Colin Snow
Sleep is essential for both physical and emotional well-being, and even a single night of missed sleep can have adverse effects on the body. Sleep deprivation can cause a range of issues, from impaired coordination and memory to an increased risk of accidents and injuries. As the number of hours without sleep increases, so do the severity and number of symptoms, with hallucinations and complex delusions occurring after 48 and 72 hours, respectively. While the exact number of days a person can survive without sleep is unclear, it is evident that going even a few days without sleep can have detrimental effects on overall health and functioning.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Time without sleep | 24 hours |
| Effects | Impaired decision-making, vision and hearing impairments, decreased hand-eye coordination, increased muscle tension, increased risk of accidents or near misses, increased anxiety or agitation |
| Time without sleep | 36 hours |
| Effects | Increased appetite, extreme fatigue, microsleeps, hallucinations |
| Time without sleep | 48 hours |
| Effects | Periods of light sleep lasting up to 30 seconds, difficulty staying awake, distorted reality, depersonalization, trouble perceiving time |
| Time without sleep | 72 hours |
| Effects | Slurred speech, unsteady walking, complex hallucinations, severe decline in mental health, symptoms of psychosis, violent behaviour |
What You'll Learn
After 24 hours without sleep
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), staying awake for 24 hours is similar to having a blood alcohol concentration of 0.10%, which is higher than the legal limit for driving. This means that the kinds of impairment you may experience are similar to intoxication. You may also experience an increase in stress hormones, like cortisol and adrenaline, as your body attempts to compensate for the fatigue you're experiencing.
Research suggests that after 24 hours without sleep, people begin to feel more anxious or agitated. As the number of hours without sleep grows, performance on tasks continues to decline, and people become more prone to errors and misinterpret social cues. People may also start to notice changes in their visual perception, with trouble in depth perception and their ability to accurately perceive an object's shape and size.
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After 36 hours without sleep
You may also start to experience microsleep, which is when your brain forces you to fall asleep for a brief moment, often without you realising it. This can last up to 30 seconds and can be dangerous if it happens while driving or when you are in a vulnerable position.
Your cognitive performance will also decline, and you may experience illusions or simple visual hallucinations, such as seeing something growing from the floor. Your ability to think creatively will be reduced, and you may have trouble with time perception.
The effects of sleep deprivation will intensify the longer you stay awake, and it will become even harder to stay awake after 36 hours.
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After 48 hours without sleep
Microsleep is your brain's way of protecting you from the effects of sleep deprivation, which will be intensifying by this point. You will likely be experiencing perceptual distortions, increased irritability, and temporal disorientation. Your cognitive performance will be worsening, and you will be very fatigued.
You may also be experiencing symptoms of depersonalisation and derealisation, which are problems with accurately perceiving yourself and reality. This can manifest as switches between feelings of apathy and euphoria, and feelings of being outside of your body. You may also experience auditory disturbances, such as not being able to recognise where a sound is coming from.
Your body will be under a lot of stress, with raised levels of cortisol and adrenaline, and your ability to regulate your emotions will be compromised.
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After 72 hours without sleep
At this point, your perception of reality will be severely distorted, resembling acute psychosis. Your hallucinations will become more complex, and you may experience delusions, such as believing that someone has sent you on a secret mission. You may also have difficulty with multitasking, severe concentration and memory issues, and difficulty communicating with others.
Emotionally, you may experience irritability, anxiety, and paranoia. Your ability to process others' emotions will be impaired, and you may struggle to interpret facial expressions.
Physically, your body will be under extreme stress, with higher levels of inflammatory markers in the blood, and your immune system will be compromised. Your heart rate may also increase.
It is important to note that the effects of sleep deprivation can vary from person to person, and some people may experience more severe consequences of staying awake for 72 hours.
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Short-term vs. chronic sleep loss
Short-term sleep loss can have a variety of physical, behavioural, emotional, social, and practical consequences. After 24 hours without sleep, people may experience reduced reaction time, impaired judgment and decision-making, diminished memory and attention, impaired vision, hearing and hand-eye coordination, and tremors. After 36 hours, these symptoms will intensify, and individuals may experience mood fluctuations, attention issues, and changes in body temperature and appetite. At 48 hours, people often experience microsleep, a protective reflex where the brain briefly goes "offline" for up to 30 seconds. This can be dangerous if it occurs while driving or operating machinery.
The effects of short-term sleep loss are usually temporary and will go away once the person catches up on sleep. However, chronic sleep deprivation, or repeatedly getting insufficient sleep over weeks, months, or years, can have more severe and long-lasting consequences. It can increase the risk of cognitive impairment and dementia, poor balance and coordination, weakened immune system, impaired glucose tolerance and Type 2 diabetes, overweight and obesity, high blood pressure, cardiac events, stroke, and depression and other mood disorders.
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Frequently asked questions
After 24 hours without sleep, people may experience symptoms such as impaired decision-making, vision and hearing impairments, decreased hand-eye coordination, increased muscle tension, and increased risk of accidents. This level of sleep deprivation can also lead to similar cognitive effects as having a blood alcohol concentration of 0.10%, which is above the legal limit for driving in most places.
At this point, people will have an overwhelming urge to sleep and may experience microsleeps, which are brief periods of sleep that can last for several seconds. Other possible effects include increased appetite, extreme fatigue, and the onset of hallucinations.
After two days without sleep, people typically experience emotional, cognitive, physical, and mental health symptoms. They may also have symptoms of depersonalization and derealization, such as feeling detached from their body and mind, and difficulty perceiving time. Hallucinations and illusions also become more common and harder to distinguish from reality.
After three days without sleep, a person's ability to think and perceive reality is severely compromised. They may experience complex hallucinations, delusions, and symptoms similar to acute psychosis, such as detachment from reality and violent behaviour.
