Hello everyone , who else having trouble getting sleep here specially at night? Tonight I'll be sharing a cycle soo that we can understand more about sleep, and how to achieve it perfectly.
The Cycle of Wake - Sleep
A process called the sleep-wake cycle determines the quality of your sleep.
The sleep-wake cycle has two important parts:
Slow wave (also referred to as deep sleep) sleep
(REM stands for Rapid Eye Movement) REM sleep
The body relaxes during slow wave sleep, respiration becomes more regular, blood pressure drops, and the brain becomes less responsive to external stimuli, making it harder to wake up. For renewal and repair of the body, this stage is critical. The pituitary gland releases growth hormones during slow wave sleep, which stimulates tissue growth and muscle repair. Researchers also believe that during this point, the immune system of the body is restored. Slow-wave sleep is especially necessary if you're an athlete. You will often hear of professional athletes sleeping 11 or 12 hours per night, such as Roger Federer or LeBron James.
Consider a study researchers performed on Stanford basketball players as an example of the influence of sleep on physical health. The players slept for at least ten hours a night during the course of this analysis (compared to their average eight hours). During five weeks of prolonged sleep, the researchers measured the accuracy and pace of basketball players relative to their previous levels. The rate of free throw shooting increased by 9 percent. The rate of three-point shooting rose by 9.2 percent. And when the players sprinted 80 metres, they were 0.6 seconds quicker. Slow wave sleep is what assists you to recover if you place heavy physical demands on your body.
To the mind, REM sleep is what slow wave sleep is to the body. For most sleep periods, the brain is relatively silent, but the brain comes to life for REM. When your brain dreams and re-organizes knowledge, REM sleep is. Your brain clears out unnecessary information during this process, improves your memory by relating the experiences of the last 24 hours to your previous experiences, and encourages learning and neural development. The temperature of your body increases, your blood pressure rises, and your heart rate speeds up. Your body barely moves despite all of this activity. The REM process usually occurs about 3 to 5 times per night in short bursts.
The body is actually starting to die without the slow wave sleep and REM sleep stages. You can't heal physically, your immune system weakens, and your brain becomes foggy if you deprive yourself from sleep. Or, as the researchers put it, there is an increased risk of viral infections, weight gain, diabetes , high blood pressure, heart disease, mental illness, and mortality for sleep deprived people.
To sum up, slow wave sleep helps you recover physically, while REM sleep helps you mentally recover. The amount of time you spend in these stages continues to decline with age , meaning that with age, the quality of your sleep and the capacity of your body to recover also decline.
The Rhythm of Circadians
What is your period of sleep-wake dictated by?
Response: circadian rhythm. The circadian rhythm is a biological cycle of various processes that occur over a duration of 24 hours or so.
In the usual 24-hour cycle, below are some key points:
6 o'clock A.M. To wake the brain and body, cortisol levels rise
SEVEN A.M. Producing melatonin stops
9 o'clock A.M. Production of sex hormones peaks
10 o'clock A.M. Levels of mental alertness peak
2:30 o'clock p.m. The best synchronisation of the motor
3:30 P.M. A.M. Fastest time for reaction
Five o'clock P.M. Greatest cardiovascular performance and strength of muscles
7 o'clock p.m. The highest blood pressure and temperature in the body
9 o'clock p.m. The development of melatonin starts to prepare the body for sleep.
10 o'clock p.m. As the body calms down, bowel movements are suppressed.
2 Uh, A.M. Most profound sleep
Uh, 4 A.M. Lowest temperature for the body.
These periods, obviously, are not precise and merely represent the circadian rhythm's general pattern. Based on daylight, your routines, and other variables we will address later in this guide, the precise periods of your circadian rhythm will differ.
Three primary factors influence the circadian rhythm: light, time, and melatonin.
Uh, bright. Light is potentially the circadian rhythm's most important tempo setter. Staring for 30 minutes or so in a bright light will also reset the circadian rhythm no matter what time of day it is. The rise of the sun and the light hitting your eyes, more often, causes the transition to a new period.
Time. Time. Your sleep-wake cycle can all influence the time of day, your work schedule, and the order in which you perform assignments.
With melatonin. This is the hormone that activates sleepiness and regulates body temperature. In a predictable regular rhythm, melatonin is produced, increasing after dark and decreasing before dawn. Researchers assume the development cycle of melatonin helps keep the sleep-wake cycle on track.
The 2-Process Sleep Control Model
Dr. Alexander Borbely published an article in the journal Human Neurobiology in 1982 that identified what he called the sleep regulation 2-process model. Two processes that occur simultaneously to monitor sleep and wake states are defined in this conceptual framework for sleep.
Phase 1 is pressure to sleep. Basically, from the moment you wake up, to the time you go to sleep, sleep pressure rises. The pressure reduces when you're sleeping. You start the next day with low sleep pressure if you get a full night of sleep.
Process 2 is a wake drive that counteracts sleep pressure and is driven in a wave-pattern by a 24-hour rhythm that repeats.
Understanding this process is important because it helps disclose an important point I heard from sleep scientist Dan Pardi about sleep in our modern world.
Humans and our ancestors have evolved for millions of years to sleep at night (when it is dark) and wake during the day (when it is light). In the modern world, though, we work all day indoors, mostly in places that are darker than the outside world. And then, we look at bright screens and televisions at night. Low light during the day, more light at night: that's the opposite of patterns that occur normally and it seems very possible that the wake routine and circadian rhythm might be messed up.
The outcome of this shift? Drowsiness and functional disability during the day. In just a minute, we'll talk more about how to sleep better, including actionable steps you can take to anchor your pace, but this almost comes down to this: utilising light habits of common sense. During the day, get outdoor light exposure and switch the lights down and after dark, switch your screens off.
When do I have to go to Sleep?
If you get the 8 hours of sleep that is recommended, does it matter when you get it?
"In terms of the structure and consistency of your sleep, the time of night when you sleep makes a big difference," said Dr. Matt Walker, head of the Sleep and Neuroimaging Lab at the University of California , Berkeley.
Throughout the night, the proportion of REM to non-REM sleep varies, with non-REM sleep dominating cycles earlier in the night and REM sleep kicking closer to sunrise, Walker said. That means that inadequate amounts of intense, non-REM sleep may result from a late night. As we discussed earlier, having healthy amounts of both REM and non-REM sleep is crucially essential.
So how early do you have to go to bed in order to get enough of any form of sleep? Walker says there is a multi-hour window, about 8 p.m. Towards midnight.
However, the right time for you can differ.
Till Roenneberg, a professor of chronobiology at the University of Ludwig-Maximilian in Munich who studies the biological origins of sleep, says that each person has a specific internal timing profile called a sleep chronotype that defines where we fall on the scale from 'early bird' to 'night owl.' Your chronotype is hereditary in large part.
Try not to battle your physiology when picking your bedtime. The best bedtime will differ a little bit for everyone, but it's crucial that you pay close attention to your internal clock and what you are told by your body. As long as you get the 8 hours of sleep you suggest, just concentrate on finding the time that works best for you.
How to Quickly Fall Asleep
Establish before bed a routine of "power down." The light from computer screens, televisions, and telephones will inhibit the development of melatonin, indicating that the hormones required to reach the sleep process are not prepared by your body. Specifically, it is the blue wavelength of light which seems to reduce the output of melatonin. It can be a major help to build a "power down" routine where you shut all electronics off an hour or two before sleep. In addition , working late at night will keep your mind racing and your levels of stress elevated, which also prevents sleep from calming down the body. Turn the screens off and, instead, read a novel. It's the perfect way to learn something helpful before bed and power down. (Another option is to download an app called f.lux that decreases your screen's brightness closer to bedtime.)
Use technique of relaxation.
Researchers conclude that emotion or stress is correlated with at least 50 percent of insomnia cases. To-the stress, find outlets and you will also find that better sleep comes as a result. Established approaches include daily journaling, deep breathing exercises, reflection, exercise, and a journal of appreciation (write down something you are grateful for every day).
How to Increase the Quality of Sleep and Period
There are 3 levers you can "pull" to give yourself a boost if you want to know how to sleep better and improve your performance.
The Strength
Timing with
The Period
Strength applies to the way you sleep well. In slow wave sleep and REM sleep, the percentage of sleep time you spend largely determines the quality of your sleep each night.
When you go to sleep, timing applies also. What time are you going to sleep? For two reasons, this factor is important. Second, it's easier for your body to build healthy sleeping habits if you get into bed at around the same time each night. Second, the circadian rhythm should be in sync with the time you go to sleep.
Duration refers to the amount of time you sleep. This one is straightforward: how much time do you spend each night sleeping?
How do you sleep easier using these 3 levers?
When it comes to strength, the fact is that you can't do much there. The intensity of your sleep cycle (how much time you spend in slow wave sleep and REM sleep) is mostly controlled for you by your body. It automatically changes on the basis of what you need and how much time you spend asleep. Consistently exercising, being wise about light habits, and having good nutrition will help, but sleep intensity will only be enhanced indirectly by these actions.
Actually, this is good news because it simplifies stuff for you. Since the consistency of your sleep is controlled by your body on its own, you just need to concentrate on two factors: timing (when you go to bed) and length (how long you are in bed).
If we make another assumption, so we can even more simplify the case. The assumption is this: You wake up each day at around the same time.
If you wake up every day at around the same time, then your length of sleep is essentially decided by when you go to bed. Generally speaking, you'll end up sleeping more if you get into bed sooner. Improve the timing and you will also boost the length.
And it takes us to this realistic punchline ...
Timing is probably the most critical of the 3 sleep levers, from a realistic application point of view. The strength of your sleep is controlled by your body automatically. The length of your sleep is largely based on when you get to bed (assuming you wake up each morning at around the same time). And that means that it is important to get to bed at an earlier, more regular time to boost the quality and length of your sleep.
That's it everyone, i hope this article made you clear more about our sleep, and how to achieve a proper sleep for a night. Thank you! 😊
