Is it possible to sleep for a week

HelpGuide uses cookies to improve your experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. Privacy Policy. The quality of your sleep at night directly affects your mental and physical health and how well you feel during the day.

Sleep impacts your productivity, emotional balance, brain and heart health, immune function, creativity, vitality, and even your weight. No other activity delivers so many benefits with so little effort! But even minimal sleep loss can take a substantial toll on your mood, energy, mental sharpness, and ability to handle stress.

And over the long-term, chronic sleep loss can wreak havoc on your mental and physical health. While you rest, your brain stays busy, overseeing biological maintenance that keeps your body running in top condition, preparing you for the day ahead. By addressing any sleep problems and making time to get the sleep you need each night, your energy, efficiency, and overall health will go up.

Fact: You may not be noticeably sleepy during the day, but losing even one hour of sleep can affect your ability to think properly and respond quickly. It also compromises your cardiovascular health, energy, and ability to fight infections. Fact: Most people can reset their biological clock, but only by appropriately timed cues—and even then, by one or two hours per day at best.

Consequently, it can take more than a week to adjust after traveling across several time zones or switching to the night shift at work. There is a big difference between the amount of sleep you can get by on and the amount you need to function optimally.

According to the National Institutes of Health, the average adult sleeps less than seven hours per night. While sleep requirements vary slightly from person to person, most healthy adults need seven to nine hours of sleep per night to function at their best. Children and teens need even more. And despite the notion that our sleep needs decrease with age, most older people still need at least seven hours of sleep.

Since older adults often have trouble sleeping this long at night, daytime naps can help fill in the gap. Health Conditions Discover Plan Connect. The 3-Day Fix for Energy. Medically reviewed by Daniel Bubnis, M. The guide that lets you sleep in. Day 1: Saturday. Share on Pinterest.

Day 2: Sunday. Day 3: Monday. The rest of the week. Food Fix: Fatigue. Read this next. Medically reviewed by Peggy Pletcher, M. Medically reviewed by Debra Sullivan, Ph. If you are concerned about oversleeping, talk with your doctor about your sleep and health habits. You may want to keep a sleep diary to record your nighttime sleep and wake times, as well as any naps you take during the day.

Your doctor can use this information to help you identify the cause of your oversleeping and suggest a treatment plan. Regardless of the cause of your oversleeping, you can implement healthy sleep tips to improve your sleep habits:. Austin is a professional writer and researcher who has covered sleep science and sleep products for over a decade.

Rehman, M. A nighttime cough is the cold symptom most likely to interfere with sleep. Learn how to sleep with a cough…. Learn more about the causes and underlying mechanisms of REM rebound, a phenomenon in which a person temporarily experiences more…. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website.

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Our editors and medical experts rigorously evaluate every article and guide to ensure the information is factual, up-to-date, and free of bias. Updated November 3, Written by Austin Meadows. Medically Reviewed by Dr. Anis Rehman. What Causes Oversleeping? Impacts of Oversleeping Tips for Avoiding Oversleeping. What Is Oversleeping? Sign up below for your free gift. Your privacy is important to us.

Was this article helpful? Yes No. Anis Rehman Endocrinologist MD. Kim, Y. Insufficient and excessive amounts of sleep increase the risk of premature death from cardiovascular and other diseases: The multiethnic cohort study. Preventive Medicine, 57 4 , — Medical Encyclopedia. Sleep disorders. Ohayon, M. Excessive sleep duration and quality of life. Annals of Neurology, 73 6 , — By Eric Suni November 4, By Eric Suni November 2, By Rob Newsom September 20, By Jay Summer September 2, By Danielle Pacheco August 26, By Jay Summer August 26, What Kind of Sleeper Are You?

By Danielle Pacheco January 8, How is Sleep Different for Men and Women? By Eric Suni November 13, Are Natural Sleep Aids Safe? Is Snoring Harmless? By Danielle Pacheco November 13, By Danielle Pacheco November 6, What Happens When You Sleep?

By Eric Suni October 30, By Danielle Pacheco October 9, What Causes Restless Sleep? By Eric Suni September 11, Why Do We Need Sleep? By Alexa Fry September 11, Load More Articles. Related Reading How Sleep Works. Other Articles of Interest Sleep Hygiene. There's no better time to start the journey to improving your sleep.

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