Sleep deprivation

Sleep deprivation is an overall lack of the necessary amount of sleep. A person can be deprived of sleep by their own body and mind, insomnia, or actively deprived by another individual. Sleep deprivation is sometimes used as an instrument of torture, but it has also been shown to be an effective treatment of depression and other mental illnesses. Sleep deprivation is highly unhealthy and should not be attempted under free will.

Related Topics:
Sleep - Insomnia - Torture - Depression - Mental illness

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Lack of sleep may also result in irritability, blurred vision, slurred speech, memory lapses, overall confusion, hallucinations, nausea, psychosis, and eventually death{{dubious}}.

Related Topics:
Vision - Speech - Memory - Confusion - Hallucinations - Nausea - Psychosis - Death

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Total sleep deprivation in rats leads to death in 28 days. Death occurs later if only REM or only NREM sleep are eliminated. In humans, it's virtually impossible to die from sleep deprivation since fractions of a second long microsleep sessions develop. Several months of no sleep at all, as in fatal familial insomnia, causes death but other symptoms such as dementia and permanent personality changes develop within the first few weeks.

Related Topics:
Rat - REM - NREM - Microsleep - Fatal familial insomnia - Dementia - Personality

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