MANY PEOPLE STRUGGLE with sleep – with or without the extra stresses of a pandemic and lockdown – finding they stay up way past 10 pm, then unable to fall or stay asleep. In the last couple of years, more people are aware of their sleep patterns using sleep tracker apps and fitness watches – arguably adding to the problem.
The Stages of Sleep
We have four stages of sleep; from light to deep, physically restorative sleep, and then REM sleep. REM sleep is a very active sleep where we have most of our dreams.
We go through these cycles at various times during the night, each usually lasting around 90 minutes, but the percentage of each stage changes depending on whether you’re at the beginning or the end of your sleep, and this means that no area of your sleep is more important than the other.
Deep Sleep Data
Sleep specialists agree that for adults, the range of 6.68 to 10 hours of sleep per night is the optimum amount. Deep sleep is on average 20% of the total sleep, which works out at between 80 and 120 minutes of deep sleep per night.
Are you getting enough?
Deep sleep is where we experience cell restoration, cytokine production (for your immune response), muscle repair and hormone regulation. You’re more likely to get sick, feel depressed and gain weight when deep sleep is impaired.
Plus, if you aren’t getting enough deep sleep, this in turn means that you’re not getting enough sleep within the different stages.
There are a myriad of symptoms and potential health impacts if healthy sleep is not achieved. Stretching one poor night into chronic sleep loss can lead to irritability, mood swings, and several mental disorders such as depression. Sleep deprivation shortens telomere length in DNA which facilitates chaotic cellular growth, which can increase the risk of various forms of cancer.
Impossible to Measure?
There is a misconception about sleep depth. Short naps usually do not allow us to go into deep sleep so when we wake, we do not feel sleepy. Longer naps go into deep sleep and when we wake up, we usually feel sleepy because our brain was in a cycle of deep sleep.
Whether you get adequate deep sleep also depends on many other factors: How much sleep you had before and whether or not you have a sleep disorder. Many, many factors affect sleep.
So, it seems wise to use caution when using sleep tracking devices and apps, as they themselves can increase anxiety about sleep patterns and put unnecessary pressure on people to make sure they are getting enough sleep per night. There is no guarantee that the data or app are accurately monitoring the types of sleep or providing the right recommendations.
Improving Sleep
It serves no purpose to focus too much on the amount of deep sleep, as this cannot be controlled. Instead, you should look to try to improve the overall quality of your sleep:
- Establish regular sleep and wake times and don’t exceed 30 minutes of daytime sleep or napping.
- Create the right conditions for sleep, so avoid light from smartphones and tablets near bedtime
- Avoid excessive alcohol ingestion four hours before bedtime and caffeine six hours before.
- If you do not fall asleep in 20 minutes, leave the bedroom and return to bed when tired so your body will associate the bedroom environment for sleep only.
- Try not to worry about those times when your sleep is going through a bad patch. If your anxiety increases that in itself can change sleep behaviours.
It goes without saying that daily physical exercise, a good diet and purposeful down-time (e.g. relaxation or meditation) will all contribute towards a more natural ability to sleep deeply.
Good Night and Sweet Dreams!
