![]() Our brain-stem arousal systems (the parts of the brain responsible for basic physiological functioning) are activated almost instantly. While we may feel that we wake up quickly enough, transitioning easily between sleep mode and awake mode, the process is in reality far more gradual. The more abruptly you are awakened, the more severe the sleep inertia. First given a name in 1976, sleep inertia refers to that period between waking and being fully awake when you feel groggy. One of the consequences of waking up suddenly, and too early, is a phenomenon called sleep inertia. ![]() (Ian Parker wrote about the development of a new drug for insomnia in the magazine last week.) ![]() If you manage to drift off again, you are likely plunging your brain back into the beginning of the sleep cycle, which is the worst point to be woken up-and the harder we feel it is for us to wake up, the worse we think we’ve slept. But what you’re actually doing is making the wake-up process more difficult and drawn out. It may seem like you’re giving yourself a few extra minutes to collect your thoughts. Just another couple of minutes, you think. Then you throw out your arm and hit the snooze button, silencing the noise for at least a few moments. Depending on when you went to bed, what day of the week it is, and how deeply you were sleeping, you may not understand where you are, or why there’s an infernal chiming sound. Instead, the ring of an alarm clock probably jerks you out of sleep. On a typical workday morning, if you’re like most people, you don’t wake up naturally.
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