What is Normal Sleep?

When you are in the REM state of sleep your brain processes emotionally difficult experiences that make it easier for you to handle these memories the following day.

Stress neurochemicals get suppressed during REM while your brain processes these bad memories. During this REM stage memories are reactivated and put in perspective, connected and integrated. Some electrical activity patterns are decreased, and show reduced levels of stress neurochemicals in the brain that soothe the emotional experiences of the previous day’s experiences. Sleep is therapeutic, and drugs may enhance this therapeutic effect.

One’s energy level is a good indicator of how well or poorly you sleep. Questions to ask yourself are, do you feel refreshed when waking up in the mornings, do you have a get up and go routine, how tired, sleepy or fatigued are you in the afternoons?

• Feeling like staying in bed longer
• Wanting to hit the snooze button on your alarm a few times
• Desire to sleep more
• Feel as though you did not get enough sleep
• Feeling sleepy, tired and fatigued
• Need caffeine to get your day started
• Believing that you are not a morning person
• Feeling cranky and irritable
• Finding it difficult to think clearly and concentrate
• Feeling uneasy, tense about starting the day

By treating your sleep problem, you will have a new found energy.

• Waking up and feeling refreshed
• Won’t be feeling tired mid-morning and needing coffee, or yawning.
• Won’t have a post lunch energy dip
• Won’t need to fight off fatigue or sleepiness during the day
• Having enough energy post dinner to not just lie on the couch
• Having enough energy to sustain you the whole day.

• Have a clearer mind
• Better concentration and memory
• Newfound energy
• Frustrations and irritations are more easily overcome
• With extra energy your temper will not be so quick
• Anxious and depressive feelings are more easily overcome as you have more energy available

When your sleep is restored, your daytime fatigue and sleepiness, mental and physical health will improve overall.

• You will find sleep very refreshing
• Feel great on awakening in the morning
• Will not need to start your day with caffeine
• Have little or no daytime sleepiness, tiredness or fatigue, and feel mentally sharp
• Have relatively high and constant energy levels throughout the day
• Have the ability to manage stressors of the day, and still be able to have a good night’s sleep, without waking up.

Normal sleepers do not pay attention to the amount of hours slept per night, as they have a constant outstanding sleep quality end get the hours of sleep needed every night. When they do happen to miss an occasional hour of sleep, it does not really affect them.