As we all know, time gives each of us 24 hours a day. The amount of time each of us has in a day is consistent, but the amount of time each person spends on sleep is different. Some people like to go to bed early and get up early, while others like to stay up late and get up late. However, there is still controversy in the scientific community about the healthy bedtime and sleep duration. Moreover, different age groups, regions, time differences, and people have different sleep needs. Your sleep is unique.
Danielle Pacheco once pointed out that the type of sleep (time) is the natural tendency of your body to sleep at a specific time. She mainly divides sleep types into two categories, one is early riser and the other is late sleeper. Of course, there is another controversial type of sleep, the double heavy in the middle.
Sleep type belongs to early risers, who are more easy-going and responsible, and perform better in school and work. Sleep type belongs to late sleepers, who may be more neurotic, lively and cheerful. Late sleepers may have more creative thinking talents. They often have a more flexible sleep schedule, engage in less physical activity, sleep very little on weekdays, and usually like to sleep in on weekends to catch up on sleep. However, this unhealthy lifestyle habit often exacerbates health risks, which may lead to increased stress, elevated cortisol levels and resting heart rate, sleep apnea, obesity, type 2 diabetes and other diseases.
The occurrence of sleep types is the result of various factors interacting with each other. Of course, genetic inheritance is also one of the possible factors. For example, suffering from negative emotions such as anger, depression, and anxiety; skipping breakfast and eating more at night; using electronic devices, taking tobacco, alcohol, caffeine, drug abuse, etc., can all lead to a tendency to stay up late. Whether a person is an early riser or a night owl, many adverse results are particularly related to mismatched sleep types and work schedules, which reinforces the view that the simplest way to improve people’s health may be to identify a person’s sleep type and provide a matching work schedule. Unfortunately, this is mostly impossible.
For those who must adhere to a daily routine that does not match their sleep type, melatonin supplements, light therapy, or strict sleep hygiene habits may help change circadian rhythms to reduce the effects of insomnia and social jet lag. However, most people find that they cannot permanently change their sleep type.
There are many tests on the Internet for sleep types, such as the Morning and Night Questionnaire (MEQ) and the Munich Questionnaire (MCTQ). The most interesting test is Dr. Michael Breus’s description of four sleep types based on animal sleep-wake patterns: bear, wolf, lion or dolphin.
Lion:
The lion phenotype represents the early bird. These people wake up early in the morning and have the highest work efficiency, but they can arrange their social schedule in the evening
You may encounter more difficulties.
Bear:
According to Dr. Breus, people who fit the sleep type of bears account for about 55% of the population. People with this intermediate type tend to
To follow the sun. They do well during traditional work hours, but have no problem maintaining social life at night.
Wolf:
The wolf type is equivalent to the classic night owl, accounting for about 15% of the total population.
Dolphins:
The sleep type of dolphins is based on the ability of real dolphins to remain alert even while sleeping. Human “dolphins” are best known described as insomnia
Although sleep type can give you a rough idea of your ideal schedule, your mileage may vary. Whether you agree with Dr. Michael Breus’ animal sleep type or whether you know you prefer to wake up at night, better understanding your sleep type may be more helpful in improving your sleep quality and quality of life.
