Sleep for Memory and Cognitive Function

“Some people can work with only 3 hours of sleep, but that's very rare, and the average person needs around 8 hours. Don't sleep-deprive yourself. It's not healthy for your body AND for your mind in many ways. Edit: The average person needs 8 hours of sleep, but that doesn't mean everyone should sleep at least 8 hours. Some sleep more, some sleep less. That's why it's an *average*. If it doesn't affect your life negatively, it's fine if you only sleep 3-5 hours. If you feel energised, well-rested, and ready to face the world, it's not an illness.”

“Sleep is required to purge biological waste from the brain. It creates space between the neurons and flushes with spinal fluid. If you aren't sleeping, you are likely putting yourself at far greater risk down the road for Alzheimers or dementia.”

“Set your alarm for a multiple of 90 minutes from when you go to sleep. Every hour and a half the human sleep cycle enters a phase where you're almost awake, so that's the ideal time to fully wake up. Going up just the last step is much easier than climbing the whole wakefulness staircase. If you go to bed at 11:45pm and set your alarm for 6am you'll probably have a far easier time getting up than if you went to bed earlier at 10:45pm because a 10:45 bedtime puts your 6am alarm right in the middle of your deep sleep.”