Sleep, really how much do we need?

     Sleep, really how much do we need? To first talk about sleep we need to know exactly what types of sleep there are, how much we it we need and why.  In researching subject of sleep I found that WebMD.com, HelpGuide.org and sleepfoundation.org all covered pretty much the same topics and had the same information listed.  I am going to cover only the main points, showing how important sleep is to us and those around us.  To start there are two different stages we’re hear a lot about which are Rapid Eye Movement (REM) and Non-REM (NREM), however within these two stages there are what I’ll call different levels of sleep also.  Each of these stages takes us deeper into our sleep cycle.

     The First Level of NREM is where we transition from being awake to actually sleeping.  Unlike REM your eyes move slow, you can be woken up quickly, you may be in and out of sleep, muscles begin to relax and this entire level only last for up to five minutes.   Level Two of NREM takes us a bit deeper into our sleep cycle.  Various things start to happen here, they include your core temperature may begin to drop a bit see the body actually cools itself down when we go to sleep this is why most of us feel colder and need a blanket.  Heart rate starts slowing as do your eye movements.  We are in this level for maybe 10-30 minutes depending on the site you read.

     As we move through the first two stages of sleep and enter into Level Three of NREM or Deep Sleep, we may become groggy, or out of sorts, become hard to wake up and may be light headed if you are. This is due to our body takes this time to restore itself and make repairs (if any exist) by taking blood from various areas of the body and focusing it to areas of need.  We now enter into REM which is the deepest sleep and this is where we do our dreaming and where you see someone’s eyes moving around when their sleeping. One’s breathing will slow down and breaths will be farther apart, extremities may become rigid.   It may even take us up to an hour and thirty minutes or longer to get into REM sleep.  Just one thing of many that I picked up writing this is that we just do not go thru the three Non-REM levels into REM and then wake up and that’s our night.  NO!!  We actually go through periods of these cycles throughout the night, we are in Non-REM and REM sleep more than once when we sleep.

     Everyone has a sleep cycle and similar to fingerprints everyone’s is different, the reason for this is everyone body, eating habits, medication they take, exercise, work habits, amount of time you’re out in the sun, everything one does, is and takes into their body changes ones sleep cycle, circadian rhythm or even biological clock.  During these times the body is in the process of producing melatonin which aids us in our sleep patterns.  When these sleep patterns are disrupted or when we’re use to sleeping for 7-8 hours and we wake up and realize we’ve only sleep 5-6 or opposite that sleep in an extra hour, this is due to everything we did the day before.  See our quality of life, our work habits, creativity, physical exercise, our weight, sugar intake, medications, metal capacity and alcohol all of this comes into play and will either add or delete to the quality of sleep we receive.  You could go as far as to add into this one’s amount of and ability to deal with the stress in their life’s, even your energy levels, foods your eat and your overall mood is involved in your sleep cycles.

     As you improve your habits your overall sleep cycle will improve and you will begin to sleep the required amount needed for your body and your lifestyle which in turn will improve your waking life in that your quality of work and play will improve.  Various sleep studies have been done however the one I felt look most complete in information provided is that from the National Institutes of Health (http://www.nih.gov) in which they have found that “the average adult sleeps less than seven hours per night.”  They continue to state that even if the average sleep obtained is between 6-7 hours that it is just a stone’s throw from leading you down a “chronic sleep deprivation” path.  You may feel as if you can get by with the 5-6 hours of sleep you are getting but to be at ones optimal peak level of effectiveness and still be working safely the following chart shows where ones sleep levels should be.

While sleep requirements vary slightly from person to person, most healthy adults need between seven and a half to nine hours of sleep per night to function at their best.

Adults 7-1/2 – 9 hrs.

12 to 18 yrs. 8-1/2 – 10 hrs.

5 to 12 yrs. 10 – 11 hrs.

(http://www.nih.gov)

     With that I’m going to leave Part 1 of Sleep, really how much do we need with this question, What is sleep deprivation?  How does it affect us in our daily lives and if your knew the semi-driver next to you was sleep deprived and you had your kids in the car or your teenage kid was driving, would you want them driving next to the semi-Truck?  Hope you enjoyed this blog and continue on to read, “Sleep, really how much do we need? Part II”                                                               – PickYourPain.org / PickYourPain@att.org