Sleep is an essential requirement for sustaining human life. Nobody is entirely sure just how sleep works or what the body does while you’re out, but it is known that depriving yourself of a full night’s sleep can have unpleasant side effects. Sleep deprivation, sadly, is a growing problem in the modern world. Whether it is their schedule, the stress from work, or chronic pain, people are finding it more difficult to get a full night’s (or day’s) rest. The vast majority of people don’t consider this to be a major problem, but that is only because they don’t seem to fully grasp the potential dangers associated with a lack of sleep. Being deprived of sleep long enough can actually be fatal. But surely, even short-term deprivation can have consequences on the mind and body.
Decreased alertness and reflexes are the first signs that someone hasn’t been getting enough sleep. As side effects go, most people don’t really pay much attention to this. For the most part, people who experience this problem tend to think that a couple of cups of coffee throughout the day can compensate. However, sluggish and slow behavior can have...