Knowing your sleep cycles may be the key to your rest and, therefore, the well-being of the rest of your day. Also, you will not need medications and other therapies.
Surely you’ve ever had the feeling of have rested badly ? despite sleeping 8 hours. Or on the contrary, you have only had 6 hours of sleep but you have risen up as a rose. It can also happen that you need to sleep four hours at night and another three at nap. Do not worry. All this is normal, since it depends on the calls sleep cycles. ? If you read our guide you will learn how to handle them and you will sleep better naturally.
Brain waves and sleep cycles.
Our brain works by brain waves. ? The more together they are located more frequently, the more electrical activity there will be in them. All this is recorded in a electrocardiogram. It does not mean that with low frequency brain waves we we sleep deeply, because while we do it, our brain performs other functions, also active and very necessary for a quality dream. ?? We explain it in more detail.
The sleep cycles.
The sleep cycles are repeated every 90 minutes, ⏰ although they may be slightly longer or shorter depending on the person and other conditions. Each cycle consists of the following phases:
Phase I
This is the numbness stage, which lasts about ten minutes, and it is the transition between sleep and wakefulness. That’s why sometimes we can even be aware of what happens around us in this dream. For example, when we we slept lightly on the train ? and we woke up when we got to our stop. In this stage the muscles relax, but sometimes we can have the feeling of falling and suddenly awakening.
Phase II
It is a stage of light sleep but with less muscular and cerebral activity than the previous one. It lasts about 45 minutes. In this period our heart beats more slowly and is harder to wake up, ? but still we can have that dream of falling off a cliff and suddenly wake up. Look at the time when it happens and you will see if it coincides with this period. ? It is because in this time period they alternate phases of high and low brain activity, so it’s normal to have those dreams and you’ll probably keep sleeping after them.
Phase III
This is the transition stage, what It only lasts a few minutes. If we wake up at this moment, that is to say, approximately one hour after falling asleep, we will feel confused. ❓ We would pass brain waves of little frequency, delta waves, those of the vigil, which are the opposite. It is here that the night terrors, ? the somnambulism and the nocturnal urination. Both in this and in the next phase, the dream is deeper and that is when the greatest amount of growth hormones is secreted.
Phase IV
This phase It lasts about 18 minutes and it is the most important of all. It’s the deeper sleep and will determine the quality of it. After about an hour and a quarter after falling asleep, you enter the phase of restful sleep. Keep this in mind if you have to sleep during a long trip. ? It can be very useful to arrive in good condition at your destination. At this time it is very difficult to wake up, low blood pressure and also respiratory rate.
REM sleep phase (Rapid Eye Movement)
It is the last phase of the cycle, which It lasts between 15 and 30 minutes. In this phase the eyes ? move quickly through the eyelids and there is a great brain activity, similar to the one we have at be awake. However, our muscles are blocked. ⛔ In this phase we dream and we can also capture information from outside. So it is easy to wake up. If we do it in this phase we will not feel confused and, in addition, we will remember our dream.
The importance of the phases of the dream.
As we mentioned, the sleep cycle It lasts about 90 minutes ⌚ depending on the person. It is usually repeated about 5 times, so the total sleep would be about 7 and a half hours long. This does not mean that you should always sleep that amount of time. Notice that the moment you wake up is more important if you do not want to feel confused and tired. ? You will feel better if you do it in the REM phase and, at the same time, you will remember your dreams. But that does not mean you’ve enough sleep. We repeat that it is advisable to carry out 5 of these cycles a day. We also emphasize the importance of performing phases III and IV of the dream: deep, restful sleep and in which we secrete the greatest amount of growth hormones. This hormone is not only important for children, also for athletes and for anyone who wants to recover and to make the most during the day. ?
The sleep cycles during the day.
Okay, you can recover some sleep cycle during the day. However, the melatonin regulates our rest and occurs only in the dark, so it is better that you do all or most of the phases of sleep during the night. ? However, some people do not secrete as much melatonin, and therefore they do not need to sleep at night and they can do it also during the day. But also keep in mind that the secretion of growth hormone, thyroid and cortisol have secretion peaks at night. But, why are these hormones important?
The thyroid regulates metabolism. Therefore, if you sleep during the day instead of at night you can gain weight more easily and not optimally use your energy. ? For its part, the hormone cortisol regulates allergies, so it’s better to sleep at night to have less likely to suffer. The stress Raise your levels, which will make your night sleep difficult and may cause or worsen your allergies. ?
In conclusion, you will have seen that the most healthy thing is to sleep at night. But if for work or other reasons you can not, be sure to complete your sleep cycles. It’s worth learning them by heart and applying this pattern for the rest of your life.
