Henry Ford once made an unexpected visit to Thomas Alva Edison’s lab. A technician stopped him from entering Edison’s private quarters, noting, “Mr. Edison is taking a nap.” Ford found this amusing and retorted, “I understood that Mr. Edison didn’t sleep very much.” “Oh, that’s true,” said the technician. “He doesn’t sleep very much at all, he just naps a lot.”

Excerpted from Sleep Thieves
By Stanley Coren

Sleep for Survival

Sleep is as essential for your well-being (and ultimately survival) as food and water. And we're not exaggerating. Experts at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) report that more than 40 million people suffer from on-going sleep problems and disorders. An additional 20 million people have occasional sleeping problems. That is almost 33% of adult Americans - which adds up to a lot of tired people.

Sleep Stages:

Your brain remains active even while you're asleep.
Here are the five phases of sleep.

Stage 1: Light sleep. Drift in and out of sleep. Can be awakened easily. Eyes move slowly. Muscle activity slows.
Stage 2: Eye movements stop. Brain waves slow down.
Stage 3: Extremely slow "delta waves" begin to appear. Considered "deep sleep".
Stage 4: More deep sleep and "delta waves". Very tough to awaken someone in Stage 3 or 4 sleep. No eye movement or muscle activity. If you're awakened now, you'll feel groggy and disoriented for several minutes. Sometimes referred to as 'beauty sleep' since this is when many of your body's cells rev into high gear, repairing damage from stress and UV rays.
Stage 5: REM sleep. Breathing becomes rapid, irregular and shallow. Eyes jerk rapidly in various directions. Limb muscles become temporarily paralyzed. Heart rate increases and blood pressure rises. People who awaken during REM sleep often describe bizarre dreams. Many antidepressants suppress REM sleep. Heavy smokers also have reduced amounts of REM sleep. Skip the nightcap; alcohol may help you fall into light sleep, but it robs you of restorative REM sleep.

Visit Sleep Facts for more about sleep cycles and your Circadian clock.

Sleep is Food for the Brain . . .

Animal studies have proven sleep is necessary for survival. Rats normally live for 2-3 years, but those deprived of REM sleep survive only about 5 weeks on average - whew! Lack of sleep dramatically impairs your nervous system, leading to poor concentration, impaired memory and physical performance and reduced ability to do math calculations. Without sleep, neurons become so depleted of energy or polluted with byproducts of normal cellular activities that they begin to malfunction.

Stress = Lack of sleep

Stress is the number one contributor to insomnia or poor quality sleep. And the Catch-22 is that if you don't get enough restful sleep, you will feel more stressed and overwhelmed by events the next day. This stress then has an impact on your night's sleep - the start of a vicious cycle.

Sleep Strategies

'Chill-out' before bed. Read, relax, meditate or take a warm bath. Hide illuminated clocks from view to avoid anxious clock watching.

Exercise. You need at least 20-30 minutes per day. Daily exercise will help you sleep better at night, but don't work out right before bedtime; try to get in your exercise at least 5 to 6 hours before you go to bed.

Know What You Need. Not everyone needs the same amount of sleep; if you need an alarm clock to wake up in the morning or if you're tired during the day, you probably arn't getting enough sleep - time for a power nap.

Lighting is Key. Get into bright light as soon as possible in the morning, but avoid it in the evening. Light helps signal to the brain when it should wake up and when it should prepare to sleep.

Mental Stimulation is Good. Dr. James Maas, author of Power Sleep, reports that boredom can cause loss of sleep. Poor sleepers spend more time shopping, sitting around and watching TV. "Feel good about yourself, feel needed and loved, and you'll sleep better," says Maas.

Take a Power Nap. Power napping is an easy to learn, tried and true technique that improves alertness, aids productivity and alleviates sleep deprivation. The National Sleep Foundation recommends that if you are sleepy during the day, take an early afternoon nap. Avoid long naps during the day to avoid interrupting your regular sleep-wake cycle.