What Is NREM Sleep?

REM sleep is the process of phases in which there is low physical movement, and the propensity of the sleeper to dream vividly. The phase is also known as paradoxical sleep and sometimes desynchronized sleep because of the physiological similarities to being awake, including rapid, low-voltage desynchronized brain waves. The right and left hemispheres of the brain are more coherent in REM sleep, especially during lucid dreams. Two other neurotransmitters seem to promote wakefulness, diminish during deep sleep, and inhibit paradoxical sleep. Unlike the abrupt transitions in electrical patterns, the chemical changes in the brain show continuous periodic movement. NREM Origins and Description
The theories to explain where NREM sleep originated,
comes from a functional perspective. The claims seem to have discovered that NREM has a survival value and that has been formed by natural selection. Although this has not been confirmed as a new function, it is a simple claim that is a behavioral precursor of dreaming and is part of its neurological history.
In the first 90 minutes of NREM sleep contain 4 stages in which brain activity increases and decreases physical activity. In stage 1, alpha brain waves contain drowsiness and get replaced by slower theta brain waves (Carskadon and Dement, 2005). For a short period of time in this stage, the sleeper begins to transition and disengage from the sensations of the surrounding environment. All surrounding sounds begin to fade from your conscious awareness. During this stage, you are still able to regain consciousness if need be. While in this stage, it is possible to have a less vivid imagery such as imagining yourself doing day to day activity.
Stage 2 NREM sleep can be described by sleep spindles, which are brief bursts of brain activity that last a second or two. Other than this brain activity the brain proceeds to slow down to enter a deeper sleep. Breathing because more of a consistent pattern and muscle twitches may happen. Theta waves are still present, but larger, slower brain waves, called delta brain waves begin to emerge. Delta wave activity gradually increases and moves the sleeper toward a deeper sleep state. Stage 3 and stage 4 NREM sleep contain very slow-wave sleep in which both stages are defined by the amount of delta brain-wave activity. At about 20% of brain activity, the sleeper is in stage 3 and when activity is at 50% the brain is considered to be at stage 4 NREM sleep. Anywhere between 20 and 40 minutes spent in stage 4 NREM sleep, the brain will come to represent 100% of brain activity.
The Purpose of Sleep

The question, “why do we need sleep?” may seem quite clear why.
We need to rest our body and mind from an active day so we may do so tomorrow. The problem is, sleep researcher actually are not sure why we actually need sleep (Cirelli and Tononi, 2008). Sleeping has a physiological process that restores and rejuvenate the body and the mind. It also provides much rest for muscles and body. Sleeping is also believed to maintain the immune system function, improve cognitive abilities, as well as helping regulate moods and emotions. When to examine the sleep patterns of other species, they come to find that this explanation of sleeping does not work with other species sleeping patterns. However, some have taken on the view that by examining animals in their environment explain to researchers that sleep is developed by the result of evolutionary adaptation (Roth and others, 2010; Siegel, 2009). Comparing a lion to a zebra, research has shown that lions can sleep up to 15 hours in one day as when a zebra and other animals that are preyed upon show to sleep less due to survivalist nature against its predators. To briefly conclude, sleep as of now is an evolutionary adaptation in which a species rests ones body and mind and depending on the evolutionary level in which the species is at, the greater benefits of retaining more sleep and has an evolutionary advantage over the other
species.

Dreams and Lucid Dreaming

Sigmund Freud began his research of dreams by having to make a choice in how dream studies should be considered. Freud had to decide if dream studies should be neurobiological or psychological and Dr. Freud chose that this study would be best described with a psychological explanation. Freud said in a statement that he would bring proof that a psychological technique which would make interpreting dreams possible, and that, if the process was to be employed, that dreams would eventually reveal itself as a psychical structure which would have a definition that could be applied in mental activity of waking life (Freud, 1990/1965). Dreams has always been an interest since the beginning of life. In our adult lives, it said that about 25% of a night’s sleep, or about 2 hours is spent every night dreaming. In an average life span, we spend 50,000 hours or about 6 to 7 years dreaming. What is more prevalent than dreaming and what is considered to be most common is actually sleep thinking or sleep meditation. Sleep meditation occurs during the process of NREM sleep where vague and rumination of real-life events (McCarley, 2007).Therefore, in examining sleep thinking, a dream is a revealing sequence of perceptions, thoughts, and emotions that occur during sleep that is perceived as real-life events.

Conclusion

Why we sleep and dream to the process in which it occurs play a major role in keeping up with the maintenance that come with our daily lives.
The 4 stages describe in detail of how brain activity regulates as we fall into a deep slumber and how that the neuro and psychological activity can produce such a phenomena that has caused significant interest since the beginning of time. These psychological phenomena’s take up a large portion of our lives and has influenced many of their beliefs in their daily lives. However, the study of why we dream is still not answered, but as for sleep it is shown that it is an evolutionary adaptation to cope with the everyday environment that you are present in. Sleeping and its processes play a huge role in cognitive abilities such as helping with learning, moods and emotions, physical energy, and it removes toxins from the mind and body. Technology advancement from EEG scans reveal that sleep can help with memory and of course, even improve your happiness. Studies show that sleep deprivation can cause major harm in going about your daily activities such as insomnia, depression, anger and frustration, and
irritability.