Why sleep is so important

Let’s have some fun and check out some random facts on what happens to our mind and body when we sleep, you’ll find interesting facts on why sleep is so important to what you can do to aid a good night’s sleep.

How Much Time Do We Sleep?

As we know sleep is key but have you ever sat down and calculated just how much we sleep in our lifetime? Don’t worry about the math, the calculations tell us that if you were to sleep an average of 8 hours a night it means that you’ll sleep one-third of your life!

While that can sound daunting given that it seems a chink of your life is given to sleep, believe us, it’s worth every bit of those 8 hours.

Unfortunately, most of us find it difficult to get into a deep sleep during those 8 hours (that is if you’re lucky enough to have 8 hours!) and this disturbs your REM (Rapid eye movement), REM is a state of deep sleep, allowing you to dream, process emotions and promote healthy brain development. Over 70% of the population struggles to get into this state of deep sleep which is why you may find yourself waking up in a bad mood, tired or even with a headache.

As discussed in another post of ours, we spoke about Insomnia and what you can do to prevent or lower the chances of it happening to you, even providing some instant relief to help you have a more productive day when you wake. We have a wide variety of treatments in tablet form that will help achieve a proper night’s rest.

What is sleepwalking?

Yes, walking whilst asleep with eyes open (although in certain sleepwalkers eyes can be closed). Sleepwalking seems to be more common in kids, however, it does happen to adults as well. It’s more known that sleepwalking occurs if members of your family have experienced or are experiencing it.

Research states that it usually takes a couple of hours after falling asleep that the episode begins. When the episode takes place, you may think that the correct thing to do is to wake the person up but it is the complete opposite and here is why, as stated by the BBC

“This will often break the cycle. So what should you do if you find your relative sleepwalking? For a start, they are in such a deep sleep that they will probably not notice you, even if you try to wake them. If you do succeed in waking them you might disorientate them to the extent that they become distressed. Lead them gently back to bed so that they do not hurt themselves. They will remain deeply asleep, and it is likely that they will not remember a thing in the morning”

You may wonder, are there any dangers behind this, it makes sense to wonder because it’s known that sleepwalkers have even got dressed and where dangers come into play are in extreme cases such as driving a car or heading out of the house. There are, of course, sleepwalkers who just sit up in bed, looking confused and staring at the wall. When talking about this topic, you are probably visualising the arms being extended out to the front of them just like in the films, however, this is more based on a myth and arms are usually down.

So, what’s the best way to deal with it if professionals recommend not waking a sleepwalker up? The advice given is to try and take them back to bed. It’s good to note that the person will actually not really acknowledge who you are even though their eyes are usually open

Around 4% of adults sleepwalk, which equals over 5 million of us brits…

It’s known that most sleeping lasts for around 10 minutes although it can last for a longer period. Upon waking, they usually do not have any memory of what happened or may remember vaguely and patchy.

Check out the NHS for some things that could trigger sleepwalking. It’s worth a read.

Highlighted medication:

What medications are available to treat sleepwalking?

Benzodiazepines are commonly the medication of choice to treat anxiety but are well known to treat bouts of sleepwalking, a product which we highly recommend is:

https://www.sleepiwishuk.is/product/rivotril-galenika-2mg-clonazepam/

Brand: Galenika
Treatment: Seizure, panic disorder, epilepsy, heatstroke, muscle relaxant
Active ingredient: Clonazepam

What’s the longest period someone has stayed awake?

A young guy called Randy Gardner, he is the 17-year-old that in the 60s stayed awake for the record of 11 days and 25 minutes! Which most definitely is insane compared to the majority of us who struggle to stay awake until midnight. It isn’t the healthiest of things to do but credit to him for being at the top with that record.

Do Blind People Dream?

Blind people dream differently from sighted people. Also, there are some differences between people who were born blind and people who become blind at a younger age.

Let’s say a person was born blind, they would dream more of smells, sensations and intense sounds.

However, they do dream visual but it is a lot less. a person who becomes blind at a younger age but not at birth may have a percentage of visual dreams from what they have experienced during the time they were able to see.

How Soon Are Dreams Forgotten?

Experts suggest that only 5 minutes after the dream has ended, we’ve already forgotten half of the dream and as the minutes go by we forget over 90%!

There are plenty of studies behind the reason why we’re programmed to forget our dreams, most concluded it is a way for our brains to live out our fears and play on emotions we avoid during the day, we’re able to dream about every scenario possible, even ones that make us have nightmares. Amazingly, this helps us get through each day and become more aware of our surroundings and what we need to be cautious about. Fascinating!

Why do we experience the sensation of falling when we’re half asleep?

These are called ‘hypnic jerks’, they are thought to be perfectly healthy. However, they may be triggered by anxiety, caffeine, or physical activity close to bedtime. Young people experience them more frequently than older individuals.

A hypnic jerk can cause your entire body or individual body parts to contract, usually favouring one side. You may be startled awake or fall back asleep after experiencing a hypnic jerk, or it might be undetectable.

After a major sleep jerk, some people sweat excessively, feel a racing heart, breathe rapidly or irregularly, or breathe rapidly.

Sleep deprivation is the closest reason to why these happen, this is why is it important as always to ensure you have a good night’s sleep, which is where sleeping pill medications are introduced to those who are suffering from trouble sleeping.

Sleep helps and boosts your body’s immune system

Having a good night’s sleep can improve your immune response, but poor sleep can negatively impact it. T helper cells, which are immune system cells that fight invading bacteria, viruses, and foreign antigen cells, are enhanced by high-quality sleep.

Sleeping well is an important aspect of life. Sleep hygiene can help you get a good night’s sleep.

Sleeping in a cold, dark environment and avoiding electronics before bedtime, for example, are important components of sleep hygiene. Regular exercise and avoiding alcohol and caffeine are also critical in improving sleep quality.

Why Use SleepiWish UK?

  • Express shipping: We aim to ship all products within 1 day via Royal Mail Special delivery.
  • Competitive prices: Our prices are fair for the quality of the product being offered and we regularly scan the market for price changes to ensure we’re always reasonable.
  • Customer service: We’re dedicated to our customers, new and returning and always aim to get back to you within an acceptable time frame. You can even chat to one of our reps via the live chat service at the bottom of your screen
  • Range of products: Our range of products aims to cover all types of problems from Insomnia to Depression. Check out our main shop page to browse through our stock.
  • Shop with confidence: We’ve been selling treatments for over 20 years and have built up a customer base of over 100,000 and counting. We process your order efficiently as soon as we see the order come through.

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One Comment

  1. 10 Minute Mail mobile 23 May 2025 at 15:20 - Reply

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