So ive been wondering about this a while. I always wake up a fair bit before my GF wakes up. and i’ve noticed that even while she’s asleep she still responds to thing like me giving her a kiss on the cheek while she sleeps. and when I get out of bed she always IMMEDIATELY turns over to my side of the bed.
a quick google search tells me that no, we are not aware of our surroundings while sleeping. but i’ve seen a lot of things that seem to contradict that.
In: Biology
Sleeping isn’t the same kind of “unconscious” as when you get knocked in the head and potentially become entirely unresponsive for a bit.
Sleep evolved because our bodies need it for various reasons, but it evolved in environments where there was still potenal dangers while sleep was occurring, so it shouldn’t be that surprising that a sleeping animal is somewhat responsive to their surroundings.
The “conscious” part of your brain certainly becomes less aware of its surroundings while you sleep, but clearly at some level your brain is paying some attention and processing some inputs. That’s why loud noises or movements nearby can wake you. It’s one of the ways your body tries to protect itself while you sleep.
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