Sleep deprivation can rarely cause death, but it isn’t recommended either. Like air, water, and food are essential for you, sleep is the same. The record for the longest awake time is 264 hours - approximately 11 days - set up in 1965.
When asked about the non-sleeping experience, the record holder said that he faced memory loss, like how it happens during the early stages of Alzheimer's. Though this affected 11 days of sleeplessness, it didn’t even take 11 days for the adverse effects to kick in. You won’t experience any neurological or psychological disorders, but lack of concentration, perception, and provocation does happen.
Let’s look at some consequences that might happen if you don’t sleep for a few days.
24-Hour Sleep Deprivation
Watching one more episode on Netflix, completing office deadlines, anxiously waiting for your bitcoin prime investment, or preparing for that big exam may result in losing sleep. Though it is taken very lightly, some effects can impact your day-to-day activities.
The following can happen if you don’t sleep for a whole day:
An increase in the blood alcohol level to 0.10%, which is illegal in most countries.
Error in decision-making
Irritability
Reduced hand-eye coordination
Risk of accidents
Loss of memory
Reformed perceptions
36-Hour Sleep Deprivation
Now that’s one and a half days of no sleep. Your sleep cycle is disturbed, and the hormones released during that alter many bodily functions. One study revealed that prolonged wakefulness in soldiers increases the error rate in judgment.
What harm can 36-hour wakefulness do? Let’s see:
Hormonal Imbalance
Lack of judgment
Error in decision-making
Loss of attention
Detrimental Speech
72-Hour Sleep Deprivation
For most people, two days is the deadline for their non-sleeping routine. They end up having small patches of sleep, which makes the brain more confused and anxious.
It also affects the immune system, so you might become more prone to even small health errors you don’t usually get when you sleep normally. The NK (natural killer) cell activity reduces with the lack of sleep, which means no more protection against viruses or bacteria.
Hormonal imbalances can cause depression, paranoia, and anxiety constantly. Not only do your emotions get all over the place, but you might also have difficulty recognizing other people’s emotions.
Hallucinations and illusions would become really common. As your level of perception also lowers, you might get anxious and scared more often, and it will mess up your mind even more. You might feel like you are in a horror movie, with non-existent people constantly watching you.
Chronic Sleep Deprivation
Pulling an all-nighter once in a while might be acceptable. But having constant loss of sleep, like sleeping 3-4 hours every day, has long-term adverse effects. It might result in cognitive impairment, difficulty in making normal decisions, decreased everyday activities, risk of illness, changes in mood, and drowsiness.
Ending Note
Risking your health and life for pushing in extra work is a really risky thing to do. You cannot work if your health is compromised. Therefore, nothing is worth jeopardizing sleep for. So, sleep isn’t worth risking for anything. If it is just a one or two-time thing and you give your body time to recover, then it is acceptable but other than that, not worth the risk.
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