A cyclical pattern of sleep is essential for your health
Sleep architecture is the basic pattern of normal sleep.
You experience two main types of sleeprapid eye movement (REM)and non-rapid eye movement (NREM).
NREM Stage 1 Sleep
In NREM stage 1, you’ve just drifted off to sleep.
monkeybusinessimages / Getty Images
This phase is characterized by:
NREM stage 1 sleep generally lasts for just five to 10 minutes.
You may return to it a few times overnight but not necessarily in each cycle.
NREM Stage 2 Sleep
Once you’re fully asleep, you enter NREM stage 2.
It may alternate with REM sleep for much of the night, without NREM stage 3 in between.
That’s one reason medical professionals believe sleep spindles show that the brain is processing memories.
NREM 3 also feels like important for memory and creativity.
Also, you don’t progress directly from NREM 3 to REM.
From NREM 3, it’s typical to go back into NREM 2 and then REM.
The results will then be examined by a healthcare provider, usually a sleep specialist.
You may also be sent for lab tests to check for other possible causes of your symptoms.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which stage of sleep is most important?
Stages of sleep are interdependent and hence all are important.
NREM stage 3 looks like it’s a physiologic need.
Can alcohol help you sleep?
It disrupts REM sleep, which can lead to health and memory problems.
Chronic, moderate to high alcohol consumption can also lead to insomnia.
A Word From Verywell
Sleep is essential for good health and quality of life.
You’ve got a lot of options for sleeping, feeling, and functioning better.
Colrain IM, Nicholas CL, Baker FC.Alcohol and the sleeping brain.Handb Clin Neurol.
2018;13(4):e0194604.
2017;40(9):10.1093/sleep/zsx117.
2016;142(9):969-990. doi:10.1037/bul0000053
Thakkar MM, Sharma R, Sahota P.Alcohol disrupts sleep homeostasis.Alcohol.
