It's another early morning and you are already tired before you even get up. As you sit through your classes, do you find yourself daydreaming and not being able to focus? Do you feel fatigued even before your day reaches its peak? It is possible that you may be suffering from sleep deprivation whose onset and symptoms can be hard to detect.

Being sleep deprived has a cumulative effect. The National Sleep Foundation (NSF) recommends 8.5 to 9.5 hours of sleep for teens to be fully rested and notes that other professionals recommend higher amounts. The less sleep you have, the more deprived you are and it continues to add up during the week.

Sleep deprivation affects: judgment, performance, information processing, emotions, and reaction time. All of these factors are relied upon for everyday functions and especially important when operating a vehicle. The National Highway Safety Transportation Association (NHSTA) estimates falling asleep at the wheel is responsible for at least 100,000 automobile crashes, 40,000 injuries, and 1,550 fatalities nationwide per year. They have identified young people as a high risk population for drowsy driving.

The pressure is on for teens with full academic and social schedules. Their body clocks change during this developmental time, calling for them to stay up later at night and wanting to sleep in longer in the morning. Teens who drive while sleep deprived expose themselves and are more vulnerable to hazards including:

• Distracted driving due to cell phones, texting, other passengers, adjusting music and eating or drinking
• Inexperience
• Impulsive behavior, including reckless driving, tailgating and speeding
• Lack of consistent seatbelt use
• Reduced visibility at dawn, dusk or night

Other risks that increase drowsiness include:

• Illness
• Many prescription and over the counter medications
• Sleep apnea
• Alcohol consumption

NHSTA has identified late night, late afternoon and morning hours between six and eight a.m. as the hours teens are most tired and in the most jeopardy. Knowing the risk factors and getting enough rest are essential to prevent drowsy driving. Consider asking a passenger to stay alert and share the driving responsibility.

How can you over come driving drowsy? The National Sleep Foundation recommends the following:

• Watch for the warning signs of fatigue
• Stop driving-pull off at the next exit, rest area or find a place to sleep for the night
• Take a nap-find a safe place to take a 15 to 20-minute nap
• Consume caffeine-the equivalent of 2 cups of coffee can increase alertness for several hours
• Try consuming caffeine before taking a short