‹ The Stress Response
Sleep. The brain's nightly reset.
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Body and MindGL-00022
Sleep
The brain's nightly reset
The nightly period when the brain repairs and files what it learned.
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GL-00022Mechanism
During deep sleep, the brain flushes out waste proteins through its cleaning system. This cycle only runs when you are unconscious. Skip it and the waste accumulates. Sleep is not rest. It is maintenance. The brain needs it the way a machine needs a shutdown for repairs.
- Teenagers need 8 to 10 hours of sleep. Most get less than 7.
- Screens before bed delay sleep because blue light blocks the hormone that signals tiredness (melatonin).
SourceXie et al
(2013), glymphatic system research
Walker, Why We Sleep (2017)
(2013), glymphatic system research
Walker, Why We Sleep (2017)
Keep exploring
Because you read Sleep.
Body and MindGL-00033
Vaccination
Training the army before the war
A safe preview of a disease that teaches the body to fight it.
GeekLibraryIdea
Body and MindGL-00025
First Aid: Burns
Cool water, not butter
The first care given to a burn, before any doctor is involved.
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The Stress Response
Your body's fire alarm
The body's automatic reaction to danger, real or imagined.
GeekLibraryMechanism