Sleep is a naturally recurring state characterized by reduced or absent consciousness, relatively suspended sensory activity, and inactivity of nearly all voluntary muscles. It is distinguished from quiet wakefulness by a decreased ability to react to stimuli, and is more easily reversible than being in hibernation or a coma.
Questions tagged [sleep]
125 questions
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Is there a risk of drowning if you fall asleep in the bath?
Are there any documented events of people drowning in slippery baths after falling asleep?
I've tried to Google it but wasn't able to find anything. Probably just used wrong terms, or maybe there were no such accidents.
I'm asking it because I…
user288
27
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Can you tell if you're dreaming by pinching yourself?
Just yesterday I read how Tyrion tries to figure out if he's sleeping by pinching himself. And this seems to be a commonly held truth which often comes back in tales.
But I'm not so certain. So can you tell if you're dreaming by pinching yourself?…
Carra
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Do teddy bears help people go to sleep better?
There are so many kids in this world who go to sleep with teddy bears and dolls. It seems like they need these toys to go off to Dreamland.
I just recently realised this because my own child, about 5 yrs. old, told me he couldn't go to sleep…
Thursagen
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If you put your hand in water while sleeping/drunk, will you pee yourself?
This is like an urban myth and a classic prank, but I never saw it in action.
Supposedly if someone is passed out or sleeping, the contact with water will make him pee. Is this true? If true, why does this happen?
Andres
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Is it possible to induce a lucid dream?
I've seen some websites like this that guide you to lucid dreaming, but still wondering is this just a myth? I tried to search for Lucid Dream but there seems like no result about people who sharing their dreams when they are lucid dreaming. Though…
Sufendy
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How effective is melatonin for aiding with sleep difficulty?
From Wikipedia:
Taken 30 to 90 minutes before bedtime, melatonin supplementation acts as a mild hypnotic. It causes melatonin levels in the blood to rise earlier than the brain's own production accomplishes. This usage is now commonly used in sleep…
ergodicsum
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Do side sleeping postures contribute to breast sagging?
CNN claims that sleeping on your side and sleeping on your stomach can lead to saggy breasts.
Sleeping on your side can cause you to get wrinkles," Glaser says. Blame all that smushing of one side of your face into the pillow. This pose also…
Aquarius_Girl
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Are there people who do not sleep at all?
There have been reports about people who didn't sleep at all for many years, see e.g. this newspaper article. The case of Paul Kern is the subject of this Wikipedia article, and this newspaper article. So, it seems that there have been a few people…
Count Iblis
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Does learning immediately before going to sleep increase the effect?
I have read now several times as a "secret tip" that learning directly before going to sleep significantly increases the effectiveness of learning, probably the long-term memory when, for example, learning the vocabulary of a new language.
The Costa…
Hauser
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Do mattresses double their weight after 10 years?
I've heard this story for years: After you bring a mattress home, dust mites move in (possibly even before). Like all creatures, they create waste products, which allegedly accumulate over time. The story goes that after 10 years, there is so much…
fred
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Do adults sleep better when they sleep alone?
Newyorker: Research studies consistently find … that adults “sleep better when given their own bed.”
Is that an accurate assessment? Do adult sleep better when they sleep alone rather than with their significant other?
Christian
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Are intelligent people more nocturnal than people not considered intelligent?
Some sites claim that people with higher intelligence tend to go to bed later.
For example:
People with higher IQs are more apt to be nocturnal night-owls. Those with lower IQs tend to restrict their activities primarily to daytime.
People who…
OmnipresentAbsence
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Do memory foam mattresses give off toxic fumes?
I recently purchased a memory foam (polyurethane) mattress and was looking online to see how long they take to "air out". They produce a strong odor for awhile after manufacture. However, instead of finding my answer I found seemingly endless…
John Rhoades
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Learning while you are sleeping
Just to clarify, I'm not asking about Hypnopaedia, but about using a lucid dream as a training/rehearsal stage.
The Lucidity Institue claims:
... many people
use lucid dreaming to rehearse for
success in waking life. Examples of
such…
Oliver_C
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Does using the computer before sleeping affect sleep patterns?
According to this Bloomberg Businessweek article using electronics before bed may hamper sleep.
Is it true that using a computer, watching T.V. or using some other type of face-to-screen electronics before going to bed causes people to have trouble…
ruddfawcett
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