Can You Be Asleep & Awake at the Same Time?

Scientists at the University of Wisconsin conducted a study in which they observed the affects of sleep deprivation on the rat brain. The study revealed that an insufficient amount of sleep may cause parts of the brain to sleep even though a person's overall brain activity and behavior exhibit wakefulness. This observed state is described as local sleep.

The Science of Local Sleep

• In a wakeful state, the brain fires neurons in an irregular and frequent pattern. When individuals are asleep, however, the activity of neurons drops dramatically, as measured by an EEG, or Electroencephalography machine, which measures brain activity. In fact, at times, all neurons go "offline" and do not fire at all. Local sleep is a term that was recently coined by researchers at The University of Wisconsin to describe the altered condition of brain activity subsequent to sleep deprivation. During local sleep, individuals are awake. Conversely, throughout periods of local sleep, the brain demonstrates rhythmic patterns associated with sleep; yet, unlike full sleep mode where neurons operate in a fully coordinated fashion, in local sleep small groups of neurons go silent while others remain active.

Sleep-Wake Baby Behavior

• In 2003, The University of North Carolina's School of Nursing conducted a study that determined, "Significant development of infant behavior occurs over the pre-term period but involves changes not only in the absolute percentage of each behavior but also in the percentages within each sleeping and waking state. Thus, preterm infant behaviors cannot be used clinically for assessment without consideration of the state in which they occur." The study showed that various behaviors define sleep. Even after we are born, the correlation between the body's behaviors and various sleep and wake modes remains strong. Despite trying to ignore the signals, as the body descends into a wakeful sleep, behaviors, such as a higher susceptibility of being startled or stressed, reveal that brain pattern changes are occurring.

Cause of Local Sleep

• Although researchers do not have a definitive answer for why certain areas of the awake brain shut down, multiple studies confer that the brain requires sleep to process information gathered during the day. In fact, once energy exerted by brain cells exceeds its limit, the brain releases adenosine, a neurotransmitter controller that promotes sleep and governs the depth of rest, increasing output as the day proceeds. From the moment a person wakes, thinking and reacting are incessantly demanding energy from different parts of the brain. Eventually, without sleep, cell by cell, areas become "localized," resulting in the awake-sleep state.

Effect of Sleep-Awake Mode

• Local sleep occurrence compromises a person's performance. The University of Wisconsin study showed that animals with brain patterns exhibiting the presence of local sleep had a greater chance to fail when performing motor tasks compared to others. Although physically a person may feel fine, without adequate sleep, problem-solving parts of the brain may be squirming. The opportunity for making mistakes increases. As thoughts become hazy and cells in the brain go silent, the likelihood for driving accidents and work errors increases.