Good ole sleep. It is the body’s way of resetting itself and yet it can still be a novel concept for some people. Sleep is defined as a temporary state of unconsciousness from which an individual can be awakened by stimuli. Our sleep is produced by a pattern called circadian rhythm. It is a repeat process and we reboot every 24 hours or so. When we sleep, our bodies experience sleep paralysis and this is why we usually do not get up and recreate our dreams during when we sleep. Sleep is classified into 4 different sleep stages and normal sleep patterns usually comes in cycles. Our brain waves have been observed through EEG and they tie in with the different stages of sleep.
Stage 1 is my favorite time of day and that is when we start to get
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The brain exhibits delta waves and theta waves in this stage. Sleep paralysis is in full effect and the body’s vitals will begin to go down.
Stage 4 is when the body is in its deepest sleep. The hardest to wake at this stage and there is no eye or muscles movement. This is the stage where people can experience night terrors, sleep walking or bed wetting. This stage is sometimes referred to as slow-wave sleep because delta waves take over this stage.
During sleep we experience rapid eye movement (REM) when we are reverting back to different stages of sleep which can happen up to 5 times per night. Dreaming can happen in both REM sleep and non-REM sleep. The neural mechanisms of sleep still baffle scientist and researchers. The have the rhythm of sleep figured out but the awake and sleep part is more complex. The sleep-wake cycle is controlled by the thalamus, hypothalamus, cerebral cortex and the reticular formation. The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) is considered the headquarters for sleep. it has nerve connections between the eye and cerebrum that help the body to recognize the difference between night and day. One of the neurotransmitters is called orexin, which sends signals the body to stay awake. Overall sleep is still a complex and somewhat confusing to understanding. It is fascinating how the body regulates the signals our brain and body subconsciously sends