Should You Let Your Teen Sleep in on Weekends? Research Has a Surprising Answer
written by Hannah Silverman, posted on Parents.com
If your teen grumbles about needing extra sleep on the weekend, you may not want to fight them on it. According to a recent study, sleeping in on the weekend might actually be good for them.
The study, published in the Journal of Affective Disorders, found that weekend catch-up sleep can reduce the daily depression risk by 41% for those between 16 and 24 years old.
Weekend catch-up sleep and depressive symptoms in late adolescence and young adulthood: Results from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Journal of Affective Disorders. 2026.
Experts say these findings emphasize the relationship between sleep and mental health and could help improve teen well-being. “If we can better understand this relationship, then it might be possible to better leverage quality sleep as part of a multipronged approach to prevent and treat depression in this population,” states Jason Carbone, PhD, MSW, one of the study authors and director of family medicine research and assistant professor of public health and preventive medicine at SUNY Upstate Medical University. “Our work is one small step in that direction.”
The issue is most teenagers aren’t getting nearly enough rest. “Sleep deprivation is the missing link in the teen mental health crisis,” says Heather Turgeon, LMFT, psychotherapist, sleep expert, and co-author of The Happy Sleeper and Generation Sleepless. So could a weekend sleep-in be the salvation? It might help, experts say.
Sleeping in Doesn’t Mean Your Teen Is Lazy
Experts are united in myth-busting the trope of the lazy teenager who won’t get out of bed on the weekend.
“I often reassure parents that weekend sleep-ins are not a sign of laziness—they are a biological response to real sleep debt,” says Wendy Troxel, PhD, senior behavioral scientist at Rand Corporation, clinical psychologist, and sleep medicine specialist.
After all, teenagers are one of the highest risk groups for sleep deprivation, adds Dr. Troxel. Statistics from the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) backs this up. It shows that between 71% and 84% of high school students get insufficient sleep, depending on the state.
“Most teens need around nine hours of sleep for optimal health, but the average sleep time for high schoolers is closer to six or seven hours,” explains Turgeon. “That means 10-plus hours of accumulated sleep debt by the end of the school week.”
Clinicians aren’t surprised given the lifestyle demands on modern teens today, including overloaded schedules, extracurricular activities, and the temptation of technology.
Why Sleep Matters So Much for Teens
“Let’s be clear: sleep is vital for everyone,” states Dr. Carbone. However, for teens, a lack of sleep can have a profound impact on their development.
Sarah Wood, MD, MS, division chief of adolescent medicine and director at the Mount Sinai Adolescent Health Center, notes that after infancy, adolescence is the second critical period of brain development.
“Although we often think of teens as being ‘done’ growing, their brains are going through remarkable transformations all the way until their mid-20s,” she says.
Turgeon agrees, adding that much of the work happens when teenagers are sleeping—even when it comes to protecting their mental health. “Being underslept makes teens more likely to feel depressed or anxious, because the brain does not have time to fully process, clean, and restore itself overnight,” explains Turgeon. “The day seems more difficult, negative, and anxiety-provoking when you’re sleep deprived.”
That’s important as the U.S. is in the midst of a youth mental health crisis. In 2023, 20.3% (5.3 million) of adolescents aged 12–17 had a diagnosed mental or behavioral health condition, including anxiety or depression. That was a 35% increase from 2016.
“For mental health and sleep, we know it is a two-way street: Poor sleep can worsen depression and anxiety symptoms and impair concentration,” says Dr. Wood. “At the same time, insomnia or poor sleep quality are common symptoms of depression and anxiety.”
How Much Should You Let Your Teen Sleep in on the Weekend?
For many families, letting your kid sleep in is OK, but with boundaries.
“Clinically, when I work with families, I acknowledge that some weekend catch-up sleep is a necessary compensatory strategy when early school start times restrict teens’ opportunity to get adequate sleep during the week,” Dr. Troxel says.
Dr. Wood adds that weekends should be used as recovery time and that sleeping in, within limits, is healthy and normal for teenagers. “I tell parents that letting your teen’s brain ‘catch up’ on sleep hours on the weekend is an investment in their long-term health provided that the sleeping in is paired with good sleep hygiene,” she says.
This can include:
- Regular evening routines
- No screens in the room at night
- Avoiding caffeine in the afternoon and evenings
- Setting a consistent bedtime
And moderation matters. “Our study explored having any amount of weekend catch-up sleep but similar research with adults has found that up to two hours of weekend catch-up sleep can be beneficial,” says Dr. Carbone. “Weekend catch-up sleep is OK and may be helpful, but too much sleep is not.”
Turgeon also endorses a two-hour sleep cap. “It gives them the chance to catch up, but doesn’t throw their internal clocks so wildly out of sync that they get a case of jet lag when the week starts again,” she says.
When Sleep May Signal an Issue
While occasional sleep changes are normal, too much or too little sleep can sometimes point to an underlying problem.
Red flags can include:
- Combining long sleep-ins on the weekend (five hours or more) with short sleep during the week (seven hours or less)
- Changes in sleep that are associated with other negative behavior or mood changes
- Teens who engage in frequent daytime napping
- Sleep changes that present at the same time as declines in school performance or concentration
- Teens who are excessively fatigued despite additional sleep
- Persistent difficulty in waking for school
Turgeon adds that teens who aren’t being social, are not engaged in activities, or who rarely come out of their rooms during the weekend could also hint at a bigger problem.
“Social isolation is an issue in high school and when sleeping in is paired with it, it’s a good idea to have a conversation or seek some support from a therapist or doctor,” she says. “We want them to sleep in some, and then go out and do the things they love to do.”