Stages of Sleep: Why restful sleep is important

Every night, humans go through different sleep phases. While organs such as the digestive system and the heart reduce their functions to a minimum, the brain works particularly actively: it processes information into new knowledge and stores memories and sensory impressions.

Relaxing and falling asleep: the first two sleep phases

As soon as you lie down in bed at night, your body starts to shut down - and you can feel it. Relax consciously to fall asleep more easily.

1. If your thoughts are circling, meditation or autogenic training, for example, will help. Also yoga, a cup of tea or a warm bath can help you switch off.
2. Monitors such as computers or televisions keep most people artificially awake - do not fall asleep relaxed, you should therefore avoid this occupation in the evening or use the night mode.
3. At the beginning of the second phase, the so-called light sleep phase, the body and brain continue to switch off. Only when you are so really relaxed, you also begin to dream. In the process, the brain usually performs adventurous feats, which hardly limits the imagination.
4. The more relaxed the brain is at the time of dreaming, the more abstruse can also be the content of dreams in the so-called REM phase.

Total relaxation in the third sleep phase

Only after the previous sleep phases, the total relaxation sets in for body and brain. That is why it is particularly difficult to wake up from this deep sleep phase. If you go to bed too late, so that your alarm clock snatches you from the middle of this sleep phase, you will feel stressed, grouchy and listless. By going to bed on time, you give your body enough time to regenerate during sleep and you can get up better in the morning.