Sleep is an essential part of your everyday routine. You spend about one-third of your time doing it. Restful sleep is as vital to life as food and water-and having enough of it at the right times. Sleep is essential for various functions in the brain, including how neurons interact with each other.
Sleep affects almost every form of tissue and organ in the body, from metabolism, immune system, mood, and disease protection to the brain, heart, and lungs. The risk of disorders, including high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, depression, and obesity, is increased by prolonged lack of sleep or poor quality sleep.
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Let me tell you two types of sleep:
- REM (Rapid Eye Movement)
- NREM (Non-Rapid Eye Movement)
Stage 1 REM Sleep
- It is assumed that REM sleep is essential for cognitive functions such as memory, learning, and creativity.
- REM sleep is known for the most vivid dreams, demonstrated by the substantial increase in brain activity.
- Dreams can occur at any sleep level, but in the NREM periods, they are less frequent and intense.
- You usually don’t enter the REM sleep stage if you have been asleep for around 90 minutes.
- The REM stages are getting longer as the night goes on, late in the second half of the night.
- Although only a few minutes are required for the first REM stage, later stages may last for about an hour.
- In general, in adults, REM’s about 25 percent of sleep.
What does it mean by NREM Sleep?
- Three separate phases are composed of NREM sleep.
- The greater the NREM sleep level, the harder it is to wake up a person from their deep sleep.
- Everyone is related to neuronal activity and unique brain waves.
Follow up for the stages of sleep:
Stage 2 Awake
Non-REM sleep is the changeover from wakefulness to sleep. During this short period (lasting several minutes) of relatively light sleep, your heartbeat, breathing, and eye movements slow, and your muscles relax with occasional twitches. Your brain waves begin to slow from their daytime wakefulness patterns.
Stage 3 Light Sleep
Non-REM sleep is a period of light sleep before you enter deeper sleep. Your heartbeat and breathing slow, and muscles relax even further. Your body temperature drops, and your eye movements stop. Brain wave activity slows but is marked by brief bursts of electrical activity. You spend more of your repeated sleep cycles in stage 2 sleep than in other sleep stages.
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Stage 4 Deep Sleep
Non-REM sleep is the period of deep sleep that you need to feel refreshed in the morning. It occurs in more extended periods during the first half of the night. Your heartbeat and breathing slow to their lowest levels during sleep. Your muscles are relaxed, and it may be difficult to awaken you. Brain waves become even slower. If you’re looking for anything that’ll help you have a deep sleep then you’ll love to have our natural sleep aid.
Let’s understand how your body responds during the NREM phase:
- Builds muscles and bones.
- Tissue repair and regeneration.
- The immune system improves.
How to Improve Sleep Quality?
All sleep stages are necessary, and your body controls your sleep cycles naturally to ensure that you get what you need.
To see if your sleep is being disturbed, check out these patterns:
Increase in deep sleep after a hard workout:
Exercise can increase the prioritization of deep sleep by your body the night after an intense workout.
Higher REM rebound after sleep deprivation:
As you recover from a time of sleep deprivation, to rebuild your body and prepare for action, your body prioritizes deep sleep for the first few nights. REM sleep rebounds after many nights of ample deep sleep to focus on your brain.
After caffeine, disrupted sleep cycles:
Caffeine will increase the time it takes for you to fall asleep, cutting short your sleep duration. As REM cycles are more likely to occur in later sleep cycles, shorter sleep intervals disproportionately cut down on your overall REM sleep.
Reduce daytime naps that are irregular and long
Although short power naps are helpful, your sleep can be negatively affected by long or frequent naps during the day. Your internal clock may be disturbed by sleeping in the daytime, meaning you can fail to sleep at night.
Take a Melatonin Supplement
The primary sleep hormone that tells your brain when it’s time to relax and go to bed is melatonin, a widespread sleep aid. Melatonin is also used to treat insomnia, maybe one of the best ways to fall asleep quicker. When traveling and adapting to a new time zone, melatonin is also useful. To evaluate your tolerance, begin with a low dose and visit the healthcare provider before use.
Windup
You take a rollercoaster trip each night through the various stages of sleep. Your brain and body are in an active state, but you are unaware of what goes on when you’re snoozing. It will help you preserve this essential component of your body by living a safe, active lifestyle that encourages proper rest.
