Stages of sleep might be something that would appear to be of such simple and basic nature to the human understanding. We know we all need rest and we are also aware of the consequences of not getting enough of it!
We often take sleep for granted, especially teens and young adults, and only when the body is feeling discomfort does sleep seem to matter to many individuals. That is when you begin to search for insomnia remedies to help you get back on track.
However, the truth of the matter is that we seem to know very little about sleep. For instance, while we know what results when we don't get enough of it, experts are unable to explain why the body needs sleep.
It was only in 1953 when some of the more significant knowledge about stages of sleep were discovered and studied. Only then were machines that could monitor brain activity during rest actually developed. Prior to this period, it was a commonly held belief that brain activity stopped when we were sleeping.
Stages of sleep in human adults fall into two broad classifications. These types or classifications possess unique sets of associated neurological, psychological as well as physiological features. The two types of sleep are the REM (Rapid Eye Movement) and the NREM or the Non REM (Non Rapid Eye Movement).
The REM sleep is said to compose between 20 to 25 percent of the total adult sleep duration and this is the stage in which the most memorable dreaming takes place. The NREM stage, on the other hand, is a period that could be described as having relatively small or no dreaming at all.
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) has further broken down NREM stage into three sub-stages being N1, N2 and N3. N1 is described as a stage where one is drowsy and may drift in and out of sleep. N2 is when eye movement stops and there is a slowdown in brain activity. N3 is the stage wherein short brain waves referred to as delta waves appear in conjunction with faster but smaller brain waves. The REM is the period of deepest sleep and as we all know, it is quite difficult to wake somebody up once he has reached this stage.
The stages of sleep is a piece of knowledge that we hope to be able to learn more about as science advances and more research is made upon it. Here's to your successful sleep adventures!
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