What does a "normal" sleep pattern look like?

[docmomma]

How can you tell when you are in REM sleep, vs deep sleep?   What am I aiming for?

[SunsetRunner]

To put it simple: A good night's sleep is what you should aim for.

You go through several cycles of sleep each night, each cycle lasting about 90 minutes. I think about 1/4 of that time is spent in deep sleep, while about 1/4 is spent in REM (this is also when you dream). It is perfectly normal to wake up or be restless and move around (even if you're not always aware of it) at the end of a cycle.

While the body does this on autopilot, there are things you can try if you want to improve your sleep. Mainly this includes reviewing your sleep hygiene and see if you can improve on it.

Hope I gave you some of the answers you were looking for.

[docmomma]

I get that, but when I am looking at my results, I see red spikes and areas with no spikes.  During the "blue period" am I in deep sleep or REM sleep -- or can you not tell?  

And if I am looking at the normal tracker (compared to the sensitive), I see fewer spikes -- are the ones filtered out the time when I am in less than deep sleep?  Maybe that's the REM sleep?

[SunsetRunner]

None of the fitbits can tell you which stages of sleep you are in at a set time. However, if you look at a simple sleep cycle chart you can deduce that the red spikes in your sleep pattern probably correlates with the REM stages of normal sleep, since this is the stage of sleep closest to an aware and awake state.

When you are in deep sleep your body is still, so the blue areas include deep sleep, but not all blue is deep sleep - it simply means you did not move at the time.

The red spikes means you have moved (or maybe your partner did?). The sensitive will in most cases show more red spikes...

[docmomma]

So is "waking up" 11-15 times normal?   I don't remember being awake, so maybe that's REM?   

Thanks!

[SunsetRunner · Accepted solution]

It's completely normal to not remember waking up or moving during the night cause it's usually for a brief period.

I'm not sure what is normal in terms of how many times people wake up/move, but I've had my Flex for a week now and I average about 14 red spikes a night using the normal setting and I usually remember waking up two or three times a night. I believe it varies greatly from person to person...

I think the more important thing is how you feel upon waking up in the morning. If you feel well rested, that is the most important thing in my opinion.

[SunsetRunner]

i"m a very light sleeper, and with sleep on normal setting I usually only get 2 or 3 red spikes per night. USually because I drink a LOT of water and get up at least twice a night to pee.

I have 10-15 restless periods per night. On sensitive mode I was getting 20+ restless episodes, averaging about 300+ mins restless per night. But on normal it looks more like 25+ mins of restlessness. And they are spread out throughout the night.

As long as you feel rested in the morning, your sleep is probably normal for you. Some people do not wake up to pee in the night, some people so not move at all (like my hubby, unless i smack him when he is snoring LOL).

And look for trends. I know I sleep better when the house is cooler, and I have sleep issues the week before my period. (Yay, PMS) So as long as I turn the heat down at night, I usually have a decent sleep. 

[trainer]

Typically a person goes through a 90 minute cycle. So each 90 minutes you begin a new cycle. This cycle includes all the stages. On my fitbit chart I see a 'blip' about every 90 minutes which means I am at the point in my cycle where I am closest to being awake and I move a bit. I am not awake, but I roll over or move my arms or whatever. I regularly get 95-97% sleep with 1-3 awake periods in a 6.5 hour time period.

[bexstar]

Wow. When reading this it makes me wonder about my own sleeping pattern. 24x restless and only 43% effective sleep. I feel okay when I wake but get tired by 3pm and get a migraine if I'm not asleep by 8-9pm. I have no idea how to improve my sleep, but have been reading other threads about sleeping patterns, hopefully I can find some help.

[margaretsmall]

If your sleep log shows many instances of waking or disturbance, it might be sensible to be checked for sleep apnea, even if you don't have the usual risk factors such as obesity, falling asleep suddenly during the day, etc. I wasn't aware of being a sufferer until I entered a new relationship with my now husband who was alarmed at the way I stopped breathing in the night, many times. l'd learned to live with it. Untreated, you has a higher risk of heart attacks and strokes. Treatment, I have to admit is a real pain, but better than the consequences. Diagnosis is done by way of a sleep test where you are hooked up to multiple sensors and then try to sleep, not easy I can tell you. But necessary to assess the degree of seriousness, the type of apnea (there are several which are treated differently) and to eliminate things like 'restless leg' syndrome.

[Cande]

I doubt if there is a "normal" sleep pattern. The book "Sleep for Success" by Dr. James Maas might give you some direction there. I've been recording my sleep using the fitbit one for about two weeks and I'm surprised at how "regular" it is. It seems to be recording very much the way I THOUGHT I was sleeping. After we've put our books down, turn off the lights, do our "goodnight" routine, that's when I start my fitbit. And I actually do drop off to sleep "quickly"  -- within a few minutes-- 3-10. Then unless my husband gets up for something and we talk, I might turn over, but then nothing till morning.  This morning, for instance, when we got up, he said, those darn dogs next door woke me up at 6:00 and I couldn't get back to sleep." But I said, "I didn't hear them." But when I looked at my sleep log, I saw that I actually DID! Just momentarily, but I saw a "disturbance" in my sleep at that time." I thought that was amazing! I love it!

[SunsetRunner]

No sugar or caffeine after 10:30 am

dont eat after 8pm

no alcohol at all to check your sleep

my diet is really affected by what i eat and when .

I cannot even take tylenol , cold medicine , antihistamines - will be awake all night .

Analyze your diet . If after removing something and it didnt help it must be something else.

Fitness/Nutritionist for years

[bayareaduck]

Yeah that sounds like not a very good nights sleep.   The funny thing it is so hard to know what is "normal" as we only know our own reality.   Until age 30 I had sleep apnea.  I was tired most days.  I went to canada to have my Uvula out and the difference was drastic and immediate.  I went from being an "8hour" sleeper to a 6 hour sleeper with way more energy.  The fact is what I thought was sleeping and restful really wasn't.  I had no idea how good an undisturbed night of sleep is.

[JanCam]

Loved this very honest description - thanks Cande!

[KayBoulder]

I am shocked to see that while my sleep efficiency is between 85% and 89%, I am restless between 30 and 48 times per night.  This is on the normal setting.  Does anybody else have high "restless" readings on normal?

[Kate60]

I have also been shocked to see how restless my sleep is. I also have 40 to 50 restless restless periods each night with 3to 4 wake ups per night. I wish I knew what this means or what do to improve my sleep.

[beachmomma]

Why did you go to Canada to have the surgery? I have bad sleep apnea and would like more details about it. thanks!

[Lauras2206]

I'm new to this and was wondering if anyone could help. On average I'm only getting 3 hours sleep each night. I also suffer from epilepsy so I'm not sure if im having mild seizures. Should I speak to a doctor about this?

[dancefoxtrot]

Hi 

You should go to a neurologist. 3 hrs is not enough sleep. Try to discover what is keeping you awake. Sleep is tied to a healthy body and brain. We need 7-8 hrs a night for well being. Check if any medication has a side effect of insomna.

Best of luck.

Barbara 

[asosa]

There is a fantastic Audiobook from the Great Courses series on Sleep Science.  It does get technical but not too technical, and there is a lot of great practical advice, as well.  I haven't found a better source of information on the topic of sleep.

You can find it here: 

http://www.audible.com/pd/Science-Technology/Secrets-of-Sleep-Science-From-Dreams-to-Disorders-Audio...