We have just read in the prior post that when we sleep our brain passes though different stages of sleep, producing different waves such as delta, beta, theta and alpha. As these waves change we drift from one stage of sleep to another, from deep sleep to dreams and then to wakefulness. But normally these brain waves are inaudible to the human ear. These rhythmic sleep cycles lasts for around 3 hours; however can we set aside 3 hours for a nap?
If the answer is no, then what is the remedy? All we need to do is close our eyes and listen to the power nap recording via stereo headphones and we can actually listen to the
brain waves which otherwise are inaudible. To know more about power nap click here

By now we know what happens if we do not sleep, but little is known about what happens when we are asleep? Sleep occurs in recurring cycles of 90 to 110 minutes divided into two categories
1.Non REM (Rapid Eye Movement) Sleep
2.REM Sleep
The Non REM is sub divided into 4 stages
Step one Light sleep
At this stage we can be awakened by the slightest of noise, and the muscle activity slows down. We are partially awake and partially asleep.
Step two True sleep
This stage lasts for around 20 minutes and we enter this stage within 10 minutes of light sleep. The heart rate and the pace of breathing slow down making us more stable. True sleep accounts for the maximum part of human sleep.
Step three and four Deep sleep
Breathing and heart rate are at their lowest level as the brain starts sending delta waves.
At step four muscle activity is reduced considerably characterized by continuous rhythmic breathing. This is the deep sleep mode, if awakened at this stage we tend to be groggy and grumpy.
 

REM
The body is sleeping and numb but the brain is very active and this is the time when most of the dreams occur. Our blood pressure is on the rise and breathing becomes faster and heavier. We have around 4- 5 REM episodes at night.
After REM the sleep cycle restarts.

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More than half of America’s population is suffering from sleep deprivation, commonly known as apnea, insomnia, or narcolepsy. There are people who boast about their stamina to do their work with a minimal amount of sleep and still stay fresh.
After all how far can anyone stretch the demand of their own body and mind? It is a known universal truth that any type of fatigue is injurious to health. The sleep problem has reached its peak and is the most sought after problem.
One point is clear like water that we need sufficient amount of sleep to survive, although the exact definition of sleep is still a mystery. But one thing is proved that those who get a minimum of 7 hours of sleep live longer than those who sleep for less than 6 hours. This lack pf sleep can prove to be very expensive and fatal. The National Commission on Sleep Disorder estimates the cost of sleep deprivation to be $ 150 billion, in terms of reduced productivity and high level of stress.
It is of utmost important to bring about an awareness and social consciousness regarding the causes of sleeplessness, the effects, and the remedies available to overcome it.

Pic courtesy The Big Mr on www.flickr.com
 

Babies are the best gift anyone can have, they are the most adorable, innocent, and happy beings on this planet. When they are out of their mother’s womb which is their security zone they need some time tome to get in tune with the outside world. One of the main concerns of any parent is their little ones sleep, because as mentioned in the earlier posts it takes about three months to six months to get into a fixed sleeping pattern and sometimes even two years.
There are two schools of thoughts for encouraging babies to sleep peacefully, the cry out technique or the grin and bear it solution. The advocates of cry out solution make it sound so simple, as you just need to let the baby cry out for a few nights and then the baby starts sleeping undisturbed. If only it was so simple every one would be able to apply the same rule.
Research shows that it might be effortless for some parents, but most of the babies cry so relentlessly and violently, that they even vomit on such occasions. Some of them feel that night time crying affects their daytime as the babies tend to be more clingy and cranky. Many parents resort to this solution thinking it will get their babies and themselves a good and long sleep.
Nevertheless can any parent bear to see their bundle of joy crying, for reasons unknown to themselves? I think no and you all will vouch for the same. So let’s think of some other way to tackle this issue in the coming days
Pic courtesy www.flickr.com and Idychapman

A baby right from his birth till one and a half month tries to get acquainted with the new world and its way of living. As a reason of this most of the infants have a disturbed sleeping pattern in the first 1 month. At the end of 2- 3 months he gets acclimatized and start sleeping a little peacefully.
The difficulty in sleeping is associated with night wakings, which occur due to a learned pattern requiring parent’s intervention to fall asleep. Most of the infants are restless during the night because they suffer from colic, an allergy, ear infection or any sort of viral.

Although for the babies it is nothing to do with insomnia as it is a part of growing up.
Night wakings or sleep arousals occur in all age groups of children, right from infants to adolescents; the point to be noted is, whether a child can signal to his parents that he requires their assistance to sleep. If a toddler cannot or is unable to communicate to his or her parent and cannot be pacified then it is matter of concern requiring medical aid.
Since children of this age do not perceive these night wakings as a problem sleep difficulty in children does not meet the definition of insomnia.

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Insomnia is an epidemic; it truly is as we can see seven in ten are suffering from insomnia. Like we are what we eat similarly we can do much more than what we think we actually can, if we are able to take charge of all the thoughts and emotions nothing can stop us from what we want to do. Gradually it becomes a habit to control our inner feelings.
The subconscious mind plays a very vital role in conquering insomnia, it signals the mind to take charge of all the negative thoughts and reinforce the optimistic thoughts.
It is not a miracle that happens overnight as the symptoms of any ailment need to be cured rather than the ailment itself.
Popping up a sleeping pill and lying in bed anxiously waiting for our dear friend to do its magic is extremely easy. Real test is if we can overcome the causes of insomnia and get rid of it right from the roots.
To sleep naturally and soundly we need to work on it ourselves and believe in ourselves.

For at least 3 years I always associated bedtime and wakefulness with tensions and thoughts of worry because there was not a single night when I slept peacefully. God, how I dreaded those nights always wandering why is this happening to me. Like most of the insomniacs I failed to understand what is insomnia and what is it that triggers it.
So many hours of tension and spiraling thoughts and how I myself shunned my ability to sleep. Lack of sleep curbed my ability to concentrate on my daily work and I was gradually losing confidence in myself.
I always felt tired and exhausted and thought everything around me was going haywire. As if I was losing control and never thought I could regain control over myself as well as the situation.
But all in vain Insomnia like any other anxiety disorder is treatable however grave and chronic it may seem. We have been taught in school Nothing is Impossible.
Are you interested in knowing how to beat this so called chronic disorder, stay connected.

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Does everyone sleep well through the night? Yes, well actually No. About 40%- 50% of the population suffers from insomnia, and 5%- 10% suffer from chronic insomnia. Insomnia as we all know by now is difficulty to sleep through the night due to various reasons. The causes vary from person to person; similarly there are different medicines which help to sleep through the night. These drugs have some or the other significant side effect, although they might be prescribed by an experienced physician.
Excessive intake of these medicines may cause drowsiness and instead of feeling elated and full of energy a person feels very dull and groggy. Latest innovations in this field of medicine are some natural supplements or certain naturopathic pills, which if taken consistently and for the prescribed reasons have little or no side effects improving both quality and quantity of sleep.
However the market is floored with so many new medicines everyday, that it is hard to judge which one is most reliable. Out of the approximately 150 natural drugs in the market only a few have qualified the safety and maximum relief test.
For the detailed information click here. 
 

It is a known fact that the cause of any behaviour seen in adults is rooted to childhood experiences, genetics, and parental behaviour. Similarly, the children who have sleeplessness in their childhood are more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety, and aggression in their adolescence. In a study conducted of children aged between 4- 6 years parents rated their sleep patterns and any unusual behaviour on different scales. The same children reported later at the age of 17- 30 years their own emotional and behavioural pattern. The study suggested that the parental reports of children sleeping less hours in their childhood scored high on scales of depression and anxiety than those who did. Reasons for the sleep related problems cannot be known in the infant stage as the infant is not verbally expressive, so it the physicians duty to inquire about any sleep disorder in the early stages of child development.
If any serious abnormality in the initial phase of life is observed, steps to eradicate any type of future risks should be taken immediately 

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"Jack mama told you to keep all your books in place, the house is in a mess and no one seems to be bothered”. “God please help me”. This and other such irritated dialogues can be heard from every house. However, why is this happening to all of us, is it the pressure at work, well yes. Everyone is trying to juggle around with work, family, and friends. Natural consequence of this is that the amount of work as compared to their rest period is more it never strikes a balance.
This cycle continues daily, people drag themselves out of bed every morning feeling groggy, dazed and trying hard to keep awake and feel energetic. Nevertheless, that does not mean they quit, all they do is take a nice hot cup of coffee and get back to work. Work is worship, which is what propels them to do more. Sometimes they cannot concentrate on their work and tend to make silly mistakes, might even get furious at one of the subordinates. If this is the routine then it is for sure that these people are suffering from sleep deprivation.
It is necessary for such people to find out the reasons for lack of sleep, work on it, and not ignore it. After all burning the midnight oil is not always a must isn’t it.

Pic courtesy www.flickr.com by sarahmonster