Sleep Architecture 101.
Sleep isn't just "off" time. It's a complex, active biological process. Understanding the four stages of sleep is the key to waking up energized.
The Hypnogram
Your brain cycles through distinct electrical patterns roughly every 90 minutes. This Ultradian Rhythm repeats 4-6 times each night and looks like rolling hills on a hypnogram.
Timing is everything: if your alarm catches you in Deep Sleep you'll feel wrecked (Sleep Inertia). Catch you in Light Sleep and you bounce up like a superhero.
Stage N1: The Drift
Bridge between wakefulness and sleep. Muscle tone relaxes, brain waves slow from Alpha to Theta. Lasts 5-10 minutes.
Stage N2: Light Sleep
Body temperature drops, heart rate slows, and "sleep spindles" protect your rest. You spend ~50% of the night here—the ideal stage to wake up in.
Stage N3: Deep Sleep
Slow-wave, delta activity. Physical restoration, tissue repair, immune boosts, memory consolidation. Avoid waking here at all costs.
REM: Dreaming
Brain activity spikes near waking levels, muscles are paralyzed, and you process emotions. Dreams live here.
How Wonderwake Hacks the Cycle
We can't place electrodes on your brain, but we can play the odds. A 15-30 minute fade-in acts like a soft bridge between stages.
If you're deep in N3, the faint initial sound nudges you upward toward N2 before the volume peaks. By the time you hear it clearly, you're already out of the danger zone.
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Wake up on the right stage.
Let Wonderwake lift you to light sleep before the alarm peaks.
