Consciousness is a state in which a person is usually aware and in control of their surroundings. It is, however, a subjective experience as there does not exist a definite definition of what it contains. Also, this state is known to be altered by many conditions such as sleep, meditation, hypnosis among others. This essay will specifically analyze how consciousness is altered by different stages of sleep.
Sleep is a state contained at the far end of consciousness continuum (Alleydog 2018). Although this condition is different for each individual, it is found to follow the same patterns for every person, and is characterized by brain waves including beta, alpha, theta and Delta. In addition, these waves occur differently at each stage of the sleep. Beta waves will occur in wakeful conditions, alpha during meditation while theta and delta are involved in deep sleep state.
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During the first stage of the sleep, a person is usually in a transition from alertness to sleep. Ideally, this state may take approximately 30 minutes and a person may experience some micro sleeps which quickly disappears when one is awakened. Moreover, theta waves starts to increase while both alpha and beta waves decreases. This stage is often not recognized because a person is usually fully aware of their environment.
Delirium is the second stage of sleep often characterized by fluctuating consciousness. This state is dominated by theta and delta waves and a person experiences sleep spindles (Alleydog 2018). Also, the heartbeat rate and breathing slows and the body temperature reduces. A person then transits to a deep sleep stage
Deep sleep stage is characterized by increased delta waves. In this state, an individual is usually completely unconscious and it is difficult to forcibly awaken them. Moreover, growth hormone is stimulated and other sleep movements such as sleepwalking may occur which are frequently not remembered. In the fourth stage, deep sleep continues and delta waves are exclusively involved. Awakening a person from this stage would completely disorient them for some time (Edlund 2011).
Rem stage is the last phase of sleep that involves eyes moving rapidly back and forth while the eyelids remains closed. Typically, dreaming occurs and the brain waves start to mimic the previous happenings and processing the information and experiences. Furthermore, heart rate and breathing quickens, blood pressure increases and body temperature starts to fluctuate. Finally, the body functions as if awake only that it is temporarily paralyzed until it transits to another sleep stage.
References
Alleydog. (2018). Consciousness and Sleep . Psychology topics retrieved from https://www.alleydog.com/topics/consciousness_sleep.php
Mattthew.J.Edlund. (2011). Sleep and Your Different States of Consciousness . Thinking may not be what you thought. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-power-rest/201101/sleep-and-your-different-states-consciousness
