what happens to your body when you dont get enough sleep

One study, which limited participants to five hours of sleep per night, showed progressive worsening of mood over the span of a week, based on questionnaire responses. So, sleep loss can cause negative mood states like irritability and crankiness. REM sleep-one of the four stages of the sleep cycle-helps with mood regulation. This is what happens if you're not getting enough sleep 1. The exact number varies person to person, but generally speaking, if you're consistently getting fewer than seven hours, you're probably not doing yourself any favors here, a few of the side effects you may experience from skimping on sleep. 'It's good to know that these consequences are an issue, and you should try to talk to a professional, but you shouldn't constantly worry about it because for some people who are already anxious, that worry can worsen their insomnia problems,' she says.Īccording to Nathaniel Watson, MD, co-director of the UW Medicine Sleep Center at Harborview Medical Center, the optimal amount of sleep per night for most of us is seven hours. Harris does note that worrying about the consequences of not sleeping can, for actual troubled sleepers, make it harder to get the needed rest. And that's just one of the consequences of too-little sleep she mentions in addition to those below, noting that there are 'so many' that this list is by no means exhaustive.īefore you read on in horror, however, Dr. And sleep should really be the third pillar.' If you don't prioritize a good night's rest, the first and second become more difficult to maintain, too. 'There are three pillars to health,' says Shelby Harris, PsyD, behavioral sleep-medicine specialist and author of The Women’s Guide to Overcoming Insomnia.

And not getting enough of it is actually pretty detrimental to your short- and long-term well-being. Sleep is more important than you could ever, well, dream. These four expert-led plans-designed to help you move your body, eat more veggies, get a better night’s sleep, or show yourself some loving care-are all about developing healthy habits that better align with your goals. No restrictive diets, no weekly weigh-ins, no “whole new you” for this new year-because, hey, you’re pretty great already. This isn’t your standard New Year’s plan.

What happens to your body when you dont get enough sleep