ELi5: Experts say you can’t “pre-sleep” and also can’t catch up on lost sleep; what exactly does that mean? Since it’s not like I feel tired for the rest of my life after missing a night’s sleep, after a few days of good sleep I’m back to normal.

Question

Does “not being able to catch up on lost sleep” mean that every night of lost sleep accumulates to a shorter life span, more illness, or something of the sort?

In: Biology

Answer 1

Experts do NOT say you can’t catch up on sleep. It may take several nights to make up a sleep deficit but you certainly can do it. Read about it in this book: [https://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&qid=1628536891&refinements=p_27%3AWilliam+C.+Dement&s=books&sr=1-3](https://www.amazon.com/Promise-Sleep-Medicine-Connection-Happiness/dp/0440509017/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&qid=1628536891&refinements=p_27%3AWilliam+C.+Dement&s=books&sr=1-3)