Sleep Vocabulary
Here’s a list of some useful sleep terminology. I hope to be adding to this list as time goes on. : )
Good Sleep Hygiene: Habits that promote healthy sleep: including keeping regular bed/wake-up times; the avoidance of caffeine and alcohol before bed; and, using the bed only for sleeping.
Melatonin: a brain hormone that produces sleepiness.
Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT): a daytime test which consists of a nap series in a sleep laboratory after an overnight sleep study. This is done to determine the quality of a daytime sleepiness complaint.
Polysomnogram (PSG): an overnight study taking place in a sleep lab.
REM Sleep: a mentally active period in which dreaming and rapid eye movements take place; the skeletal muscles assume a paralyzed state.
Rozerem: the first prescription sleep medication which helps one to sleep by targeting the body’s clock sleep/wake cycle.
Sleep latency: How long it takes you to fall asleep.
Sleep onset: When one first falls asleep.
Sleep stages: The sleep cycle consists of four stages of sleep called non-rapid eye movement (NREM) plus rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. We proceed through the cycle several times every night.
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