Example Of Essay On Why Do We Sleep: The Psychology Point Of View

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William Dement, the co-discoverer of Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep and pioneering sleep researcher, once said: “As far as I know, the only reason we need to sleep that is really, really solid is because we get sleepy.”
It was a common perception for a long time that sleep is a kind of passive state taken by human body for the rest of the body and mind. However, this is an old theory and cannot be considered as a mature scientific concept as it is basically stating that the body needs rest so that it may rest. With the passage of time, theories on sleep got maturity. Now, it is believed that there are more reasons to sleep than just feeling sleepy and putting our mind and bodies on hold for some time. Sleep is now thought to be a “second state” with its own complex activities such as dreaming. Sleep rejuvenates people so that they can have healthy lives, and have more energy for the activities and tasks they want to do. Good amount of sleep can be highly beneficial for any person both young as well as old. Sufficient amount of sleep is important for the development of youth, and to improve the mental and physical health of people. However, the question is still there: Why do we sleep?
Probably, the reason behind getting a proper sleep is to restore or even improve our cognitive abilities. Researchers have found that sleep deprivation can have a significantly negative impact on cognition (Wilckens, Woo, Kirk, Erickson and Wheeler) in humans. This research also makes sense in that our mind start lagging behind, if we don’t get the required amount of sleep. So, it means sleep is for better cognitive abilities. From this finding, it can be assumed that the question has been answered in the start of the essay; it seems as if better cognition might be the answer. Studies have shown that some aspects of sleep, such as slow-wave sleep, are beneficial for proper functioning of the prefrontal cortex, which is related to cognitive functions. That’s why, teachers advise their students to get a good rest in the night before examination or a test.
Changes in sleep patterns can often be considered as one of the signs or symptoms of a mental illness as, for example, insomnia is an illness that is fully related to sleep. Current definitions of insomnia describe this condition as a disorder characterized not only by sleep difficulty in the night, but also by symptoms in the day such as sleepiness, mood disturbances, fatigue, and cognitive difficulties. Insomnia prohibits the people from getting the required sleep, not only because they don’t have the time; which is usually the case, but also because even if they’re trying to sleep, their brain is too wired to calm down and rest. Due to difficulty in sleep, the above listed symptoms start appearing. A study conducted on the problem of insomnia found that among 332 participants included in that study, there were about twice as many females as males with insomnia, and all were of middle age. However, insomnia can occur in anyone and would significantly affect the daytime as well as nighttime of the person. This discussion is showing the importance of sleep and its effects on our daily lives.
There are also some other illnesses that are focused around sleep. Important thing to note is that disturbance of sleep is involved in most of the diseases. When a person gets cold, a good amount of sleep is usually recommended. Similarly, in case of sickness or fever, a good amount of sleep is recommended as it could be one of the reasons.
Good health revolves around a good level of sleep, and people in the field of psychology can’t seem to explain it properly. It seems to be agreed upon that sleep is related to brain. When a person sleeps, he or she dreams, and according to some psychologists, those dreams reflect the person and tell about his or her inner consciousness. I am not going to start explaining the question, “why we dream” because explanation of that question would require a second essay concentrating just on that question. At this point, I am trying to tell the complexity of sleep and its effects on the brain. However, there are many things in this regard that require further research by psychological sciences.
The question that has been discussed here is “why do we sleep?” Perhaps, the benefits we get from sleep are the reasons that we go to sleep, but in my opinion this question is much more complex than it seems. Many studies have shown the affects of sleep on our life, but the question requires some deeper illustrations. If you think about sleep, it appears to be a quite strange phenomenon. When it gets dark outside, humans put on their special sleeping clothes, they lay down horizontally on a bed in a room especially made for sleeping then they close their eyes, and go into a meditative state for a couple of hours. All of this appears weird. All these things made me to wonder why we sleep in the first place. Probably, as William Dement said, we sleep because we get sleepy. Probably, we sleep because we are exhausted and have reduced level of energy, but sleep doesn’t provide us energy. With more research and exploration of theories, more questions came to my mind. Important thing that we have learned from all these discussions is that we don’t know definitely why we sleep. Several studies by professionals in this field have shown that sleep is highly beneficial. So, it has to be remembered that a good night’s rest and sleep is not a waste of time, but it is important for better preparation of the next day.