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The ideal equation for getting back on track with your sleep unveiled
A lot of us sometimes skip an additional hour of rest to make it to the gym before starting our day, or attend an early morning meeting.
However, have you noticed that sometimes even with reduced sleep, you feel unusually alert?
It’s a fascinating puzzle that has lately caught attention in various parts of the online world, including
Reddit
and
TikTok
.
In a video that has garnered over 30,000 views, TikToker Nathan Beaudinn posed a question to his audience about why he feels much more energetic when he gets less sleep.
On the online discussion platform Reddit, a user posed this question: “Why do I feel less fatigued and more energized upon waking up after getting fewer than seven hours of sleep, whereas if I get more than that, I end up feeling awful?”
Currently, experts who spoke with SANGGRALOKA have unveiled the intriguing explanation.
It is believed that this occurs due to the brain employing compensatory strategies aimed at addressing a deficiency in sleep.
“The body and mind are attempting to adjust to whichever problem or lack they are encountering,” Dr. Sam A. Kashani, a board-certified sleep medicine specialist at UCLA Health, explained to SANGGRALOKA.
That’s why we’ve survived for millennia upon millennia, as regardless of whatever stressor comes our way—be it sudden or long-term—our mind and body will inherently strive to adjust and find a way to function despite it.
As stated by the National Institute for Health, getting between seven and nine hours of sleep each night is best for peak mental and physical well-being.
If it’s any lower, your body, brain, and behavior will adapt to ensure you continue functioning even when you haven’t had enough rest, according to Dr. Ankit Parekh, an assistant professor of sleep medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, who spoke with SANGGRALOKA.
This includes generating additional ‘alertness’ substances that keep your body awake and briefly boost your concentration level, Dr Parekh explained. Examples of these include cortisol, referred to as the stress hormone, and adrenaline.
Following a good night’s rest, many individuals experience their highest cortisol levels in the morning, which then gradually decrease over the course of the day, as stated.
Dr. David Rosenberg
, who engages in family medicine practice in
Florida
.
However, when you receive less sleep than required, you can disrupt this cycle, leading your body to generate cortisol at irregular times, like during later parts of the day.
Dr. Parekh mentioned this could make you feel like your energy levels are elevated during the later part of the day or in the evening.
Nevertheless, if you consistently get inundated with stress hormones, these could start taking a toll on your physical health.
For instance, persistently elevated cortisol levels may result in hypertension, an impaired immune response, and increased blood glucose which can contribute to type 2 diabetes.
diabetes
,
according to Cleveland Clinic
.
This additional strain on your brain cells hinders their normal function, causing you to feel even more fatigued over time.
Dr. Parekh mentioned, “You might think that sleeping less makes you more vigilant. However, as you stay awake for longer periods with minimal sleep, you’ll begin noticing its impact, and before long, you’ll understand the importance of recuperation.”
Research indicates that cognitive performance drops significantly due to insufficient sleep — despite feeling awake.
One study
from the
University of Pennsylvania along with Harvard
discovered that volunteers who have had poor sleep perform worse on learning tests but report feeling completely alert.
The scientists indicated that the participants appeared to be ‘mostly oblivious’ to the growing impacts of sleep deprivation.
Dr. Parekh states that according to brain scan research, individuals lacking sufficient sleep must exert considerably more effort to concentrate compared to those who get adequate rest.
Dr. Kashani mentioned that another element affecting one’s sense of alertness could be anxiety.
The stressful situations that haunt your nights and lead to poorer quality of sleep might also cause you to feel more awake during the daytime, he explained.
This ‘vicious cycle’ can be tough to escape from, and even though you might feel more awake initially, you will start experiencing the detrimental effects of sleep deprivation over time.
An additional explanation for why you may feel more alert despite getting less sleep could be due to an increase in consuming stimulants that boost your brain activity as a result of lacking sleep.
For instance, if you typically have coffee during most mornings, you may find yourself pouring an additional cup unintentionally. Generally, the higher your caffeine intake, the more likely you are to experience heightened alertness.
Lastly, there’s a slim possibility that you belong to an uncommon subset of individuals who thrive with minimal sleep compared to the typical person, according to Dr. Parekh.
Scientists are uncertain about the exact number of individuals who fall under this category – those impacted by short sleeper syndrome – but they have definitively identified it in approximately
Fifty Families Across the Globe
as per Cleveland Clinic.
It’s believed to be caused by a rare genetic alteration inherited from parents rather than something that develops over your lifetime.
Miraculously, short sleepers manage to obtain four to six hours of rest each night and yet remain full of energy. Additionally, they usually do not rely on alarm clocks and find it simple to fall asleep when nighttime comes.
Famously,
Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher
is claimed to fall under this category, requiring just four hours of sleep each night.
However, if you belong to the large group of individuals who require more than four hours of sleep, you’ll start feeling the impacts gradually as your consistent sleep duration falls below this threshold, according to Dr. Kashani.
In the near future, you might face difficulties concentrating, acquiring knowledge, and understanding others’ feelings if you receive fewer than eight hours of sleep.
according to the NIH.
You may become more easily irritated and short-tempered than usual, making interactions with others challenging.
Dr. Parekh mentioned that when we lack sleep, our body experiences increased inflammation, which gradually weakens all our internal systems—from the brain to the heart.
This could be one of the reasons why, over time, insufficient sleep has been associated with various health issues such as heart disease, kidney problems, diabetes, strokes, weight gain, depression, and hypertension, as stated by the NIH. Additionally, Dr. Kashani mentioned that it may lead to degenerative disorders including dementia.
This could also raise your chances of getting into accidents such as vehicular collisions.
In total, Dr. Kashani mentioned that numerous individuals ‘downplay’ the significance of sleep.
Adequate rest is essential for maintaining good health, he emphasized. He further stated, “The crucial sleep habit is simply to get enough sleep whenever your body requires it.”
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