What happens if you don’t sleep for a long time: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 days or even a week.

Anyone can remember an episode from their life when they had to stay awake for at least one night. For some, this was due to long parties, New Year's holidays, others were trying to prepare for a session, to complete some task, while others were required to stay awake by work. But what happens if you don’t sleep for a long time? How will this affect the condition of the body? After all, there may be situations when there is a need to stay awake longer than one night.

Sleep is very important for the body, since at this time all systems are restored and rested. The brain processes the information received during the day, and the immune system is restored. Therefore, regular and long sleep is extremely important. It allows you to maintain body functions in a stable state. So, let's look at what happens if you don't sleep for a day or even several nights in a row.

What happens after a day of no sleep?

If you don’t sleep for 1 day, there won’t be any special problems in your body. If you break out of the stable regime once over a long period of time, there will be no serious disturbances in the body. Of course, after this you need to refrain from driving a car and performing other important work that requires concentration. But in general, such a person will not lose his ability to work and will feel normal. Moreover, if you work according to a special schedule, your body will soon get used to the fact that you periodically have to stay up all night.

Of course, the next day after being awake, a person will periodically feel a terrible desire to sleep. To eliminate it, you can drink coffee or another invigorating drink. You may also experience a decrease in concentration, a deterioration in the ability to remember, some weakness and even chills . If a sleep-deprived person travels on public transport or sits waiting in line, he may suddenly fall asleep.

The next night, many have trouble sleeping, which is due to excess dopamine entering the blood.

So, is it possible to not sleep the night before an important event? If you are preparing for an exam, wedding or other events, you should not stay awake at night. The body will only be more tired, and the brain will not recover from the stress it endured during the day. As a result, mental functions will be depressed, and intellectual abilities will temporarily decrease. Signs of inattention and absent-mindedness will appear, indicating lack of sleep. Lack of sleep is also reflected in your appearance - the skin becomes more faded, bags appear under the eyes, and the cheeks are slightly puffy.

It is very important not to lose the sleep-wake rhythm, because if the body does not sleep for 24 hours in a row, the brain suffers significantly from this. The following symptoms are observed:

loss of orientation in time;
excessive sensitivity to light;
incoherent speech;
color vision disturbance;
change in emotional background;
the appearance of causeless and uncontrollable vivid emotions (crying, laughter, anger, rage, etc.).

Why not getting enough sleep regularly is also harmful

Not only a long lack of sleep, but also a constant lack of sleep leads to negative consequences for the body. For example, when every day you rest for 5-6 instead of the prescribed 7–8 hours. The effect can accumulate and manifest itself in symptoms similar to those experienced during extreme wakefulness:

Fatigue and drowsiness.
Poor concentration, problems with alertness, memory and coordination.
Irritability, sudden mood swings.
Increased appetite The effects of going more than 24 hours without sleep / MedicalNewsToday.
Development of anxiety.
Deterioration of immunity.
Raising How Long Can You Go Without Sleep? Function, Hallucination, and More / Healthline of accident risks.
Increased risk of cardiovascular diseases (hypertension, stroke).
Increased likelihood of sleep apnea.
Reduced What to know about sleep deprivation / MedicalNewsToday fertility (the likelihood of conceiving a child).

Experiments on rats have proven that lack of sleep negatively affects the body's ability to heal L. Mostaghimi, WH Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Wound Healing / Journal of Sleep Research wounds and formation No sleep means no new brain cells / BBC News new brain cells.

The consequences of two sleepless nights

There are situations when there is a need to stay awake for more than one day. And in this case, the question arises: if you don’t sleep for 2 days, what will happen? This is a more serious situation that is harder for the body to tolerate. Not only symptoms of drowsiness may be observed, but also obvious disturbances in the functioning of internal organs, in particular the gastrointestinal tract. Patients complain of diarrhea, heartburn and other dyspeptic symptoms. In addition, the appetite becomes stronger, a person wants to eat fatty and salty foods. When experiencing stress, the body begins to overproduce hormones responsible for the wakefulness cycle. What’s interesting is that if a person doesn’t sleep for more than a day, it will be difficult for him to fall asleep later.

After 2 sleepless nights, metabolic disorders in the body are observed, in particular, glucose metabolism. The immune system also deteriorates, so viral diseases are becoming more common after such insomnia.

The result of two nights of insomnia is the following:

inattention;
absent-mindedness;
deterioration of speech;
a sharp decrease in concentration;
coordination of movements worsens;
a sharp decrease in cognitive abilities.

Consequence of three days of insomnia

If you don't sleep all night for 3 days in a row, the consequences will be even more serious than in the previous two cases. The symptoms are the same, but more pronounced. Movements become even more uncoordinated, severe problems with speech are observed, and sometimes a nervous tic appears. You also lose your appetite and experience regular nausea. Patients also note other symptoms - coldness in the hands, chills in general. Often, those who do not get enough sleep focus their gaze on a specific object and cannot take it away from this point.

If you don't sleep for 3 days or more, a person may experience failures. That is, at some time his brain may turn off and fall asleep for a short period. This is due to the shutdown of a number of control areas of the brain, that is, this is not a full-fledged sleep. So, a person can switch off and not notice how he passed 5 stations on the metro. Sometimes the purpose of a trip is forgotten, and you may not notice how a certain section was covered.

Sleep is a priceless gift

The study of the phenomenon of sleep as a biological function of the body began at the end of the 19th century. The first experiments were carried out on animals. It turned out that the cubs, forcibly deprived of rest, died on days 3-4; after a week of the experiment, adults stopped responding to external stimuli.

Scientific and practical research has made it possible to determine the biological significance of sleep for the human brain and body.

Twitching of the limbs observed when falling asleep indicates relaxation of muscle tone.
During a night's sleep, the nervous system is completely unloaded, freeing itself from negative emotions and experiences.
During the night, self-regulation of the internal organs and human systems that experience stress during the daytime occurs - metabolic processes return to normal, hormonal levels are leveled, vital organs function in a gentle manner.
While the body sleeps, the brain carefully processes the information received during the day and, like a computer processor, removes unnecessary and superfluous details into the “trash can.” Significant phenomena and events enter long-term memory. The next morning the brain is again ready to perceive fresh material.
One of the mysteries of sleep that scientists have been struggling with for centuries is the mystical connection with the subconscious. It is during this period that people are enlightened by important decisions, discoveries, and ideas. A classic example is the famous table Mendeleev saw in his dream.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R0bCK6u2jSo

So, the main function of sleep is a restorative and protective mechanism of action. Wakefulness must necessarily be replaced by a period of rest for the normal functioning of the body.

Duration of proper rest

On average, an adult needs 6-8 hours of sleep to get enough sleep. Depending on age, this time interval shifts in one direction or another: children need longer sleep, while older people sleep less due to decreased melatonin production.

But quantitative characteristics are not the only indicator of healthy sleep; quality is also important. To feel energized and rested in the morning, rather than groggy and lethargic, experts recommend:

Stick to your daily routine. If possible, wake up and go to bed at the same hours, and do not deviate from the schedule even on weekends and during vacation.
Full sleep is rest without waking up; in this case, six hours of continuous sleep is more beneficial than eight hours of interrupted sleep.
A calm environment and relaxing procedures will speed up the process of falling asleep.
You should avoid resting during the daytime, spend as much time in the fresh air during daylight hours as possible, and do not neglect physical activity.
Smoking, alcohol, overeating provoke night sleep disturbances.

Long sleep (10-15 hours or more), no matter how invigorating it may seem, causes harm similar to lack of sleep. An excess of hormones leads to disruption of biorhythms, a person becomes sleepy, apathetic, and experiences a loss of strength. Health also suffers - congestion in the circulatory system provokes high blood pressure, edema, and cardiac dysfunction.

If you don't sleep for 4 days

Not everyone knows what will happen to the brain if you don’t sleep for 4 days. And this is understandable, because such a test is very difficult for the body and not everyone has passed it. It is enough not to sleep for a day for cognitive abilities to temporarily decrease by 30%; after two days the decrease will be 60%. Considering such dynamics, it becomes clear that after 4 days of wakefulness, the consciousness will be quite confused, and the body will be exhausted. The person will be very irritable, his appearance will deteriorate significantly, and tremors of the limbs will appear . Outwardly, such a patient will look much older than his age.

How to greet the morning correctly to be cheerful all day?

IMPORTANT: Probably the most important advice on how to wake up in the morning and be cheerful all day is to go to bed on time in the evening and get a good night's sleep. This should be done regularly, day after day. Then it will be possible to wake up refreshed every morning, even before the alarm goes off.

Blinds or curtains should be open, then the morning dawn, even through sleep, will set the body up to awaken
You need to get up immediately after the first alarm goes off. Doing yourself a favor to lie down for another ten minutes only harms your body. Feelings of fatigue and drowsiness will accompany you until the evening. There is one way to overcome laziness, set the alarm clock at the other end of the room, so you will definitely have to get up
A positive mood from the very morning will help you have a good, cheerful day. To lift your spirits, you can turn on your favorite music, thereby creating a special atmosphere in your home
When you get out of bed, you should drink a glass of water, this is how your body starts up for a productive working day.
Washing with cold water will finally drive away sleep and invigorate
Light morning exercises will help cope with drowsiness throughout the day, give strength and vigor.
After charging, you can take a contrast shower
An hour after waking up, you should have a full breakfast. This is necessary so that the body has enough energy to stay alert all day.
You should have a leisurely breakfast; at this time you can dream. Set yourself a pleasant goal and the task of achieving it before the end of the working day. This way you can cheer yourself up for the whole day.
You shouldn’t check your social media feed immediately after waking up. This can be done within a day. The information flow is so great that you need to meet the morning in harmony with yourself
You can arrange to have breakfast together with friends or with a person who is of great importance in your life. Then the desire to get up later than the alarm will definitely not appear. Well, the morning itself will start with a good mood, and will help you be cheerful all day

Consequences of 5 days of lack of sleep

If you don't sleep for 5 days, the patient will begin to suffer from paranoia and hallucinations.
Panic attacks for any reason are often observed. At the same time, the patient breaks out in a cold sweat and the heartbeat increases. Due to 5 days of wakefulness, the neural activity of the brain slows down significantly, which affects the functioning of the entire body.

Particularly affected by such experiments are the areas of the parietal zone responsible for logic and computational abilities. After a period of sleeplessness, a person cannot even carry out basic mathematical operations. His speech is also significantly deteriorating, which is associated with disorders in the temporal lobe. When it comes to hallucinations, they can be auditory, visual, or dream-like.

Scientific experiments

The subjects repeatedly amazed not only the general public, but also the scientists who conducted the experiments. There are several examples that demonstrate that it is possible to stay awake for very long periods of time.

American neurophysiologist Nathaniel Kleitman conducted an experiment on himself. He hypothesized that hallucinations are dreams in the REM phase. Using an electroencephalogram, he recorded that up to 5 days the brain is still fighting for the right to rest and recovery.
To extend the time of activity, military doctors use psychostimulants for special forces soldiers. The subject remains awake for several days, but after stopping the medication, severe physical and mental exhaustion is observed.
In 1965, 17-year-old Randy Gardner set a record and did not sleep for more than 10 days. The Guinness Book of Records holder was Tony Wright, who did not sleep for 275 hours.
Experiments with animals show that deprivation increases the production of cortisol, a stress hormone that slows down the regeneration of brain cells. Drowsy states, which are a temporary mental disorder, have been noted.

During the Inquisition, sleep deprivation was used as torture. With a clouded consciousness, any information could be obtained. In the NKVD of the USSR, interrogations lasted for days, after which people simply went crazy.

What happens if you don't sleep for a week

Many people are interested in what will happen if you don’t sleep for 6 or 7 days. Will the body be able to withstand this load? Indeed, this is a very difficult task that not everyone can handle. The person looks somewhat like a drug addict, his speech is very difficult, and some symptoms of Alzheimer's disease appear.

If you don’t sleep for 7 days, hallucinations become a constant occurrence, and paranoia manifests itself strongly. A very strong tremor also develops.

Due to such a long period of lack of sleep, the body experiences great stress and a malfunction of all systems. The activity of brain neurons is greatly reduced, and this has a great impact on the heart - muscle tissue ages. The immune system is at great risk. T-lymphocytes become more passive, which leads to the appearance of various viral diseases. The liver also fails to cope with its tasks.