There are a number of ways that sleep deprivation can have a negative effect on your card game and other daily tasks. We’ll talk about your card game here, but this information also applies to a wide variety of other activities, like driving, cooking, and even completing household chores.
The first problem you’ll likely run into if you haven’t had quality sleep is trouble with concentration. For example, you may not be able to remember what the trump suit is, which can lead you to play the wrong card and lose a trick. Or you might forget what your partner has already played and waste a winning card that could have been played more strategically at another point in the game. There are all kinds of ways that an inability to concentrate could impede your card game, and you don’t want to face any of them.
Another result of a lack of sleep can be mood changes. You could be playing cards with your favorite people in the world, but poor sleep can make you treat them like your enemies. You may find yourself snapping at them when they remind you that it’s your turn or even saying unkind things when you’re losing. Stronger emotions are common mood-related changes caused by a lack of sleep. You could end up in tears over a losing hand and wonder what is wrong with you — and that type of outburst may make your friends concerned as well.
If you’ve been lacking quality sleep for some time, you may develop memory issues. You might find that you forget you decided to host the weekly card game and have to come up with snacks and drinks at the last minute when your friends start showing up at your house. Or maybe your partner will call you, wondering if you’re coming to the week’s event at a fellow payer’s home. During play, you could forget the order cards have been played, which suit is the trump suit, or any number of other details that are too hard to hold in your tired brain.
A loss of coordination is another result that might come from a lack of sleep. Imagine losing your balance when you carry snacks and beverages from the kitchen to the game room where your guests are gathered. This could result in spills or even a fall that could further harm you. A lack of sleep might make your game go seriously wrong, but it could also have much more serious consequences. Because a lack of sleep can affect your coordination, all kinds of accidents could happen. In fact, scientists say that operating a car when you’re very tired is similar to driving when you’re drunk.