Stages Of Sleep That You Go Through

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Sleeping can make you feel better by pepping up your mood and also helping in getting rid of dark circles. Adequate sleep plays a critical role for a healthy lifestyle. So when you snooze well, you get up refreshed and also feel alert to fulfil your daily activities. A good night’s sleep is much needed for your body to handle stress and to recuperate from illness.

Even minimal sleep loss can take its toll on your health and your mood. The quality of sleep tends to influence the quality of your routine life such as mental sharpness, work productivity, emotional balance, and even your body weight.

Do you know that your body progresses through different stages of sleep and essentially there are two types of sleep which includes Non-Rapid Eye Movement (NREM) (which is called quiet sleep) while the other is referred to as Rapid Eye Movement (REM) Sleep (also called as paradoxical sleep or active sleep). Here are some of the stages of sleep cycle.

Non-REM Sleep
When you’re sleeping, the body cycle shifts between non-REM and REM sleep. More importantly the non-REM stage is divided into four different stages of sleep. Each stage of sleep will tend to last for 4 to 5 minutes. The stages of sleep cycle consist of the progression from different stages (1-4) before REM sleep is achieved and then it goes back to square one.

Stage 1
Stage 1 is considered to be the beginning of the stages of sleep cycle. More importantly this stage of sleep is a transition period, where the person is caught between sleeplessness and sleep. This transition phase is in reality considered to be a light sleep cycle. In this phase (stage 1) the sleep may last for 5 to 10 minutes and this is the period where the brain produces high amplitude theta waves. On the other hand research shows that it would take a person about 7 minutes to fall sleep.

Stage 2
In this stage of sleep, the snoozing would last for around 20 minutes. During the second stage, the brain tends to create a fast cadenced brain wave activity. This brain activity is known as sleep spindles.

Stage 3
The stage 3 and stage 4 of sleep is considered to be the deep slumber phase. During this stage of sleep, deep and slow brain wave activity called as delta waves try to emerge. In stage 3, people become so immersed in sleep that they become less responsive to the noise or any kind of activity in the surrounding.

Stage 4
Subsequently after stage 3, next is the interesting stage of the sleep cycle called as the rapid eye movement phase. This stage of sleep is characterised as a more intense stage of sleep than the previous one. Stage 4 is sometimes referred to as delta sleep because delta waves are more predominant in this phase. This stage is called as a slow wave or delta sleep. Person at stage 4 would be more aroused and will be feel completely disoriented.

REM
After stage 4, the last stage is called REM. REM sleep is characterised with eye movement and increased brain activity. During REM sleep, people would tend to dream a lot because of the increased brain activity and also in this stage of sleep, the voluntary muscles are paralysed.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.