What Is Sleep Deprivation?

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Sleep deprivation is getting less sleep than your body needs. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that adults get at least seven hours of sleep a night, and kids and teens need more—up to nine hours a night. The amount of sleep that feels like sleep deprivation for you will depend on factors like your age and how much sleep you need to feel rested.

Sleep deprivation can make you feel tired after just a night of poor sleep. Chronic sleep deprivation can have a negative effect on your memory and blood pressure, can make you more sensitive to physical pain, and can even cause hallucinations.

This article will go over what sleep deprivation is, what causes it, how it’s treated, and how you can avoid becoming sleep deprived. 

common symptoms of sleep deprivation
 Illustration by Emily Roberts, Verywell

What Are the Symptoms of Sleep Deprivation?

The effects of sleep deprivation are felt throughout the day. For example, your symptoms will be worse at times when you would naturally be asleep (like overnight).

The most common symptoms of not getting enough sleep are obvious: feeling sleepy and drowsy. Some people feel a strong desire to sleep or a sense of feeling run down. You may even have episodes during which you suddenly and very briefly fall asleep (microsleep) when you're supposed to be awake, such as while you’re driving or sitting in a meeting at work.

There are other effects of sleep deprivation that are less obvious. You might even go weeks without realizing that your symptoms are from sleep deprivation.

Common symptoms of sleep deprivation include:

  • Mood and behavioral changes (e.g., short-tempered, anxiety, depression)
  • Difficulty concentrating (e.g., decreased reaction times, impaired work/school performance)
  • Problems with higher-level functions (e.g., planning, organization, judgment)
  • Psychiatric symptoms (e.g., disorientation, hallucinations, paranoia)
  • Physical effects (e.g., generalized discomfort or aches and pains, gastrointestinal symptoms like nausea and diarrhea)
  • A small overall decrease in your body temperature (feeling cold)

Do Stimulants Make Sleep Deprivation Feel Worse?

Drinking coffee, soda, or energy drinks that are high in caffeine will have a stimulating effect that masks the symptoms of sleep deprivation. While these beverages might give you more energy at first and even help you stay awake, you may “crash” when they wear off. At that point, you'll feel the full effects of being sleep-deprived and even caffeine withdrawal symptoms.

What Causes Sleep Deprivation?

Sleep deprivation can happen whenever you’re not getting as much sleep as your body needs to function well. There are many possible reasons for sleep deprivation. Perhaps you tend to stay up late and wake up early to catch up on everything you have to do. Your sleep might also be affected by your environment (e.g., you cannot avoid the sounds of street traffic at night).

How Long Does Sleep Deprivation Last?

You may have sleep deprivation for just one night, or for a longer stretch of weeks, months, or even years. The less sleep you get, the more your sleep deprivation will affect you.

Sometimes, sleep deprivation is just a temporary issue—for example, if you’re traveling and changing time zones or if you are staying up late trying to finish a project for work or school. Sometimes, people lose sleep from stressful situations or because of illness, but they’re usually able to catch up.

When sleep deprivation becomes an ongoing problem, the effects are likely to become more obvious and serious. For example, people who work late or early shifts often have unusual sleep schedules (like having to sleep during the day so they can go to work at night).

Other factors like getting older, having a sleep disorder like insomnia, using substances, and having a major life change (like having a new baby at home) can contribute to sleep deprivation.

While it can affect anyone, parents of babies and young children, caretakers, college students, and employees working long hours or multiple jobs are often sleep-deprived. You may also experience sleep deprivation due to a medical condition. For example, pregnancy, a stomachache, or an upper respiratory infection can make it very difficult to sleep.

Caffeine, certain foods, or having a meal too close to when you go to bed, and some over-the-counter (OTC) and prescription medications can affect sleep as well.

Sleep disorders can also make it harder for you to get a good night's sleep. Here are a few examples:

  • Insomnia, which is trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, is a common cause of sleep deprivation.
  • Obstructive sleep apnea can cause sleep deprivation, though you might not notice that you are waking up at night. Waking up may only last a few seconds each time, but the disruptions mean you are not getting optimal sleep.
  • Restless leg syndrome can cause nighttime waking, though you may not remember waking up. You may have noticeable daytime fatigue, which is a clue that you’re not sleeping well or enough at night.
  • Having nightmares can interfere with restorative sleep to the point that they deprive you of restorative rest.

What Are the Effects of Sleep Deprivation on the Body?

Your body functions based on a 24-hour cycle (circadian rhythm) that coordinates when you go to sleep and when you wake up. It also regulates cues for hunger, digestion, body temperature, and hormonal functions throughout the day and night.

Sleep deprivation makes it harder for your circadian rhythm to function, which has an overall negative effect on your body. Examples of just a few body systems that are negatively affected by sleep deprivation include:

  • The immune system
  • The heart and lungs (cardiovascular system)
  • The digestive (gastrointestinal) system 
  • The endocrine (hormonal) and reproductive systems
  • The nervous system (brain)

Your brain is one organ that really feels the effects of not getting enough sleep in many ways. Sleep has a key role in learning. Sleeping helps your brain consolidate the day’s events, solidifying and recording memories. When your sleep is disrupted, changes in the brain can impair these important processes.

Risk of Car Accidents

Research has shown that car accidents are often caused because someone was driving drowsy—which can be as bad as driving while under the influence of alcohol.

A 2018 study showed that people who had not slept for more than seven hours in the previous 24-hour period were at higher odds of being involved in—and responsible for—car crashes. The people who had less than four hours of sleep had the highest risk of being involved in a car accident.

Complications

Sleep deprivation affects the natural flow of the sleep cycle, which can alter hormone levels (e.g., insulin, thyroid, growth) and can contribute to infertility.

Mood or libido changes, weight fluctuations, and immune dysfunction can also happen, but may not affect everyone in the same way. For example, you could feel excited, depressed, or agitated; you may gain or lose weight; or you might be more likely to get infections or feel the effects of inflammation in your body (like an asthma attack).

Hormones are complex and operate with positive and negative feedback loops that make up for high and low hormone levels.

Sleep deprivation can cause other major changes that will affect your long-term health, including changes in blood sugar, blood pressure, pulse, and/or heart rate. When it’s extreme, sleep deprivation that goes on for a long time may lead to death.

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How Is Sleep Deprivation Diagnosed?

If you are not sure whether or not you are sleep deprived but you’re having symptoms, you should see a provider to talk about how you’re feeling and figure out what could be negatively affecting your sleep. 

Sleep Assessment

A healthcare provider can figure out if you’re sleep deprived in a few ways. They will start by asking about your sleep habits and time spent sleeping.

Beyond the number of hours that you’re getting a night, sleep quality is also important. Sleep apnea, anxiety, and chronic pain can have a negative effect on your sleep quality, even if you are lying in bed for the "right" number of hours every night. 

Your provider will also ask you how fast you fall asleep once you get into bed. If you are sleep deprived, you will fall asleep almost immediately after putting your head down on your pillow (short sleep latency).

Your sleep latency can also be measured with a sleep study called the multiple sleep latency test.

Medical Evaluation

Your provider can identify some effects of sleep deprivation based on a physical examination and diagnostic testing. Common signs of sleep deprivation include:

  • Ptosis (droopy eyelids)
  • Sluggish corneal reflexes (blink reflex)
  • Hyperactive gag reflex (easily gagging during a throat examination)
  • Hyperactive deep tendon reflexes (brisk reflexes when your healthcare provider checks your knee, ankle, or elbow reflexes)

How Much Sleep Do People Need?

Most humans have similar sleep needs, though there are variations. Average sleep requirements based on age can be used to figure out whether you might be deprived.

Average Sleep Needs Based on Age
Age Group Hours of Sleep Per Day
3 to 11 months 12 to 16 hours
12 months to 35 months 11 to 14 hours
3 to 5 years 10 to 13 hours
6 to 13 years 9 to 11 hours
14 to 17 years 8 to 10 hours
18+ years
7 to 9 hours
Older adults (65+) 7 to 8 hours

How Is Sleep Deprivation Treated?

Ideally, preventing sleep deprivation will help keep you focused and full of energy. There are a few ways you can try to get your sleep back on track and establish sleep hygiene habits that will help you make sure you’re getting the sleep your body needs. 

Planning for Sleep Interruptions

If you know that you have to stay up late, you may want to plan to sleep in that morning or the next day. If you know that you have to get up early the next day, going to bed early the night before can help you get ahead. 

Similarly, if you have a job that requires shift work or if you know that you'll be up in the middle of the night taking care of your baby, you could plan scheduled naps every day to ensure that you get enough sleep. 

Try to Get Ahead or Catch Up

Sometimes, sleep deprivation is unexpected and happens as a result of a short-lived interruption, like a pressing deadline at work. In this case, most of the physical side effects of sleep deprivation are minor and easy to fix.

If you've only been sleep deprived for a day or two, catching up on sleep or having a nap might be all it takes to feel more rested. However, most people need more time to recover from sleep deprivation that lasts weeks or longer.

While you can catch up on sleep debt, it is not a good idea to have a habit of sleep deprivation given the effects it can have on your health.

Addressing Root Cause

If you have a medical condition such as pain or cough, your provider may give you a prescription to help clear it up or better manage it so that you can sleep.

If you are having a hard time sleeping because you have insomnia, your sleep specialist may want you to try sleep restriction. For this treatment, you avoid taking naps during the day so you’re more likely to be ready to sleep at night when you want to go to bed. This can help you reset your sleep schedule and get back on track to consistent sleep. 

Taking Sleep Medication

For insomnia that isn’t easily solved, medication may be needed. However, it’s important to talk to your provider about the risks of taking medications to help you sleep. Some sleep aids have serious side effects and can’t be used as a long-term treatment.

Even OTC options like melatonin can affect your body's natural sleep-wake cycle. While these options can often help with once-in-a-while sleep problems, they may not be a safe solution if you're having trouble sleeping most of the time.

Should I Force Myself to Stay Awake?

If you want or need to stay awake for a few hours until you can catch up on sleep later in the day, there are a few strategies that you can try in the short term. 

Doing moderate physical activity, being in a room with pleasant lighting and enjoyable sounds (like music), having some caffeine, and engaging in an activity you are very interested in are all strategies that can keep you awake and alert.

Keep in mind that forcing yourself to stay awake when you're sleep-deprived can be dangerous if you need to drive or take care of something that involves concentration. Likewise, while it may get you through a tough day here and there, this is not a strategy for the long term. Work to make changes that will allow you to get the rest you need when you need it.

How Is Sleep Deprivation Prevented?

The best way to avoid being sleep deprived is to make sure you know how much sleep your body needs to function at its best. Figure out how you can do your best to make sure you’re consistently meeting your sleep needs.

It’s not always easy to get enough sleep, especially if you have big changes in your life that are making it harder to make sleep a priority. But remember: If you’re sleep deprived, you won’t be able to do the things you need and want to do while you’re awake as well as you could if you were rested.

You may need to make some adjustments to your schedule to help you get the sleep you need—for example, cutting back on caffeine and creating a healthy sleep environment in your bedroom. 

You also may need to talk to your provider about getting some support while you make changes in the short term that will hopefully help you address any sleep problems in the long term. 

Summary

While short-term sleep deprivation can happen if there are changes or interruptions in your life, you should avoid putting yourself in a situation where you’re not getting enough quality sleep on a regular basis. 

The short- and long-term effects of sleep deprivation on your health can be serious, but there are things you can do to make better sleep a priority in your life. 

If you’re not getting the sleep you need, talk to your healthcare provider about what you can do to try to get your sleep back on track.

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Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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Additional Reading

By Brandon Peters, MD
Brandon Peters, MD, is a board-certified neurologist and sleep medicine specialist.