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Sleep and Insomnia
by Yury Bayarski
Everyone needs sleep because lack of sleep can affect our health and wellbeing.
Some people spend enough time in bed, but their sleep is not refreshing. And while
occasional restless nights are often normal, prolonged insomnia can interfere with
daytime function, and may impair concentration, diminish memory, and increase the
risk of substance abuse, motor vehicle accidents, headaches, and depression. In a
2002 survey, the National Sleep Foundation found that 58 percent of adults have
trouble sleeping at least a few nights a week.
What is sleep?
Sleep is one of the body's most mysterious processes. The most significant
characteristic of sleep which differentiates it from the waking state is the
interruption of perception. A sleeping person does not see or hear. Additionally,
sleep is marked by decreased movement of the skeletal muscles, slowed-down
metabolism, and complex and active brain wave patterns.
There are two major types of sleep: rapid eye movement (REM) and non-REM sleep:
Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep. It comes and goes throughout the
night, and makes up about one fifth of our sleep time. During REM sleep, our brain
is very active, our muscles are very relaxed, our eyes move quickly from side to
side and we dream.
Non-REM sleep. The brain is quiet, but the body may move around.
Hormones are released into the bloodstream and our body repairs itself after the
wear and tear of the day. There are 4 stages of non-REM sleep:
- Pre-sleep - the muscles relax, the heart beats slower and body temperature falls.
- Light sleep - we can still be woken easily without feeling confused.
- Slow wave sleep - our blood pressure falls, we may talk in our sleep or sleep walk.
- Deep "slow wave" sleep - we become very hard to wake. If we are woken, we feel confused.
We move between REM and non-REM sleep about five times throughout the night,
dreaming more as we get toward the morning. During a normal night, we will also
have short periods of waking. These last one or two minutes and happen every two
hours or so. We aren't usually aware of them. We are more likely to remember
them if we feel anxious or there is something else going on - noises outside,
our partner snoring.
Sleep is an important factor in all our lives. Sleep helps the body restore
and rejuvenate in many different ways. Sleep enables the brain to encode new
information and store it properly. REM sleep activates the parts of the brain
that control learning. The parts of the brain that control emotions, decision-making
and social interactions slow down dramatically during sleep, allowing optimal
performance when awake.
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