Right up there with air, food and water, sleep makes the top-five list of human requirements. It exceeds rest and relaxation or grabbing a nap. Restful sleep provides a feeling of astuteness, rejuvenation and preparedness to handle the challenges of the day.

Dissimilar to the feeling of a good night’s sleep, insufficient rest renders irritability, fatigue, confusion and a lack of alertness. When the body is sleep deprived, it impacts the body’s energy level, mental state of mind, physical performance and social interaction The level of concentration is impaired as well.

Everyone spends 30 percent of their life in a state of unconsciousness referred to a as sleep. During the unconscious state, several processes transpire in the body. A person endures six phases while sleeping.

During short intervals throughout the night, it is natural to be awake for short periods. Although, many people do not have a recollection of awakening, three to 10 brief arousals are normal. Basically, it is a way of the conscious mind acting as the body's defense mechanisms of awareness of surroundings.

The first stage of sleep, the person at rest drifts in and out of consciousness. They are easily roused while the muscles begin to slow down and the eyes make slow movements.

During stage two, the muscles of the body relax. Spurts of brain activity occur while the brain waves slow down. Almost 50 percent of rest transpires in the second stage.

The final stage of sleep is referred to as rapid eye movement (REM). The muscles stop moving as breathing and the heart rate dip up and down in irregular and fast paced rhythms. Moreover, the eyes move rapidly while the blood pressure is becomes more variable. In the REM phase of sleep, dreaming transpires.