How the Brain Moves from Waking Life to Sleep (and Back Again)
7 days ago
- #consciousness
- #brain-waves
- #sleep-science
- The transition from wakefulness to sleep involves significant changes in brain activity, including slowed blood flow, increased cerebrospinal fluid circulation, and synchronized neuron firing.
- Sleep stages were first categorized by Alfred Lee Loomis using EEG, leading to the identification of REM and non-REM sleep phases.
- The hypnagogic state (early sleep stage) boosts creativity, as shown by studies where waking from this state helped solve mathematical problems.
- Brain regions shut down gradually during sleep onset, starting with the thalamus and followed by the cortex, leading to dreamlike thoughts.
- Waking up involves a unique slow brain wave that helps reduce drowsiness, with the cortex reactivating from front to back.
- Sleep disorders like insomnia, sleep paralysis, and sleepwalking result from disrupted transitions between sleep and wake states.
- Local sleep occurs when parts of the brain rest while the person remains awake, challenging traditional definitions of sleep.