Sleep and Dreaming

Consciousness

A person’s awareness of everything that is going on around him or her at any given moment; used to organize behavior

Waking Consciousness

Thoughts, feelings, and sensations are clear

Altered State of Consciousness

Shift in quality or pattern of mental activity

Circadian Rhythm

A cycle of bodily rhythm that occurs over a 24-hour period; starts in the hypothalamus

Suprachiasmatic Nucleus

Internal clock and tells the body when to wake up/fall asleep; located directly behind the eyes, and is sensitive to light

Sleep Deprivation

Any significant loss of sleep

Adaptive Sleep

Humans have evolved sleep patterns to avoid predators

Restorative Theory

Helps restore the human body physically and mentally

Memory Consolidation

Hippocampus accumulates memories during the day, and while sleeping stores these memories in places for long-term memory

NREM Sleep Stage 1

Light sleep; hypnic jerk; hypnagogic images

NREM Sleep Stage 2

Temperature, breathing, and heart rate decreases; sleep spindles

NREM Sleep Stage 3

Growth hormones released; hard to wake up

REM Sleep

Eyes are moving under eyelids, increase in body function (e.g. heartbeat"), 90% of dreaming

REM Paralysis

The inability of the voluntary muscles to move during REM sleep

REM Behavior Disorder

Mechanism that typically blocks the movement of voluntary muscles fails, allowing the person to thrash around and get up and act out nightmares

Sleep Walking

Occurs during deep sleep; moving around or walking around in one’s sleep

Nightmares

Bad dreams arousing feelings of horror, helplessness, extreme sorrow, etc.

Happens during REM sleep and is linked to real life events

Night Terrors

Attacks of extreme fear that the victim has while asleep

Occurs during deep non-REM sleep during the first half of the night

Insomnia

Inability to fall asleep, stay asleep, or get good quality sleep

Narcolepsy

Person falls immediately into REM sleep during the day without warning

Sleep Apnea

Person stops breathing for short periods of sleep, causing them to miss out on deep non-REM and REM sleep

People with this sleep disorder often use a CPAP to open the person’s airway during the night, allowing them to breath more fluently

Freud’s Perspective on Dreams

Dreams provide access to the unconscious (wish fulfillment)

Manifest Content

Way you would describe dream to someone else

Latent Content

Hidden meaning behind dream

Lucid Dreaming

Individual becomes aware that they are dreaming, ultimately gaining active control of what happens during the dream