You may have heard that you need to get eight hours of sleep, but when you’re talking about sleep, the quality matters as much as how long you sleep. Throughout the night you go through different stages of sleep. Deep sleep is what allows you to wake up refreshed.
Cycles of sleep
Stage 1– During the first stage of sleep, your body starts to relax. Bodily functions such as breathing and heartbeat slow down and your muscles relax and your brain waves begin to slow down.
Stage 2– This stage encompasses half of your sleep cycle. You fall into this stage of sleep more than any of the others. During this stage your body continues to relax, your brain waves are much slower with short periods of activity, your eye movements stop and your body temperature drops.
Stages 3 and 4– These stages are considered deep sleep stages. This is where your body is in the deepest state of relaxation and brain waves are at their slowest. At this stage, it’s hard to wake up, and you don’t even wake up with loud noises.
Your body stays in deep sleep the longest during the first few cycles. As the night progresses the deep sleep cycle gets shorter.
Stage 5– This last stage is REM sleep.
Why Stage 3 and 4 sleep is important
Sleep stages 3 and 4 facilitate several processes in the body. During these stages, the brain metabolises glucose which helps with memory and overall learning. These are the other benefits of deep sleep:
- Promotes growth and repair of tissues and bones
- Cells regenerate
- Strengthens the immune system
- Increases blood supply to the muscles
- Restores energy
Deep sleep is a vital part of your body healing itself so you are healthy.
Deterrent to deep sleep
There are many things that can cause you not to fall into sleep stages 3 and 4. One of the main contributors is your mattress. When your mattress is not comfortable, it doesn’t allow your body to fall into a deep sleep because your body can’t get comfortable enough to relax. You may toss and turn which keeps your body alert.
If you are waking up tired all the time, even after getting the right amount of sleep, you might not be getting enough good sleep, and you may need to look at your mattress as the culprit. A good mattress supports your body and allows it to relax and fall into a deep sleep.
Having the right mattress can make all the difference with feeling more energetic as well as keeping you healthy. Now that you know how important deep sleep is, maybe it’s time to reevaluate your mattress and how you feel after a “good night’s sleep”.