Scheduling overview: Difference between revisions

However, as NREM 2 gets reduced, the ability to stay awake for long periods diminishes. This is why schedules with less total sleep time (TST) need more sleeps spread throughout the day to be sustainable. Taking a ~20-minute nap or a ~90-minute single-cycle core helps a polyphasic sleeper sustain wakefulness. Maximum wake gaps are dependent on the schedule, time of day, as well as the sleeper's individual needs. With gaps too large, one will always experiences bouts of tiredness during it and be unable to fully adapt to the schedule.

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The circadian rhythm is the body clock aligned to local solar time by light exposure and food intake, among other factors. It generates hormonal changes throughout the day consistently to produce effects on the body. One of the main effects is the secretion of [[Wikipedia:Melatonin|melatonin]], the presence of which is essential for entering SWS, and also affects the timing of REM sleep.

To maintain the stability of the circadian rhythm, all polyphasic sleep schedules must stay relatively consistent day-to-day, without large changes in core or dark period timings. As such, schedules that are not aligned with the 24-hour day are unsustainable and unhealthy. Examples of which includes cycles longer than 24 hours (delaying sleep phases continually) or employing drastically different sleep schedules on a day-to-day basis.

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Since vital sleep stages are generally not possible to reduce, the extent of compression required to sustain a schedule increases dramatically as total sleep time reduces. Compressing sleep, however, requires adaptation, and greater levels of compression necessitates harsher and/or longer adaptations. As such, schedules can be classified by their difficulty level, which is mostly a function of the amount of sleep cut.