Sleep. Something we all know we need and something we all know we should probably get more of but why do we need sleep?

No-one really knows why we need sleep, it was thought that sleep was a time for our brains to rest however the development of polysomnography showed that in fact our brains are very active while we sleep. Other theories are that we need sleep to overcome physical fatigue, and while sleep does seem to do this, it is in fact our brains not our muscles that needs sleep in order to feel rested and alert. One thing is for sure and that is that we do need to sleep, as studies into sleep deprivation show that without sleep the body’s physiologic systems, things such as the immune and digestives systems and blood pressure regulation get thrown into disarray. These processes seem to go through a 24 hour cycle, regulated by our biological clock which uses sleeping and waking up as benchmarks. Irregular or disturbed sleep means these signals aren’t there to reset the body clock daily to keep things running smoothly. People who suffer from irregular or disturbed sleep often report physical symptoms such as upset digestive system, headaches and pre-disposition to illness, and this may well be linked to the physiological processes being unbalanced. Another, more serious side-effect of sleep deprivation is lack of concentration and reactions. The tireder a person gets the less clear their thinking becomes and the slower their reactions, this is most dangerous when the sleep-deprived person is driving a vehicle, it has been suggested that when a long-haul truck driver falls asleep at the wheel and crashes, an average of four innocent victims will die along with them.

Sleep deprivation can be attributed to many things, and insomnia is one of the more common causes. The inability to sleep can lead to many of the symptoms of severe sleep deprivation as the build up of night after night of poor, interrupted sleep starts to take effect, starting off with feeling unrested in the mornings then tired and more than likely grumpy throughout the day. Concentration will start to wane and even simple tasks will begin to seem more and more daunting. Just one good nights sleep won’t be able to rectify this, as you will have built up a sleep deficit, it could take up to a week of good nights sleep to get you back to feeling “normal” again.