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GUEST SERIES | Dr. Matt Walker: The Science of Dreams, Nightmares & Lucid Dreaming

Huberman Lab

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Can We Bank Sleep or Catch Up on Lost Sleep?

Sleep cannot be banked or caught up on in the same way that many people believe. Research shows that if you miss the crucial first night of sleep after learning or undergoing certain processes like memory consolidation or immune response, subsequent nights of extended sleep do not make up for it. Trying to pay off sleep debt by sleeping longer on other days only recovers about 25-50% of the lost hours, leading to a compounding effect on health. However, there is a concept of 'sleep banking' where individuals prepare for upcoming sleep-deprived nights by getting extra sleep beforehand, lessening the impact of the sleep debt incurred during those challenging periods.

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