Stages of SleepThroughout a night of sleeping, you will experience several cycles of sleep, each consisting of five stages. These stages of sleep are known as Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3, Stage 4 and REM (Rapid Eye Movement) Stage. An average cycle will last between 90 to 110 minutes. Typically a person will go through about four to five cycles a night.
Stage 1In stage 1 you will be in a light sleep and can be woken up easily. You might find yourself drifting in and out of sleep. In this stage you may feel sudden muscle contractions and get the feeling as if you are falling.
Stage 2In stage 2 the body begins to prepare for the deep sleep in stage 3. Eye movement stops and brain waves become slower. Your body’s temperature also lowers and your heart rate decreases.
Stage 3Stage 3 consists of slow brain waves known as ‘Delta Waves’ mixing with smaller, faster waves. This puts you in a deep sleep. Stage 3 is the stage in which you are most likely to experience parasomnias. Parasomnias are disorders that occur during sleep. For example: sleepwalking, night terrors, sleep talking and bed-wetting.
Stage 4Stage 4 involves being in a deeper sleep as the brain produces almost only delta waves. Being woken up from this stage will probably leave you disorientated for a few minutes.
REM (Rapid Eye Movement)During the first few cycles, REM sleep will be much shorter than the ones later on. It will typically begin around 90 minutes after you first go to sleep. Whilst in the REM stage, your eyes will remain closed, but as the name suggests, will be moving rapidly from side-to-side. This may be due to the increased brain and dream activity. In fact, your brain waves will be mimicking the activity rate as if you were awake. Waking up in this stage means you are more likely to remember the dream you were having. Sleep is extremely important for human development and growth. During deep sleep, your body will be restoring itself from the stresses of the day. Therefore it is important to get several cycles of sleep a night that consist of all the stages of sleep. If you are finding it difficult to get to sleep, our Lunox products can help.
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