If you have sleep issues, understanding the 5 stages of sleep can help you get to the bottom of your sleep problems.

1. The 5 Stages of Sleep
Most people know that when we sleep we pass through different phases -
the 5 stages of sleep. Actually five different phases called stages 1-4 and
REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. What some people don't know is that we
don't pass from stage one through to REM sleep only once throughout the
night. We go through this cycle repeatedly, with each cycle lasting from 90
to 110 minutes, and each time starting back again at stage 1. On average,
we'll spend about 50% of our sleep time in stage 2 sleep, 20% in REM sleep
and the other 30% in stages 1, 3 and 4 combined. Infants, however, will
generally spend half their time asleep in REM.
The 5 Stages of Sleep
Stage one can be defined as light sleep. It's where we're just starting to drift
off to sleep but can be awakened fairly easily. If you are awakened during
this stage, you will likely remember bits and pieces of visual imagery. It's in

2. this stage that our muscle activity slows and our eyes start to slow down.
During this stage some people experience what are called hypnic jerks or
myoclonic twitches - a sudden movement similar to the little jump you
make when startled or scared.
In stage two, our eye movement ceases and our brain waves slow down. In
this stage, your brain will experience rapid waves that come in bursts
which are referred to as sleep spindles. As we move into stage three, our
brains go through smaller, faster waves and these are accompanied by
considerably slower waves called delta waves. As we progress into stage
four of sleep, our brains produce only delta waves and it's these last two
stages combined (stage 3 and 4) that together are referred to as deep sleep.
During deep sleep there is no muscle
activity or eye movement. It's in these
two stages that some children may
experience sleepwalking, bedwetting
or night terrors. If awakened out of
this deep sleep, you'll likely feel
disoriented and groggy for the few
minutes it takes you to adjust or clear
the sleep from your head.
During the next stage of the 5 stages of sleep, REM sleep, our eyes move
rapidly, jerking back and forth underneath our eyelids (hence the name
Rapid Eye Movement) and we experience a temporary paralysis of our limb
muscles. We also start to experience an increase in the pace of our
breathing although it will be more irregular and shallow. It's also in this
stage that dreaming begins accompanied by an increase in heart rate and a
rise in blood pressure.

3. Not being able to get to sleep at night can be
a horrible experience - at night as well as
throughout the following day. But it doesn't
have to be that way - sometimes all it takes is
a few lifestyle adjustments. Learn what you
need to know to instantly fall asleep each
night in the sleep ebook,
Get to Sleep Now! 39 Ways to Guarantee Your ZZZs.
People will first enter REM about 70 to 90 minutes after initially falling
asleep. During the first few hours of a person's sleep time, they'll
experience less REM and more deep sleep. As they move into the middle
hours of their sleep time, they'll experience more REM and less deep sleep
and by the end of their sleep time, they'll spend the majority of their time
in stages 1, 2 and REM sleep.
Since our bodies lose some of their ability to regulate our core temperature
during REM sleep, hot or cold bedroom temperatures can more easily
disrupt our sleep during this stage. If our bodies go through a disruption of
REM sleep one night, the following
night, our cycles of sleep will differ as
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