How to Get REM Sleep

Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep is the stage of sleep when the brain is active and dreams occur. During REM sleep, your eyes will actually move quickly. The length of REM sleep depends on age and other factors, with infants spending about 50 percent of their sleep time in REM sleep, and adults nearly 20 percent of the time. ^{[1] X Research Source} Increasing REM sleep duration has been shown to enhance recall and total intellectual capacity. ^{[2] X Research Source} You will also have vivid dreams during the REM sleep phase of the sleep cycle and you expect these dreams to persist each night.

Table of Contents

Adjusting Sleep Habits

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Understand the stages of sleep. There are four stages of sleep, stage 4 is also the final stage – called REM (Rapid Eye Movement). To prolong REM sleep, you must let your mind and body enter the first three stages of sleep sequentially. Maintaining a regular bedtime and healthy sleep habits will help you in this. ^{[3] X Trusted Source HelpGuide Go to source}

Stage 1: This is the transition to sleep and lasts about five minutes. Your eyes will move slowly under your eyelids and your muscles will begin to relax, but you may be easily awakened by sounds or noises.
Stage 2: This is the first stage of true sleep and lasts 10-25 minutes. Your eye movements will stop completely, your heart rate will drop, and your body temperature will drop.
Stage 3: This is the beginning of deep sleep, during which it’s hard for you to wake up and if you do, you’ll often feel groggy or disoriented for a few minutes. At this stage, your brain waves are very slow and blood moves from your brain to your muscles, where strength is restored in your body.
Stage 4: The final stage of sleep is REM sleep, or dream sleep. It usually happens 70 to 90 minutes after you fall asleep. Your eyes will move quickly, your breathing will be shallow, and your heart rate and blood pressure may increase. During this stage, your arms and legs will also be numb.
Remember that at night, your sleep cycles, and goes back and forth between deep sleep and REM sleep. Each cycle lasts about 90 minutes and is repeated four to six times per night. During the night, the time you spend in each stage will change. Most deep sleep occurs in the first half of the night. After that, your REM sleep phase will be longer.

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Maintain a regular sleep schedule. Establish a bedtime routine so that you wake up and go to bed at the same time every day, whether it’s weekends or holidays. The amount of sleep each person needs is different, but on average, you should sleep between seven and nine hours. Having a regular sleep schedule will help you get REM sleep more often, as you’ll cycle between stages of sleep several times per night over the course of seven to nine hours. ^{[4] X Trusted Source National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Go to Source}

Some people assume that an hour less sleep won’t affect their daily functioning or that they can make up for it on weekends or holidays, but unfortunately sleep doesn’t work that way. Any change in your sleep duration will only have a negative effect on your sleep habits and decrease the duration of deep sleep or REM sleep. ^{[5] X Trusted Source HelpGuide Go to Source}
There is a myth that your body adapts quickly to changes in sleep time. While most people can adjust their circadian clock, this can only be done with the timing factor, even so, you can only change the circadian clock as high as an hour or two every other day. day. Remember that it takes more than a week to readjust your body clock when moving across several time zones or switching to night shifts.

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Turn off all electronic devices and other distractions a few hours before bed. Turn off TVs, smartphones, tablets and computers, or even better, leave no electronic devices in your bedroom. The type of light that these screens emit can stimulate your brain and inhibit the production of melatonin (the substance that promotes REM sleep), as well as change the body’s circadian clock. your body. ^{[6] X Trusted Source HelpGuide Go to source}

Another option is to set your computer’s shutdown time. Setting a timer will automatically shut down your computer and prevent you from working too late on your computer or working too close to your bedtime. You can enable this feature on both Windows and Mac computers. Also, if you want your computer to be on when you wake up in the morning, you can also set an on time.

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Keep your bedroom dark, cool and quiet. Use thick curtains or blackout curtains to block light from windows. Cover electronic screens such as televisions or computers to keep light from entering the room. You can also use a bedtime mask to cover your eyes and create a dark space to help you sleep. ^{[7] X Trusted Source HelpGuide Go to Source}

If you have trouble sleeping because of loud noises outside your window or from someone sleeping next to you, you can consider buying earplugs or a noise machine.

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Don’t consume caffeine or alcohol within four to six hours of bedtime. About half of the caffeine you consume at 7pm will still be in your body at 11pm. Caffeine is known to be a stimulant that inhibits REM sleep and can be found in coffee, chocolate, soft drinks, non-herbal teas, diet pills, and some pain relievers. Limit the amount of coffee you drink a few hours before bed or try to completely eliminate caffeine from your daily diet. ^{[8] X Research Sources}

Alcohol also interferes with deep sleep and REM sleep. They will keep you in the dreamy stages of sleep, making it easier to wake up and difficult to fall back to sleep again. Avoiding alcohol a few hours before bed will increase your chances of getting REM sleep. ^{[9] X Research Source}

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Try to go to bed 30 minutes earlier than usual. Your REM sleep phase will be longer in the morning, so try to prolong REM sleep by adding 30 minutes of sleep. Adjust your sleep time so that you fall asleep 30 minutes earlier than usual and maintain this variation in your sleep time by doing this every night. ^{[10] X Trusted Source HelpGuide Go to source}

Always stick to the right sleep schedule, as you will need time for all stages of sleep, especially deep sleep, to improve your REM sleep. If you don’t have enough time for deep sleep, your body will try to compensate for the amount of deep sleep the next night, thereby reducing the length of your REM sleep.

Taking Medicines and Exercising

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Talk to your doctor about using melatonin to enhance REM sleep. Recent studies have demonstrated that a melatonin supplement, about 3 mg per day, can increase your REM sleep and make your REM sleep cycle longer. Your doctor can recommend a melatonin supplement, usually in pill form, as well as a prescription dose that’s right for your body. ^{[11] X Trusted Source PubMed Central Go to Source}

Melatonin is also recommended for the elderly and night shift workers, as it will help get your sleep cycle back to normal and benefit your overall health.

Steps

Adjusting Sleep Habits

Taking Medicines and Exercising

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