For many fans of Philly sports teams, the excitement is reaching a fever pitch this week.
The Eagles, still the only undefeated team in the NFL, play their next game on Thursday night. The Union hit the field Saturday as MLS Cup finalists.
But between now and Saturday, the Phillies will continue their road to a World Series title. With each game scheduled to start around the time many would normally be getting ready to wind down for the evening, how are fans managing their need for sleep?
“I’m already, like, stressed about it,” confessed Jacqueline Szczerba.
Szczerba is a first-year high school teacher. While sitting in Wilmington’s Grotto Pizza on Sunday, surrounded by flat screens televisions featuring different games, the former elementary school teacher said on top of trying to get used to waking up earlier for the high school schedule, she intends on watching the Phillies during each of their World Series games that start after 8 p.m.
How does she plan to balance her early start and the late games?
“A ton of caffeine,” Szczerba said. “Twenty-four ounces of coffee and then right after that, I’ll start with my Diet Coke — or I might do them at the same time.”
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John Paul is in a similar position. The warehouse worker said he has to be at work early, so it’ll be tough for him, as well, but he plans to watch “every pitch” of every game. He reasons that since it’s been 13 years since the Phillies last had World Series play, now is the time to enjoy every minute of all the action that is going on with sports.
“Sleep? You can do that any time,” Paul said.
That’s somewhat correct, according to Morgan Ellithorpe, an associate professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Delaware who is also the lead author of a study on the impact of media before bedtime. Her findings were published in the February 2022 edition of Journal of Sleep Research.
Ellithorpe said lack of sleep for these sports fans shouldn’t be a problem if it’s someone who typically sleeps the seven hours per night that a healthy adult should be getting. Ellithorpe advised that three or four nights in a row, an hour or less of sleep isn’t going to hurt as long as they can make it up later.
For those who suffer from sleep deprivation, Ellithorpe said the reality is that it’s kind of hard to make up for bad sleep the night before or the following day. Lack of sleep mixed with alcohol is also going to compound those issues and make you feel worse the next day, she said.
If a fan is someone with poor sleep habits and is already sleep-deprived, watching these late games may contribute to an already unhealthy situation. Plus, you may have more trouble getting and staying asleep because your body is just physiologically aroused.
“After the game is over,” Ellithorpe cautioned, “you still have to work through the arousal part of your body’s reaction and find a way to wind down.”
So Ellithorpe’s best advice for those who plan on watching late games? She said to do as much as you can to reduce the amount of sleep you’re missing and do things to increase the quality of your sleep as much as possible like:
- Make good choices other than staying up late to watch the game
- Consider your lifestyle and next-day responsibilities
- Give your body a chance to calm down − win or lose
And if that’s not the tactic you’re planning to take, then you may have to take a card out of Szczerba’s playbook and caffeinate.
Contact reporter Anitra Johnson at 302-379-5786 or ajohnson@delawareonline.com with tips and story ideas. Become a subscriber to access more stories and the best in local reporting
