While you wake up to every sound, your friend sleeps so soundly that he sometimes even sleeps through the alarm. Is it bad to sleep very well?
Answer from GP Ingrid Kuiper: Sleeping soundly is not unhealthy. The sleeping pattern differs per person:there are no 'normal' patterns. It is also not easy to stop sleeping (too) fast or to wake up more easily.
Quantity and quality
Besides the quality of sleep, the quantity also varies; one person sleeps efficiently and five hours of sleep is enough, the other needs at least ten hours.
Sleep cycle Your body produces a 'sleep hormone' under the influence of light and your biological clock. Serotonin (another hormone that makes you feel happy) then ensures deep sleep. During a night you go through a cycle of shallow, deep sleep and REM sleep.
Deep sleep and REM sleep
The deep sleep ensures the quality of the sleep (so that you wake up rested). During deep sleep, your body recovers from all daytime activities. Brain cells and muscle cells relax. Your REM sleep mainly takes care of your mental well-being and memory.
Wake up Depending on your own sleeping pattern, you will be in a deep or shallower sleep when your alarm goes off. With considerable effort during the day, the sleep is usually deeper at night.
Time helps As you get older, you will need less and less sleep and less deep sleep. So time heals the wound. Furthermore, you can try another way to awaken. Finally, there are special sleep centers in the Netherlands, for example for people with sleeping problems and sleep apnea syndrome.
