Question

The phone rings and wakes you just when you first fall asleep. It is most likely you have been awakened from:

a. Stage 1 sleep
b. Stage 2 sleep
c. Stage 3 sleep
d. REM sleep

Answer 1

You have likely been awakened from stage 1 sleep, which occurs as you drift off to sleep and is a light stage of sleep from which it is easy to be awakened.

Step-by-step explanation:

When awakened by a phone ringing just as you fall asleep, it is likely that you were in stage 1 sleep. Stage 1 is a transitional phase between wakefulness and sleep, marked by the slowing down of respiration and heartbeat rates. Sleep spindles and K-complexes, patterns of brain wave activity, are more commonly associated with stage 2 sleep. Stage 3 sleep, also known as deep sleep or slow-wave sleep, is characterized by low-frequency, high-amplitude delta waves, making it challenging to wake someone.

Rapid Eye Movement (REM sleep) is a distinct stage marked by awake-like brain wave activity and eye movement, while the body remains essentially paralyzed, except for the eyes and the muscles controlling breathing. Understanding these sleep stages provides insights into the different physiological and neurological processes occurring during the sleep cycle.