What Does REM Stand For

What does REM stand for? The three letters stand for rapid eye movement, which is a stage of sleep that involves rapid movement of the eyes.

REM sleep usually occurs far into the sleep cycle.

REM sleep is also referred to as paradoxical sleep because this stage of sleep is very similar to being awake in the sense that the brain's activity level is almost as busy as it is during consciousness. The brain is very busy during waking hours but then slows down in neuron activity while sleeping. REM sleep is the exception to this rule. During the REM stage of sleep the brain is brimming with activity.

During this stage of sleep, the eyes dart back and forth rapidly as though they are watching or reading something interesting. This is where REM sleep gets its name. The rapid eye movement is a reliable indicator of REM sleep.

It is much easier to understand what does REM stand for when the rapid eye movement is present in a sleeping person. In most instances it's very easy to see the eyes darting back and forth even though the eyes are closed.

Sleep is characterized as either REM or NREM, which stands for non-REM. NREM sleep is the predominant status for most healthy adults when sleeping, but almost everyone experiences cycles between the two throughout a night of sleep. An exception to this rule is with some people who have experienced brain injuries and are no longer capable of REM sleep because of the damage to the brain. Some animals also experience REM sleep.

What distinguishes REM sleep from NREM sleep? People are more likely to remember details from their dreams occurring during the REM stage and are also less likely to move while in REM sleep. Conversely, people are more likely to move sporadically while in NREM sleep and do not remember the details of their dreams as well. There are also physiological differences between REM and NREM sleep, including breathing rate and brain wave activity.

NREM sleep has four stages, which is followed by a fifth stage of REM sleep. Most people follow the same sleep pattern every night when they sleep, going through all five stages a few times a night. This varies depending on several factors, and the stage in which a person awakens varies from day to day.

How do you know if you have awakened during an NREM stage of sleep or an REM stage of sleep? Remembering the details to your dreams is a good indication that you were awakened during the REM stage, but not being able to recall details of your dreams indicates you were in an NREM stage of sleep upon awakening.

REM sleep is usually accompanied by sleep paralysis. This is a necessary function that keeps the body from physically acting out the activities occurring within dreams.

A person who does not encounter this sleep paralysis – or who only encounters it intermittently – may have an REM sleep disorder. This can be a potentially dangerous sleep disorder because the people experiencing it may hurt themselves or other people while sleeping.

The simple answer is that REM stands for rapid eye movement, but it is obvious that there is much more to this stage of sleep.

Interestingly enough, this portion of the sleep cycle was not even discovered until the 1950s, so much research still needs to be done to fully understand not only when REM sleep occurs but also why it occurs.

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