
The body follows an internal biological rhythm that helps regulate the sleep-wake cycle. Melatonin, a hormone secreted by the pineal gland, usually rises at night and helps prepare the body for sleep. Prolonged exposure to light and stimulating content at night can interfere with this natural transformation.
Adequate sleep also contributes to regulating appetite. Hormones such as leptin, which signals satiety, and ghrelin, which stimulates hunger, can be affected by insufficient sleep. Therefore, sleep deprivation may not only contribute to fatigue, but also to unhealthy eating patterns.
Hence, waking up late at night does not simply mean missing out on a few hours of rest. When it becomes habitual, it can disrupt the body’s natural rhythm and affect physical and psychological health.
Endless race
Competition is another major enemy of peace and sleep.
Young people today are under enormous pressure to earn more, achieve more and establish themselves quickly. Social media intensifies this pressure by turning the achievements of others into a fixed measure of one’s life.
Someone has got a prestigious job. Someone else started a successful business. Another is to travel, buy a house, or enjoy a seemingly perfect relationship. A young mind can easily feel that everyone is moving forward except itself.
This creates a race with no finish line.
Even after the day’s responsibilities are over, the mind continues to work. It replays failures, worries about tomorrow, takes stock of what others have achieved, and wonders whether one is falling behind. The body may be in bed, but the mind remains wide awake.
When the heart keeps talking
Broken relationships add another layer to the problem.
A failed friendship, heartbreak, family strife or loneliness can occupy the mind long after the lights are turned off. Questions remain unanswered. Memories come back. Conversations are repeated. Things left unsaid become louder in the silence of the night.
Stress and anxiety can disturb sleep, while insufficient sleep can make emotional regulation and coping with stress more difficult. Thus a vicious circle emerges: mental disorders interfere with sleep, and sleep deprivation deepens mental disorders.
Previous generations had fewer technological distractions. Limited communication has sometimes created discomfort, but it has also created boundaries. Today, the world enters the bedroom via smartphone.
Rest is not laziness
The growing problem of young people’s sleep deprivation cannot be solved by simply telling young people to ‘go to bed early’. It requires a broader conversation about how we live, what we value, and the kind of future we want.
Families should encourage healthy routines, meaningful conversations, and screen-free evenings rather than allowing smartphones to become young people’s primary companions at night. Schools and colleges must realize that exhausted students cannot learn effectively once they are exposed to greater academic pressure. Workplaces should also understand that sustainable productivity requires adequate rest.
Most importantly, society must redefine success.
Success doesn’t just mean a bigger paycheck, a better job, more followers, or a more impressive lifestyle. True success also means good health, sound sleep, meaningful relationships, emotional balance, family, contentment and inner peace.
The youth of Kashmir are ambitious, talented and eager to embrace the modern world. They should not have to choose between ambition and luxury.
The smartphone can wait. The competition can wait. So tomorrow can wait for a few hours.
Sleep is not wasted time. It is life restored
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