Question

"Sleep On It" Please respond to the following: Please read this NIH News in Health article, “Sleep On It”, then respond to the following questions: According to the article, why is sleep so important for memory? How much sleep did you get last night? And about how much sleep do you get each night on average? What tends to interfere with your ability to get the recommended 7-8 hours of sleep each night? What recommendations do you have for getting a good night’s sleep? What has worked for you? “Sleep on it” article: https://newsinhealth.nih.gov/2013/04/sleep-it

Answer 1

Why is sleep so important for memory?

The article states that sleep is important both before and after learning. Research has shown that sleep before learning prepares the brain for initial formation of memories since the non-REM stages of sleep, prime the brain for good learning, after a good sleep. It has been observed that without considerable sleep, the ability to learn new things could drop by upto 40%.

And sleep after learning helps to store and strengthen the new information learnt into the architecture of already existing memories inside brain. During the deep stages of sleep, some memories are strengthened that one forms throughout the day and after that, during REM stage, memories are linked together. Research has also shown that memories of certain activities, like playing a melody on a piano, can actually improve while you sleep.

How much sleep did you get last night?

6 hours

And about how much sleep do you get each night on average?

6 to 7 hrs

What tends to interfere with your ability to get the recommended 7-8 hours of sleep each night?

Browsing on facebook or instagram, late at night. And getting too immersed in it too realise that its very late at night.

What recommendations do you have for getting a good night’s sleep?

1. Switching off devices atleast an hour before you plan on going to sleep.

2. Meditation before sleep

3. Regular exercise

4. Having a consistent schedule for dinner & bedtime

What has worked for you?

Switching off devices an hour before I plan on going to sleep, has worked for me. Also a good evening workout has proved helpful.