Sleep: What It's All About
During the first stage of sleep our brain waves become small and irregular. We begin drifting on the edge of consciousness in a state of light sleep. It is easy to awake someone in stage one and once awakened a person in stage one can remember fantasies or images.
Stage two is slightly deeper and minor noises will not awaken you. During this level of sleep it is normal to experience occasional short bursts of rapid, high peaking, waves called sleep spindles. These sleep spindles continue into stage three where they are joined by delta waves. Delta waves are very slow waves with high peaks. Breathing and pulse slow down during stage three and muscles begin to relax. It is harder to awake someone in stage three.
During stage four the delta waves take over. We are in a state of deep sleep and if you are subject to talking or walking in your sleep it will usually happen in stage four. While researchers do not know what causes sleep walking it is likely to happen to children.
To reach stage four usually takes approximately 30 to 45 minutes. Once you reach stage four you will begin to regress back to stage one meaning you go from stage four to stage three and so on. When you reach stage one again (this will take another 30 minutes) you enter REM sleep. REM stands for rapid eye movement and takes place usually every 90 minutes. These periods of REM sleep usually last from a few minutes to one hour. They average 20 minutes in length.
Each stage is extremely important to the entire act of sleep. Without completing each stage we become subject to a variety of sleep disorders. In order to get the maximum healing sleep each person must go through stage one through four to reach REM stage.
Published by T. McSpadden
Tameka McSpadden is a freelance writer currently residing in North Georgia. With both a Bachelor of Science in healthcare management and an associate degree in business administration, T. McSpadden enjoys w... View profile
- What to Do When Those Last Few Pounds Won't Come OffHow to break through the plateau effect of dieting and exercise when hitting a standstill.
What It's Really like to Have All Your Teeth Extracted - at 39 Years Old?If you've ever wondered why someone might get full dentures at a relatively young age, this interview will let you sample the experience. Learn about the reasons, the cost, and...- Working at Home and What It RequiresWorking at home is not just about indepdence. Working at home is about control of your life.
- Voices in My Head: Brain WavesThey finally figured it out. I've been waiting for this day my whole life. A new technology created in Japan allows you to control electronic devices by reading brain activity.
- A Guide to Depression: What it Is and How to Diagnose ItDepression is considered a medical illness. It is very common qnd very costly to lives and economy. It is one of a few "illnesses" defined solely by their symptoms, implying a lack of an acceptable theory of cause. Th...
- Sleep Cycles Explained
- The Psychology of Sleep Cycles and Disorders
- Sleep Physiology and Sleep Disorders
- Nursing and Sleep Deprivation: What Everyone Needs to Know
- It's All About Business, Internet Business that Is
- Programming Brain Waves for Sleep
- Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)
- Cells are repaired while we sleep.
- During the first stage of sleep our brain waves become irregular.
- There are four stages of sleep.