Kylah Triffo, a nursing student at Humber North campus, said she and her friends went to investigate the IGNITE student union Sleep Lounge.
“It was interesting. It looks like a cool resource, but I would never use it, ’cause it feels a little bit creepy in there and I would be scared of my stuff being stolen,” she said.
But there’s a need for a place for students to recharge. A rising focus in Canada on mental health care has prompted Humber College to invest in many mental health-care projects, including the IGNITE Sleep Lounge.
Humber College has invested more than $30,000 into a mental health-care project, Sleep Lounge, yet students say they are cautious about using it.
Melany Palacios-Naranjo, IGNITE Student Advocate, said in an interview the Sleep Lounge has been very successful at Humber North and has supported over 15 students per day since it reopened this year.
Palacios-Naranjo said the main focus of the Sleep Lounge is to allow students to “recharge, refocus, and sleep,” which are all essential parts of taking care of one’s mental health.
She said IGNITE dedicates its resources and time to making sure Humber and Guelph-Humber students receive adequate mental and physical care from the school.
IGNITE Sleep Lounge sign highlights hours and guides students to the lounge. Photo credit: Zoe Pierson
“A lot of our focus is not only on ensuring that students are doing well academically and in their career, but also that they’re taking care of themselves in all ways that we can help,” Palacios-Naranjo said.
IGNITE initially opened the Sleep Lounge in 2016 and closed it in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, only reopening it on Jan. 9 of this year.
A report from the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA) said that sleep is an essential part of taking care of one’s mental health.
“Between work and school, doing chores and cooking meals, there isn’t always time left over to practice self-care,” CMHA said. “And when you’re tired, you’re more likely to skip the activities that can support your well-being.”
Sleep is an important ingredient of good mental health, but also impacts general health in many ways, CMHA said.
“When you’re short on sleep, it’s a lot harder to concentrate, solve problems and make decisions,” CMHA said. “This means that, without enough sleep, it’s difficult to be your best self at work, school and in your social life too.”
The 2022-’23 IGNITE impact report said 871 students used the Sleep Lounge at Humber North Campus.
Humber North Campus said it has over 19,000 full-time students, which means the mere 871 students that used the Sleep Lounge this year represent just over four per cent of all full-time students.
Kyla Legatt, another nursing student at Humber North, said that she was worried about her safety in the Sleep Lounge.
“It looks like office cubicles. The chairs look like therapist chairs,” she said. “There’s no one sitting at the front desk like there should be.”
Palacios-Naranjo said IGNITE hired two part-time staff for the Sleep Lounge who work for 12 hours a week each.
“We have two specific Sleep Lounge people, but when they’re not there, we have one of the front desk students help out,” she said.
In an email, Palacios-Naranjo said the Sleep Lounge cost $30,000 to create and has 12 beds, now owned by Humber College.
“Additionally, it also costs us about $5,000 a year to keep running”, she said. “That’s not including paying the part-time staff.”
IGNITE has also put other mental health-care resources in place for students, including Zen Space, and has allocated enough funding for five thousand yearly Headspace app plans for students.
Palacios-Naranjo said the money for these programs, including the money invested into the Sleep Lounge, comes from student tuition.
“That money gets spread out between not only your insurance and the activities that you do but also to all the mental health resources that you’re allowed to access,” she said.
There are other options near Humber Campus for students who want to evaluate or fix their sleep issues if they do not believe taking a nap will adequately support them.
The Etobicoke Brampton Sleep Clinic, located across from Humber College, said they offer patients treatment for sleep apnea, sleep paralysis and other medical conditions impairing one’s ability to sleep.
In a phone interview, Preeti Takhi, the director at Etobicoke Brampton Sleep Clinic said the clinic sees patients who range in age from two years old to 95, all suffering from varying sleeping conditions.
She said the clinic has nine doctors, including one relatively new doctor who specializes in anxiety and depression as a clinical sleep disorder.
Takhi said the clinic sees many students aged 18 years to 24, but was not able to say whether or not they were Humber students.
A report written by the Douglas Research Centre (DRC) said nighttime difficulties have become common and are hindering students’ ability to thrive in school.
“Of approximately two million Canadians between the ages of 14 and 18 years, as many as 975,000 suffer from a serious lack of sleep,” DRC said.
DRC reported a lack of sleep on weekdays, coupled with unhealthy nighttime routines on weekends, can lead to challenges during the school week for students.
“When choosing how to balance our cultural and personal commitments with our sleep requirements, it is helpful to remember that sleep is an important factor for performing at our best physically, mentally, and emotionally,” DRC said.