How to get a deep sleep
A deep sleep sleep makes all the difference to how you feel when you wake up, let’s take a closer look at how to get a deep sleep and what you can do to wake up feeling refreshed and full of energy.
As adults, we need to get 7-9 hours of sleep every night, sleep is divided into different stages, so the quality of sleep matters most of us would like more quality sleep but struggle for the answer on how to get a deep sleep.
The stages of sleep
When your body is resting it goes through each different stage of the sleep cycle, for example deep sleep is the stage of sleep that you want because you will wake up and feel refreshed and full of energy, deep sleep is different to REM.
During deep sleep your body and brain waves slow down, you are sleeping soundly, if you were to suddenly wake up from a sleep of this kind you may feel very groggy, finding out how to get a deep sleep without waking up and feeling groggy is just in front of you.
Sleep categories
There are two sleep categories REM (rapid eye movement) and non REM, as you fall asleep you are in non REM sleep mode, shortly after you fall into REM sleep mode, it’s a cycle and changes every 90 minutes or so, deep sleep happens near the end of nine REM sleep.
What happens during non REM sleep
Sleep is in stages, as you move from being awake to becoming asleep non REM kicks in and lasts for several minutes, this is stage one:
- Bodily functions such as your heartbeat, eye movements and breathing begin to slow
- Muscles begin to relax with the odd twitch
- Brain waves begin to slowly descend into a wakeful state
The second stage of sleep is stage two, it accounts for about half of your total sleep cycle, this is the most restful stage that you will fall into during the night and more then any other stage,
- You continue to slow down and feel relaxed
- Your body’s core temperature falls
- Eye movements begin to stop
- Brain waves are slower with occasional bursts of activity
Stages three and four are when you are in deep sleep, during this period of sleep a few things are happening:
- Your heart and breathing slow to a minimum as your muscles relax
- You are in such a deep sleep that it’s hard to wake you up
- Your brain waves are at their slowest
Stages of deep sleep
The stages of deep sleep can be broken into two sections, the first stage can last between 45-90 minute, this stage lasts for a longer period during the first half of the night, the time period shortens as the night of a deep sleep cycle goes on, discovering how to get a good night’s sleep is just ahead.
The final stage five happens about 90 minutes after you move through the non REM stages, during this stage a number of things are happening:
- You may begin to dream as your brains activity moves to a wakeful state
- Your eyes move quickly from one side to the other
- Your breathing increases and may become irregular
- Your heart rate moves up to its wakeful position
- Your muscles and limbs become still
Why is it hard to get a deep sleep
Your brain is a hive of activity, it is trying to process so much information during each day, digital devices are wonderful however the amount of information on them is staggering to say the least, without enough quality sleep it can be hard for our brains to process it and convert it to our memories.
When your brain is constantly trying to process information it can be difficult to get a deep sleep, when you couple that with other things going on in your life deep sleep can be very hard to attain, many people try deep sleep supplements, not getting enough quality sleep is linked to conditions such as:
- Diabetes
- Heart disease
- Extreme fatigue
- Anxiety
- Poor concentration
The benefits of a deep sleep
You probably don’t need me to tell you about the benefits of a goid nights sleep, when you learn how to get a quality sleep the feeling of well being and your mental health is hard to put into words, in a nutshell learning how to get a deep sleep is the key to a more healthy and happy life.
Other benefits of a deep sleep include the increase of glucose metabolism during your sleep, that affects overall learning and long term memory, during this type of sleep the pituitary gland secretes very important hormones that are essential for cell growth and body development.
Some of the best benefits of having a deep sleep are energy restoration, increased blood supply to your muscles, boosting your immune system, regenerating cells, support for the growth and repair of bones and tissues.
How much deep sleep is adequate
When you sleep approximately 75% of that is non REM sleep, the remaining 25% is attributed to REM sleep, of that part of sleep (REM) about 13% is the most you get of deep sleep, as you age quality sleep is harder to come by, for example if you are under 35 you could possible get 2 hours of deep sleeps each night.
On the other hand, if you are more than 64 deep sleep will account for about 30 minutes of your REM sleeps each night or in some cases people over 65 may not get any quality sleep at all, if that is your situation read on and find out how to get a deep sleep for longer.
How much deep sleep you are getting
You almost know when you wake up how much quality sleep you are getting, or you have a fair idea based on whether you feel exhausted or not, if you do feel exhausted it could be linked to not getting enough sleep, of course digital devices can tell you for sure what your sleep cycle is.
How accurate these devices are is open to question, digital devices may not be the most reliable indicator of how much deep sleep you get each night, to get scientific you may need to have a polysomnography test done, it can be arranged through your doctor.
A PSG test is carried out in a laboratory, you will be hooked up to monitors that measure your:
- Oxygen levels
- Your breathing rate
- Your heart rate
- Your brain waves
- Your body movements
- Your breathing rates
Best tips on how to get a deep sleep
If are having trouble getting to sleep or you find that you get to sleep but wake up and find it hard to get back to sleep then these best tips on how to get a deep sleep may help you, did you know that heat may support a better sleep?
1. Why not try taking a hot bath to relax you and help you find that deeper sleep that you need, or indeed if you have a sauna in your home use it to heat your body up and relax your muscles.
2. Exercise is the key to a healthy life and a good night’s sleep, try to get at least 30 minutes of exercise daily, don’t exercise too close to bedtime.
3. Try a different bedtime routine, read a book, newspaper, or listen to relaxing music.
4. Melatonin is a natural way to get a deep sleep, why not try this deep sleep supplement from Dr Sam Robbins.
5. Don’t bring your mobile device to the bedroom.
6. If you wake, don’t lie there for hours, get up read or make a cup of tea.
7. Check your pillows, if they are old change them for a more comfortable one.
8. Don’t drink caffeine for at least 3 hours before bed.
9. Have you thought about hypnosis, research has shown that hypnosis can help people to sleep better.
References
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK19956/
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