start sleep at stage 2?

Ok correct me if I'm wrong but the first stage of sleep is where ur eyes are closing and your about to nod off?

Well i don't remember having this when i go to bed, I'm not sure if i skip it or if i just go straight to stage 2 if its possible?

I have done it before like late at night just watching tv bordly (i hardly watch it anyway) so can someone please tell me if its possible or how to fix it?

If u need anymore info ask away i will try my best, just want to know seeing as it seems to be one of the important parts to becoming lucid

Thanks

First of all, welcome to DV! :banana:

second, I'm about to go to bed (and try some WBTB/WILD, hopefully break my long dry spell), so I'll only post a quick search that I did. Hope it helps. :)


http://www.mona.uwi.edu/fpas/courses...leepStages.jpg

Quote:

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Waking
The waking stage is referred to as relaxed wakefulness, because this is the stage in which the body prepares for sleep. All people fall asleep with tense muscles, their eyes moving erratically. Then, normally, as a person becomes sleepier, the body begins to slow down. Muscles begin to relax, and eye movement slows to a roll.
Stage 1
Stage 1 sleep, or drowsiness, is often described as first in the sequence, especially in models where waking is not included. Polysomnography shows a 50% reduction in activity between wakefulness and stage 1 sleep. The eyes are closed during Stage 1 sleep, but if aroused from it, a person may feel as if he or she has not slept. Stage 1 may last for five to 10 minutes.
Stage 2
Stage 2 is a period of light sleep during which polysomnographic readings show intermittent peaks and valleys, or positive and negative waves. These waves indicate spontaneous periods of muscle tone mixed with periods of muscle relaxation. Muscle tone of this kind can be seen in other stages of sleep as a reaction to auditory stimuli. The heart rate slows, and body temperature decreases. At this point, the body prepares to enter deep sleep.
Stages 3 and 4
These are deep sleep stages, with Stage 4 being more intense than Stage 3. These stages are known as slow-wave, or delta, sleep. During slow-wave sleep, especially during Stage 4, the electromyogram records slow waves of high amplitude, indicating a pattern of deep sleep and rhythmic continuity.
Non-REM Sleep
The period of non-REM sleep (NREM)is comprised of Stages 1-4 and lasts from 90 to 120 minutes, each stage lasting anywhere from 5 to 15 minutes. Surprisingly, however, Stages 2 and 3 repeat backwards before REM sleep is attained. So, a normal sleep cycle has this pattern: waking, stage 1, 2, 3, 4, 3, 2, REM. Usually, REM sleep occurs 90 minutes after sleep onset.


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Stage 5, REM
REM sleep is distinguishable from NREM sleep by changes in physiological states, including its characteristic rapid eye movements. However, polysomnograms show wave patterns in REM to be similar to Stage 1 sleep. In normal sleep (in people without disorders of sleep-wake patterns or REM behavior disorder), heart rate and respiration speed up and become erratic, while the face, fingers, and legs may twitch. Intense dreaming occurs during REM sleep as a result of heightened cerebral activity, but paralysis occurs simultaneously in the major voluntary muscle groups, including the submental muscles (muscles of the chin and neck).
Because REM is a mixture of encephalic (brain) states of excitement and muscular immobility, it is sometimes called paradoxical sleep. It is generally thought that REM-associated muscle paralysis is meant to keep the body from acting out the dreams that occur during this intensely cerebral stage. The first period of REM typically lasts 10 minutes, with each recurring REM stage lengthening, and the final one lasting an hour.

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so i was wrong its the waking bit, i dont slowly nod off i just go BANG asleep or i just dont notice it, thanks for correcting though.

Nice picture. i guess the white at the top of the pales is the REM, so that cycle map makes me know when i got REM (approximately)

(Yes, the white blocks at the top are REM).

Interesting diagram. They use that when teaching beginning Polysomnologists (like me).

Stages 3-4 are being combined into one "Delta" or "slow wave" sleep stage, but other than that, it's pretty accurate.

People don't always have to follow that pattern, in fact, very few have "textbook" sleep.

For instance, the older you are, the more time you spend in stages 1-2, and you rarely (if ever) attain Delta or REM sleep. Children spend LOTS of time in Delta sleep, and have frequent seizure-like activity, which can be lost in Delta waves unless you really know what to look for on the Polysomnogram.

Now, more direct to your question, people don't always (in fact, fairly rarely) follow the S1-S2-S3/4-REM pattern. For instance, when you're severly sleep deprived, you can go into any stage at sleep onset. I've had patients fall asleep directly into a REM rebound, particularly when it's their first night on CPAP/BiPAP therapy). I've had many sleep-deprived patients fall asleep directly into Delta sleep (stages 3-4). And lots of people fall directly into Stage 2, especially if they are slightly deprived as well.

Let me know if there's anything else I can do for you. :)

Wow, interesting insight Michael Blue. From the short googling I had done to come up with the picture I posted earlier I saw other pictures of what you just mentioned - the sleep of older people and young kids are also quite different.

Just out of curiosity, have you ever examined someone who has adapted to a biphasic or polyphasic sleep pattern? I have read that when they take the short naps throughout the day, they go straight into the REM sleep, and that its one way to tell if their body has adapted to the polyphasic sleep pattern.

Not specifically, but many older people have this sleep pattern by nature, and they generally don't achieve REM sleep. I would be very interested to see a lot of the different patterns you guys are trying attempted while hooked to a Polysomnogram and see if what you perceive pans out under the light of an actual sleep study. That would be very interesting for everyone, I believe.