You already know high-quality rest is crucial, but have you considered the significance of each specific sleep stage? Oura’s sleep data breaks down your night into light sleep, deep sleep, REM sleep, and latency (how long it takes you to fall asleep), with every stage serving a distinctive purpose.
REM sleep happens in cycles throughout the night, and researchers believe1 this is a time when your brain recharges and memories are formed and consolidated2.
The amount of time you spend in REM sleep decreases as you age, with babies spending up to 50% of their sleep in REM, and adults averaging about 20 to 25% of the night in this stage3.
As an adult who sleeps for eight to nine hours each night, my REM cycle should ideally be one hour and 45 minutes at a minimum—so imagine my surprise when I found out I was only spending an average of 18 minutes in REM each night (about 4% of my total sleep).
I was clocking a sufficient amount of deep and light sleep, so I wasn’t waking up feeling groggy or tired. I have, however, experienced an increased amount of brain fogginess over the past few years—and any of my friends would tell you my memory is not great.
Discovering my low REM score validated that my cognition really was subpar. If I was only sleeping a few minutes in REM, how was my brain supposed to recharge? Thankfully, it also showed me that there was something that could be done about it.
