The normal sleep cycle consists of 4 stages of non-REM sleep cycles and 1 cycle of REM (Rapid Eye Movement) sleep throughout the night. When your sleep cycles are disturbed, you will wake up feeling tired and difficulty concentrating during the day.

• NREM sleep. These four stages start from very light sleep during Stage 1 down to very deep sleep in Stage 4. Throughout NREM sleep, there is little muscle activity and it is very difficult to wake someone in stage 4 sleep. Deep sleep helps to restore your body and muscles from stresses of the day
• REM sleep: This is the stage of sleep in which most dreaming occurs and our eyes are thought to move in relation to the visual images of our dreams

Each cycle lasts around 90 minutes consisting of the 5 stages of sleep. During the night, the amount of time spent in each stage varies; we spend more time in stages 3 & 4 at the beginning of the night and more time in the REM stage towards the morning. Increasing age also changes our sleep patterns as we require less time sleeping while babies spend 50% sleep time in the REM stage.

Our internal clock situated at the hypothalamus dictates our normal circadian rhythm which helps us stay awake during the day and gets us ready to sleep at night. However, this rhythm can be disturbed by travelling through different time zones (jet lag) or doing shift work. Psychological issues such as stress or depression can also disturb your sleep pattern.

How important is it to have a Good Sleep Pattern

1. Good sleep is important for healthy brain function such as thinking, memory, learning, decision making and creativity. Concentration is poor the next day and your quality of work may be affected
2. Important for physical health such as:

• Healing and repair of the body
• Normal growth development in children
• Maintaining balance hormones (growth hormone)
• Sleep deprivation can result in poor sugar or blood pressure control
• Obesity risk increases in sleep deficiency
• Ensuring a good immune system

Here are 2 common Sleep Disorders which affect all of us some time in our life;

1. Insomnia

Insomnia is defined as the (1) inability to fall asleep or (2) maintain sleep or (3) waking up too early in the morning and feeling tired. The usual time to fall asleep is usually around 10-20 minutes. The causes of insomnia can classified as:

• Primary (not related to any medical issues and is usually due to ageing)
• Secondary (related to medical issues such as depression, stress, anxiety, chronic pain from arthritis or cancer or poor asthma control)

Treatment of insomnia involves practising good sleeping habits or taking medication.

2. Obstructive Sleep Apnoea (OSA)

OSA is the most common type of sleep apnoea. During sleep, our muscle tone relaxes and the airway lumen narrows requiring more respiratory effort to breathe. This increase in respiratory effort results in negative airway pressure causing the airway soft tissue to flop back and obstruct the airway. Around 15-20% of adults experience OSA and it is associated with being overweight, older age groups, smokers, chronic rhinitis, pharyngeal reflux and in males.

Discuss your Sleep Issues with your Doctor, ENT Specialist or Pharmacist

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Disclaimer. TELEME blog posts contains general information about health conditions and treatments. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. The information is not advice and should not be treated as such. 

If you think you may be suffering from any medical condition, you should seek immediate medical attention from your doctor or other professional healthcare providers. You should never delay seeking medical advice, disregard medical advice, or discontinue medical treatment because of information on this website.

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