20 Mind Blowing Facts About Sleep

6. The longest period of staying awake was 11 days.

Randy Gardner, then a Californian high school student holds the record for the longest period without sleep at 11 days, 24 minutes.The record was set in 1964 and was attended by Dr. William Dement, a sleep researcher from Stanford. At the end of this period he was hallucinating, incredibly paranoid and experiencing short-term memory loss, so we can see why it’s not recommended.

7. Giraffes only need 1.9 hours of sleep in a day

In the entire mammal kingdom, giraffes are the most effective sleepers. They require the least amount of sleep, sleeping between 10 minutes and two hours a day. Even then they only take very short naps, usually no more than 10-15 minutes and sometimes even remain standing. The reason that the animals have developed this is because when sleeping they are incredible vulnerable to predators, and they don’t want to give anyone an opportunity to eat them!

8. Deaf people are known to use sign language in their sleep.

We all know that some people in the population talk in their sleep. The behaviour is most common in children aged between 3 and 10 who have been known to have entire conversations while asleep. So it shouldn’t be a surprise that people who are deaf and communicate with sign language also talk in their sleep, via signs. The phenomenon has been observed in both deaf children, and adults who have learned sign language later in life.

9. Having difficulty getting out of bed is a form of anxiety

Everyone struggles to get out of bed sometimes, especially if it’s Monday morning and there’s too much work to be done. But did you know that for some people getting out of bed isn’t just a hassle, it’s a chronic issue. Known as Dysania it’s a rare but accepted anxiety disorder that makes it very difficult to rise from your bed in the morning. Although sufferers have no problem waking up, they just can’t take the next step.

10. Unnatural movements during your sleep are known as Parasomnia.

Nightmares, sleepwalking and other unusual behaviours that take place when you’re asleep are known as parasomnia. In some people parasomnia behaviours are so intense that there have been reported instances of sleep-driving and even sleep-murders. Talk about a bad dream.