Consciousness
and the TwoTrack Mind
PowerPoint®
Presentation
by Jim Foley
© 2013 Worth Publishers
Module 8: Sleep and Dreams
To SLEEP-perchance,
to Dream
Sleep as a State of Consciousness
When sleeping, are we fully
unconscious and “dead to
the world”?
Or is the window to
consciousness open?
Consider that:
 we move around, but how do
we stop ourselves from falling
out of bed?
 we sometimes incorporate
real-world noises into our
dreams.
 some noises (our own baby’s
cry) wake us more easily than
others.
How Do We Learn About
Sleep and Dreams?
 We can monitor EEG/brain
waves and muscle
movements during sleep.
 We can expose the
sleeping person to noise
and words, and then
examine the effects on the
brain (waves) and mind
(memory).
 We can wake people and
see which mental state
(e.g. dreaming) goes with
which brain/body state.
Daily Rhythms and Sleep
The circadian (“about a
day”) rhythm refers to the
body’s natural 24-hour cycle,
roughly matched to the
day/night cycle of light and
dark.
What changes during the 24
hours?
Over the 24 hour cycle, the
following factors vary, rising
and falling over the course of
the day and night:
 body temperature
 arousal/energy
 mental sharpness
“Larks” and “Owls”
Daily rhythms vary from
person to person and with
age.
General peaks in alertness:
 evening peak—20-year
old “owls”
 morning peak—50-year
old “larks”
Sleep Stages and Sleep Cycles:
What is Measured?
Stages and Cycles of Sleep
Sleep stages refer to distinct patterns
of brain waves and muscle activity that
are associated with different types of
consciousness and sleep.
Sleep cycles refer to
the patterns of shifting
through all the sleep
stages over the course
of the night. We
“cycle” through all the
sleep stages in about
90 minutes on
average.
There
are
four
types
of
sleep.
Falling Asleep:
From Alert to Alpha
Eyes Closed
Alpha waves are the relatively slow brain waves
of a relaxed, awake state.
Falling asleep
 Yawning creates a brief boost in
alertness as your brain metabolism is
slowing down.
 Your breathing slows down.
 Brain waves become slower and
irregular.
 You may have hypnagogic (while
falling asleep) hallucinations.
 Your brain waves change from alpha
waves to NREM-1.
Non-REM Sleep Stages
Getting deeper into sleep…
but not dreaming yet
NREM-1
NREM-2
NREM-3
REM Sleep
Eugene
Aserinsky’s
discovery
(1953):
dreams
occurred
during
periods of
wild brain
activity and
rapid eye
movements
[REM sleep].
What happens during
REM sleep?
 Heart rate rises and
breathing becomes rapid.
 “Sleep paralysis” occurs
when the brainstem blocks
the motor cortex’s
messages and the muscles
don’t move. This is
sometimes known as
“paradoxical sleep”; the
brain is active but the body
is immobile.
Stages of Sleep:
The 90 Minute Cycles
Through 8 Hours of Sleep
The length of REM sleep increases the longer you remain asleep.
With age, there are more awakenings and less deep sleep.
NREM-1
NREM-2
NREM-3
Why do we sleep?
What determines the quantity and rhythm of sleep?
The amount and
pattern of sleep
is affected by
biology, age,
culture, and
individual
variation.
Light and the
brain regulate
sleep.
 Age: in general, newborns need 16 hours of
sleep, while adults need 8 hours or less
 Individual (genetic) variation: some people
function best with 6 hours of sleep, others with
9 hours or more
 Culture: North Americans sleep less than
others, and less than they used to, perhaps
because of the use of light bulbs
 The circadian rhythm is hard to shift (jet lag).
 This rhythm can be affected by light, which
suppresses the relaxing hormone melatonin.
Why do we sleep?
What does sleep do for us?
1. Sleep protected our ancestors from
predators.
2. Sleep restores and repairs the brain and
body.
3. Sleep builds and strengthens memories.
4. Sleep facilitates creative problem
solving.
5. Sleep is the time when growth
hormones are active.
Effects of
Sleep Loss/
Deprivation
Research shows that
inadequate sleep can
make you more likely
to:
 lose brainpower.
 gain weight.
 get sick.
 be irritable.
 feel old.
Sleep Loss Effects
by Body System
Sleep Loss/Deprivation=Accident Risk
Accident
Frequency
Sleep loss
results in
more
accidents,
probably
caused by
impaired
attention and
slower
reaction time.
Sleep Hygiene
How to Sleep Well
1. Turn the lights low and
turn all screens off.
2. Eat earlier, and drink
less alcohol and
caffeine.
3. Get up at the same time
every day.
4. Exercise (late afternoon
is best).
5. Don’t check the clock;
just let it happen.
6. Get counseling for
anxiety and depression.
Sleep Disorders
Are these people
dreaming?
 Night terrors refer to
sudden scared-looking
• Insomnia: persistent inability
behavior, with rapid
to fall asleep or stay asleep
heartbeat and
• Narcolepsy (“numb seizure”):
breathing.
sleep attacks, even a collapse
into REM/paralyzed sleep, at  Sleepwalking and
sleeptalking run in
inopportune times
families, so there is a
• Sleep apnea (“with no
possible genetic basis.
breath”): repeated awakening
These behaviors,
after breathing stops; time in
mostly affect
bed is not restorative sleep
children, and occur in
NONREM-3 sleep.
They are not
considered dreaming.
Those who complain of insomnia
typically _______ how long it
actually takes them to fall asleep
and ________ how long they
actually slept.
A.
B.
C.
D.
underestimate; overestimate
overestimate; underestimate
underestimate; underestimate
overestimate; overestimate
Alex complains of chronic insomnia. He has
had a medical check-up and is healthy, yet
he has difficulty falling asleep. What is the
best advice you can give in this situation?
A. Have a glass of wine right before bedtime.
B. Go to the doctor and get a prescription for sleeping
pills.
C. Go to bed at the same time every evening and wake
up at the same time in the morning.
D. Do some strenuous exercise right before going to
bed.
Dreams
the stream of images, actions, and
feelings, experienced while in REM sleep
What We Dream About
 Dreams often include
some negative event or
emotion, especially
failure dreams (being
pursued, attacked,
rejected, or having bad
luck).
 Dreams do NOT often
include sexuality.
 We may incorporate realworld sounds and other
stimuli into dreams.
 Dreams also include
images from recent,
traumatic, or frequent
experiences.
What We Dream About:
(Psychoanalytic Theory)
Sigmund Freud believed there was
often a hidden “latent content”
(conflicts, worries, and urges)
underneath the symbolic “manifest
content” (the plot, actions, and
images recalled) of dreams.
A modern theory of dreams suggests that
dreams help us to fix the day’s
experiences into memories. This is known
as the ___________ theory of dreams.
A.
B.
C.
D.
information processing
physiological function
activation-synthesis
cognitive developmental
Theories about Functions of Dreams
Theory
Explanation
Lacks any
Dreams provide a “psychic safety
scientific
valve”;
they
often
express
Wish fulfillment
support;
otherwise
unacceptable
feelings,
(psychodreams may be
and
contain
both
manifest
analytic theory)
interpreted in
(remembered) content and a latent many
different
content (hidden meaning).
But why
do we
ways.
sometimes
Dreams help us sort out the day’s
Informationdream about
events and consolidate our
processing
This may
be
things
we have
memories.
true,not
but it
Regular brain stimulation from REM experienced?
does not
Physiological
The
sleep may help develop and
explain
why we
function
individual’s
preserve neural pathways.
experience
brain is
meaningful
REM sleep triggers impulses that
weaving
the
dreams.
Activationevoke random visual memories,
stories, which
synthesis
which our sleeping brain weaves
still tells us
into stories.
something
Does not
Dream
content
reflects
the
about
the
Cognitiveaddress
the
dreamers’
cognitive
dreamer.
developmental development—his or her
neuroscience of
theory
dreams.
knowledge and understanding.