Sleep better knowing how long each stage should last, what happens, and why you need to cycle through them several times
This article is taken from my book, Make Sleep Your Superpower, specifically Chapter 9. It has been modified and changed to function better on its own.
Although you don’t have to become an expert on rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep to figure out how to acquire some, a basic understanding of the three phases of sleep will help you appreciate why efficient sleep is so important and why healthy day routines are essential for restful sleep at night.
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However, because sleep is still largely understood to be a mystery, experts have varying descriptions of the phases and the specifics of each phase. I’ve looked into the several theories and reduced the complexity to what’s really important.
In real terms, the overall synopsis is as follows:
It could take anywhere from five to twenty minutes after your head touches the pillow before you fall asleep. While there’s no right or wrong length of time, falling asleep quickly or taking hours is regarded as abnormal. Then, at some time, the change happens almost instantly: you blink and you’re out. You’re awake, you’re awake, you’re awake.
The following four stages, which make up the very approximate estimate of total sleep time stated, will be experienced four to seven times on a good night.
step 1: Transition
This is a brief moment that could last anywhere from one to many minutes. Light sleep is experienced. Heart rate and breathing slow down but stay close to normal. The muscles loosen up. The body’s core temperature, which has been decreasing since the evening, continues to decrease. Additionally, brain waves slow. You can wake up easily, maybe irritated, but probably not groggy like you could if you wake up during previous stages.
Approximate percentage of the total:5%
Step 2: Light sleep
The depths of sleep are reaching. Breath and pulse rate both slow down more. Eye movement ceases and body temperature drops. There are fleeting spikes in brain wave activity. This phase, which follows several iterations of each step, lasts for ten to twenty-five minutes. It’s believed that while some memory consolidation starts, the brain is still fairly alert for any dangers. Consider Stage 2 as the phase you must pass through in order to reach the two most crucial phases. Additionally, you might linger in this stage longer than desirable on a terrible night if you drank too much or are carrying a lot of anxiety.
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Approximate percentage of the total:45%
Step 3: Slow-wave sleep, often known as deep sleep
Finally, the most healing stage arrives. The pulse has sharply decreased, and breathing is slow yet regular. The muscles are at ease. Compared to its high in the late afternoon, body temperature has already dropped by two to three degrees Fahrenheit. This stage is known as slow-wave sleep because brain waves slow down even more during this period.
When you’re in deep, slow-wave sleep, it’s difficult to wake up, and you won’t enjoy it if someone does. You could experience sleep inertia, which is a groggy state that can last for up to an hour.
It’s important to make sure that your body and mind are prepared for the first round of deep, restorative sleep before you go to sleep because this relatively short stage usually lasts longer than subsequent rounds.
The duration of this slow-wave phase is critical because this is the time when the body starts to repair its tissues by releasing growth hormones and a host of other chemicals essential to maintaining, mending, and sprucing up muscles, bones, organs, skin, the immune system, and everything else you need to stay healthy and prevent aging faster than what is naturally occurring. The brain’s glymphatic system, which eliminates misfolded proteins and other toxins and waste from the brain to literally clear your mind, is at its most active during this period.
Estimated fraction of the total: 25%
Step 4: REM sleep
If everything goes according to nature’s schedule, the first phase of rapid-eye movement (REM) begins about ninety minutes after falling asleep. Breathing increases and becomes erratic. Heart rate increases.
The majority of your dreaming is currently occurring; these dreams may or may not be remembered. To prevent you from punching yourself in the face or kicking someone, your limbs effectively become paralyzed. It is believed that during this stage, bones, muscles, and other tissues continue to heal. Most importantly, though, is that memories are processed and stabilized, irrelevant information is eliminated from the mind, and memories are effectively saved on the hard drive of your brain. This phase is essential for stress and anxiety management.
The majority of REM sleep occurs in the second half of the night, with the first round lasting 10 minutes and subsequent rounds lasting up to an hour. This is the reason getting enough sleep is crucial, and it’s also the reason getting up early due to an alarm can be quite confusing and depressing.
Estimated fraction of the total: 25%
After each of the four sleep phases, it’s typical to wake up—often immediately after a dream—roll over or in some way change positions, and then go back asleep without even realizing it.
It’s normal to go if you need to urinate. It makes sense to go back to sleep in order to maintain the four stages cycling through their optimal four to seven sets. Similarly, even if you are unaware of it, waking up during the rounds is a poor idea.
How restorative a night can be depends on the depth, quality, and continuity of sleep throughout the stages, or what I like to call total efficiency.
Final verdict
Now that you know how important the different stages are, you might want to learn how to go asleep peacefully and wake up feeling refreshed. To assist with that, I’ve penned a number of additional Medium posts. These and additional sleep-related anecdotes are available on our Sleep Topic Page. Here are some options to get you going:
