I've asked this question before, but never really got the answer I was looking for. We sleep because our bodies need rest, but it seems that our minds never really sleep. We dream, solve problems, and resolve conflict while we sleep. So, why is it that when we dont physically go to sleep, our minds don't work to full capacity the next day? And after seven days without sleep, shows the beginning signs of insanity.
2006-08-27 06:07:43 · 5 answers · asked by Vespr 2 in Social Science ➔ Psychology
Well, our minds do sleep, just not like we're expecting. sleep does not mean that our brains shut off, but that it is doing what it needs to do while you sleep.
The reason for sleep is not totally understood. There is one theory that explains the "insanity" that happens. This theory states the brain needs this time to sort through and organize everything that has happened since the last time you slept.
Of course, there are other things that happen when you don't get sleep that are just plain weird and point to other things, such as the fact one will start coughing/wheezing and the throat dries out. Because of this, there is a theory that sleep is kind of a "reboot" of the brain's systems and without this, the brain's functions slowly deteriorate over time until it has the chance to "reboot".
2006-08-27 06:15:51 · answer #1 · answered by jhessick 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Think of you body as a car. You drive around all day, fill up some gas, drive around some more. Then you come home and park the car and turn the engine off. But you don't disconnect the battery do you? Why not? Because then if you forgot your wallet in the car and you would open the door the light wouldn't come on. Also, in the morning when you wanted to start you car up it wouldn't start up because the battery is disconnected.
Same thing with you body. Your body needs the brain to be connected and functioning 24/7 so that if you need to get up at night and pee you don't walk around like a zombie. The mind also cannot live with out the body therefore the body rests. Just like you can't drive your car 24/7 or else it will break down, do your body needs rest too. Or else you will go crazy. Or break down. You pick.
2006-08-27 06:16:46 · answer #2 · answered by blue2monday 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
We do sleep without dreaming sometimes. That, I think, is real rest for the mind. It also is more restful for the body. But we need more than rest; we need to sort and work out the unconscious part of our minds, and that's what dreaming is for.
2006-08-27 06:13:55 · answer #3 · answered by auntb93again 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Your mind never actually deactivates, but it does do different things when you're sleeping. Because of the reduced information coming from your sense organs, it spends more of its processing power organizing itself and putting things you've learned recently into permanent memory. It's still active, but in a different way.
2006-08-27 06:09:56 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
The first poster is correct.
Bottom line, the brain needs a break from input so it can file all the events of the day, ergo, dreams.
2006-08-27 06:14:45 · answer #5 · answered by ms_books3736 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋