What is REM Sleep and How Much Do You Need?

Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is a stage of sleep associated with dreaming and memory consolidation3. REM sleep was first discovered in the ... Opensinanewwindow Share: Home /StagesofSleep /WhatisREMSleepandHowMuchDoYouNeed? WhatisREMSleepandHowMuchDoYouNeed? UpdatedApril26,2022 Writtenby JaySummer,StaffWriter MedicallyReviewedby Dr.AbhinavSingh,SleepPhysician FactChecked Ourteamofwriters,editors,andmedicalexpertsrigorouslyevaluateseacharticletoensuretheinformationisaccurateandexclusivelycitesreputablesources.LearnMore Weregularlyassesshowthecontentinthisarticlealignswithcurrentscientificliteratureandexpertrecommendationsinordertoprovidethemostup-to-dateresearch. Rapideyemovement(REM)sleepgoesbymanynames,includingactivesleep,desynchronizedsleep,paradoxicalsleep,rhombencephalicsleep,anddreamsleep.ManypeoplehavebeentoldREMsleepisthestageofsleepinwhichyoudream,butREMisinvolvedinahostofimportantfunctions,frombraindevelopmenttoemotionalprocessing. WeexplorethemysteriesofREMsleep,whyweneedREMsleep,whathappenswhenwedon’tgetenoughREMsleep,andthesleepdisordersassociatedwiththisstageofsleep. WhatIsREMSleep? Rapideyemovement(REM)sleepisastageofsleepassociatedwithdreamingandmemoryconsolidation.REMsleepwasfirstdiscoveredinthe1950s,whenscientistsstudyingsleepinginfantsnoticedthatthereweredistinctperiodswhentheireyesmovedrapidlyfromsidetoside.Theserapideyemovements,orREMs,earnedREMsleepitsname. WhatHappensDuringREMSleep? DuringREMsleep,youreyesmoverapidlybehindyourclosedeyes,yourheartratespeedsup,andyourbreathingbecomesirregular.Incontrasttootherstagesofsleep,inwhichyourbrainwavesslowdown,yourbrainishighlyactiveduringREMsleep,andyourbrainwavesbecomemorevariable. DuringREMsleep,muchofyourbodyoperatessimilarlytohowitdoeswhenyou’reawake,exceptyoureyesareclosedandyouexperienceatemporarylossofmuscletone.Researchershavehypothesizedthatthisisaprotectivemeasure,meanttostopyoufromactingoutyourdreamsandinjuringyourself.However,nowthatscientistsknowwecanexperiencedreamsduringnon-REMsleepstageswhenourbodiesarenotparalyzed,thishypothesisislosingsteam. Variousland-basedspeciesexperienceREMsleep,includinghumansandothermammals,reptilesliketheAustralianbeardeddragon,andmostbirds.Although,REMsleepcanlookdifferentdependingonthespecies.Forexample,owlsdon’texperienceactualrapideyemovementsduringREMsleepsincetheycan’tmovetheireyesintheirskulls.And,somebirdsonlylosemuscletoneincertainareas,liketheneck,duringREMsleep,sotheirheadcanrestwhiletheykeepstandingononefoot. REMVs.Non-REMSleep REMsleepisoneofthemostfascinatingstagesofsleep,inpartbecauseit’ssodifferentfromotherstagesofsleep.Innon-REMsleep,youreyesdon’tmove,yourbrainwavesaremuchslower,andyoumaintainsomemuscletone.TraitsuniquetoREMsleepthatdifferentiateitfromnon-REMsleepinclude: Brainwaveactivitythat’smoresimilartowakefulnessthananyotherstageofsleep Completelossofmuscletonevs.thepartialmuscletoneofnon-REMsleep Irregularbreathingvs.thesteady,slowerbreathingofnon-REMsleep Ariseinheartratevs.theslowdownexperiencedinnon-REMsleep Theabilitytobeawokenmoreeasilythanduringnon-REMsleep WhenDoesREMSleepOccur? YouexperienceyourfirstcycleofREMsleepabout60to90minutesafterfallingasleep.Aspartofafullnight’ssleep,youcyclethroughfourstagesofsleepmultipletimes:threestagesofnon-REMsleep,followedbyonestageofREMsleep.Eachcyclethroughallthesleepstagestakes90to120minutestocomplete.Witheachnewcycle,youspendincreasingamountsoftimeinREMsleep,withmostofyourREMsleeptakingplaceinthesecondhalfofthenight. Eachstageofsleepisdistinct: Stage1(LightSleep):Asyourbrainslowsdown,low-amplitudemixed-frequency(LAMF)activityreplacesthealphabrainwavesthattookoverasyoubecamedrowsy.Yourbodyhassomemuscletone,andyourbreathingisregular. Stage2(LightSleep):Yourheartrateandbodytemperaturebothdecrease.SleepspindlesandK-complexes,specificbrainwavepatterns,beginoccurringasyoucontinuetransitioningtowarddeepsleep. Stage3(DeepSleep):Yourbrainwavesatthisstage,calleddeltawaves,areattheirslowestofthenight.Wakingyouisdifficult,andthosewhoarerousedfromthisstageexperiencesleepinertia,ashortperiodoffogginessandimpairedcognitiveperformance.Indeepsleep,yourbodyphysicallyrepairsitself,boostingyourimmunesystemandrestoringyourbones,muscles,andtissue. Stage4(REMsleep):Yourbrainactivityinthisstagelookssimilartohowitlookswhenyouareawake.Youexperiencealossofmuscletone,exceptforyoureyes,whichmoverapidly.Yourbreathingbecomesirregularandyourheartraterises.     WhyIsREMSleepImportant? Allsleepisimportant,butREMsleepinparticularplaysanimportantroleindreaming,memory,emotionalprocessing,andhealthybraindevelopment. Dreaming AmajorityofyourdreamstakeplaceduringREMsleep.However,REMisnottheonlystageinwhichdreamsoccur—that’sactuallyacommonmythaboutsleep.Thatsaid,thedreamsyouexperienceinREMsleepareusuallymorevividthannon-REMsleepdreams. EmotionalProcessing YourbrainprocessesemotionsduringREMsleep.Dreams,whicharemorevividinREMsleep,maybeinvolvedinemotionalprocessing.Also,youramygdala,thepartofyourbrainthatprocessesemotions,activatesduringREMsleep. MemoryConsolidation DuringREMsleep,yourbrainprocessesnewlearningsandmotorskillsfromtheday,committingsometomemory,maintainingothers,anddecidingwhichonestodelete.Somememoryconsolidationalsotakesplaceindeepsleep,anon-REMstage. BrainDevelopment ResearchershypothesizeREMsleeppromotesbraindevelopment,sincenewbornsspendmostoftheirsleeptimeinREM.Addingtotheevidenceisthatanimalsbornwithlessdevelopedbrains,suchashumansandpuppies,spendevenmoretimeinREMsleepduringinfancythanthosethatarebornwithmoredevelopedbrains,likehorsesandbirds. WakefulnessPreparation REMsleep,throughitsactivationofourcentralnervoussystem,mighthelpusgetreadytowakebackup.ThismayexplainwhywespendincreasingamountsoftimeinREMsleepasthenightprogressesandwhyweareeasiertowakeupduringthisstage. HowMuchREMSleepDoYouNeed? WeneedthemostREMsleepasinfantsandchildren,whenourbrainsarestilldeveloping.NewbornbabiesspendeighthoursinREMsleepeachday.Byadulthood,weonlyneedanaverageoftwohoursofREMsleepeachnight. DifferentspeciesrequiredifferentamountsofREMsleep.Somemammals,likehorsesandelephants,cangetbywithlittletonoREMsleep,whilecats,platypuses,andferretsmayspenduptoeighthourseachdayinREMsleep.Likehumans,mostmammalsalsospendagreaterproportionoftheirsleeptimeinREMsleepwhentheyareinfantsthantheydoasadults. Yourbodyaltersyoursleepdurationbothoverthecourseofyourlifeandfromday-to-dayaccordingtoyourbiologicalandenergeticneeds.Similarly,howmuchtimeyouspendinthespecificstagesofsleep,includingREM,canvaryfromnighttonightbasedonwhatyourbodyneeds. Forexample,bothanimalandhumanstudieshavedocumentedincreasedREMsleepafterlearning.Inastudyofrats,thosewholearnedanewmazespentmoretimeinREMsleepfornearlyaweekafterward.Anotherstudymonitoredtheimpactsofsleepontheworkingmemoryofhealthycollegestudents.Eachday,thestudentsweregiventwotests,withonegrouptakinganapbetweenthetestsandtheothergroupstayingawake.Thegroupthatnappedhadhigheraccuracy,and,themoretimetheyspentinREMsleepduringtheirnap,thehighertheiraccuracy. WhatHappensifYouDon’tGetEnoughREMSleep? MultiplestudiesofbothhumansandanimalssuggestthatbeingdeprivedofREMsleepinterfereswithmemoryformation.However,memoryproblemsassociatedwithalossofREMsleepcouldbeduetooverallsleepdisruption,sincethoseoftenoccurtogether.Also,studiesofthefewrareindividualswhodonotexperienceREMsleepshowthattheydonotexperienceproblemswithmemoryorlearning.Thatsaid,REMsleepdeprivationdisruptsthebrain’sabilitytogeneratenewcells.MoreresearchisneededtobetterunderstandtheeffectsofREMsleepdeprivation. Ingeneral,missingoutonsleepisn’trecommended.Sleepaffectsvariousaspectsofyouroverallhealth,fromyourmoodtoyourimmunesystem.Whenyoudon’tgetenoughsleep,youexperiencesleepdeprivation.Signsofsleepdeprivationcaninclude: Difficultyconcentratingduringtheday Excessivedaytimesleepiness Forgetfulnessorpoormemory Overtime,chronicsleepdeprivationislinkedtohealthconditionslikediabetes,depression,obesity,andcardiovasculardisease. Withoutadequatesleep,yourcognitiveperformancewilldecline.Youmayfindyourselfforgettingthingsmoreoften,asworkingmemoryishighlyaffectedbysleepdeprivation.Infact,shortsleepers,whoregularlysleepfewerthansixhourspernight,canexperiencethesameimpairmentstotheirworkingmemoryaspeoplewhohaven’tsleptfortwonightsinarow.SinceyougetmostofyourREMsleepinthesecondhalfofthenight,shortsleepersspendlesstimeinREM.Certainmedications,suchasthosecommonlyusedtotreatanxietyanddepression,mayalsosuppressREMsleep. SleepDisordersAssociatedWithREMSleep CertainsleepdisordersareassociatedwithabnormalREMsleep.TheseincludeREMsleepbehaviordisorder(RBD),narcolepsy,andnightmaredisorder: REMSleepBehaviorDisorder(RBD):PeoplewithRBDdon’talwaysexperiencemuscleparalysisduringREMsleep,sosometimestheyactouttheirdreams.Theymayshout,punch,kick,orjerkintheirsleep,whichcanleadtotheminjuringthemselvesortheirsleeppartner.RBDmaybecausedbyabreakdownintheareaofthebrainstemresponsibleforregulatingREMsleep.RBDoftenprecedesthedevelopmentofaneurodegenerativedisease. Narcolepsy:Whenthey’reawake,peoplewithnarcolepsycanexperienceepisodesofcataplexy.CataplexyinvolvesasuddenlossofmuscletoneandisthoughttooccurbecauseapersonfallsintoREMsleepinstantly,fromwakefulness.Othersymptomsofnarcolepsyincludeexcessivedaytimesleepiness,disruptedREMsleep,andhypnagogia,ordream-likehallucinationsthatoccurrightbeforefallingasleep.Narcolepsyappearstobecausedbyalossoforexinneuronsinthehypothalamus. NightmareDisorder:NightmaresusuallyoccurduringREMsleep.Apersonwithnightmaredisorderregularlyexperiencesintenseanddistressingnightmares.Nightmaredisordercanbebroughtonbystress,childhoodtrauma,andotherfrighteningexperiences. ObstructiveSleepApnea(OSA)andCentralSleepApnea(CSA):AlthoughsleepapneadisordersdonotonlyoccurduringtheREMsleepstages,theydoaffecttheamountofREMsleepapersonobtains.Insleepapnea,apersonexperienceslapsesinbreathingastheysleep.WhentheselapsesoccurduringREM,theyoftenmovetoalightersleepcycleinordertocontinuebreathing.Asaresult,peoplewithsleepapneatendtospendlesstimeinREMsleepthanothersandexperienceexcessivedaytimesleepiness. WhentoTalktoYourDoctor Ifyounoticesymptomsofsleepdeprivation,orbelieveyoumighthaveasleepdisorderlikeREMsleepbehaviordisorderornightmaredisorder,talktoyourdoctor.Theycanhelpyoudeterminethecauseofyoursleepissuesanddevelopatreatmentstrategytoimproveyoursleep. Wasthisarticlehelpful? YesNo AboutOurEditorialTeam JaySummer StaffWriter JaySummerisahealthcontentwriterandeditor.SheholdsaB.S.inpsychologyandmaster'sdegreesinwritingandpublicpolicy. Dr.AbhinavSingh SleepPhysician MD Dr.SinghistheMedicalDirectoroftheIndianaSleepCenter.Hisresearchandclinicalpracticefocusesontheentiremyriadofsleepdisorders. Share: References +11 Sources 1. Blumberg,M.S.,Lesku,J.A.,Libourel,P.A.,Schmidt,M.H.,&Rattenborg,N.C.(2020).WhatisREMsleep?.CurrentBiology,30(1),R38–R49. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31910377/ 2. Peever,J.,&Fuller,P.M.(2017).ThebiologyofREMsleep.CurrentBiology,27(22),R1237–R1248. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29161567/ 3. NationalInstituteofNeurologicalDisordersandStroke.(2019,August13).Brainbasics:Understandingsleep.RetrievedNovember4,2021,from https://www.ninds.nih.gov/Disorders/Patient-Caregiver-Education/Understanding-Sleep 4. Siegel,J.M.(2011).REMsleep:Abiologicalandpsychologicalparadox.SleepMedicineReviews,15(3),139–142. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21482156/ 5. Feriante,J.,&Araujo,J.F.(2021).Physiology,REMsleep.InStatPearls.StatPearlsPublishing. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30285349/ 6. Patel,A.K.,Reddy,V.,&Araujo,J.F.(2021).Physiology,SleepStages.InStatPearls.StatPearlsPublishing. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30252388/ 7. Ackermann,S.,&Rasch,B.(2014).Differentialeffectsofnon-REMandREMsleeponmemoryconsolidation?.CurrentNeurologyandNeuroscienceReports,14(2),430. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24395522/ 8. Rasch,B.,&Born,J.(2013).Aboutsleep'sroleinmemory.PhysiologicalReviews,93(2),681–766. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23589831/ 9. Lau,E.Y.,Wong,M.L.,Lau,K.N.,Hui,F.W.,&Tseng,C.H.(2015).Rapid-eye-movement-sleep(REM)associatedenhancementofworkingmemoryperformanceafteradaytimenap.PloSOne,10(5),e0125752. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25970511/ 10. Grandner,M.A.,Patel,N.P.,Gehrman,P.R.,Perlis,M.L.,&Pack,A.I.(2010).Problemsassociatedwithshortsleep:Bridgingthegapbetweenlaboratoryandepidemiologicalstudies.SleepMedicineReviews,14(4),239–247. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19896872/ 11. Gieselmann,A.,AitAoudia,M.,Carr,M.,Germain,A.,Gorzka,R.,Holzinger,B.,Kleim,B.,Krakow,B.,Kunze,A.E.,Lancee,J.,Nadorff,M.R.,Nielsen,T.,Riemann,D.,Sandahl,H.,Schlarb,A.A.,Schmid,C.,Schredl,M.,Spoormaker,V.I.,Steil,R.,vanSchagen,A.M.,…Pietrowsky,R.(2019).Aetiologyandtreatmentofnightmaredisorder:Stateoftheartandfutureperspectives.JournalofSleepResearch,28(4),e12820. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30697860/ LearnmoreabouttheStagesofSleep DeepSleep By DaniellePacheco | March11,2022 WhatisREMSleepandHowMuchDoYouNeed? By JaySummer | April26,2022 WhatisNREMSleep? 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