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Stage 3 – previously divided into stages 3 and 4, is deep sleep, slow-wave sleep (SWS). Stage 3 was formerly the transition between stage 2 and stage 4 where delta waves, associated with "deep" sleep, began to occur, while delta waves dominated in stage 4. In 2007, these were combined into just stage 3 for all of deep sleep. [7]
The whole period normally proceeds in the order: N1 → N2 → N3 → N2 → REM. REM sleep occurs as a person returns to stage 2 or 1 from a deep sleep. [18] There is a greater amount of deep sleep (stage N3) earlier in the night, while the proportion of REM sleep increases in the two cycles just before natural awakening. [15]
The sleep cycle is an oscillation between the slow-wave and REM (paradoxical) phases of sleep. It is sometimes called the ultradian sleep cycle, sleep–dream cycle, or REM-NREM cycle, to distinguish it from the circadian alternation between sleep and wakefulness. In humans, this cycle takes 70 to 110 minutes (90 ± 20 minutes). [ 1]
Stage 4: You enter REM sleep last during each cycle. You stay in REM sleep for 10 minutes to an hour each time. ... Deep sleep happens in stage 3, while REM sleep occurs in stage 4. Deep sleep is ...
While slow waves and sleep spindles are present in stages 2, 3, and 4, stage 2 sleep is characterized by a higher prevalence of spindles, while slow waves dominate the EEG during stages 3 and 4. [22] [21] Slow-wave sleep is an active phenomenon probably brought about by the activation of serotonergic neurons of the raphe system. [23]
REM sleep occurs 4 times in a 7-hour sleep. [4] Organisms in REM sleep suspend central homeostasis, allowing large fluctuations in respiration, thermoregulation and circulation which do not occur in any other modes of sleeping or waking. The body abruptly loses muscle tone, a state known as REM atonia.
NREM Stage 1 (N1 – light sleep, somnolence, drowsy sleep – 5–10% of total sleep in adults): This is a stage of sleep that usually occurs between sleep and wakefulness, and sometimes occurs between periods of deeper sleep and periods of REM. The muscles are active, and the eyes roll slowly, opening and closing moderately.
Since the REM stages typically occur during the second half of sleep, sleeping too little may not allow the body enough time to complete all the REM sleep cycles, per the National Sleep Foundation.