It occurs when a person is sleep deprived, tired, or suffering from a sleep disorder. Microsleep is a common cause of car accidents when an exhausted driver falls asleep at the wheel while driving.
It is a brief, involuntary episode of sleep lasting from a fraction of a second to several seconds. Microsleep occurs when a person is sleep deprived, mentally fatigued, depressed or suffering from a sleep disorder.
Microsleep can happen anytime, anywhere. Often, the person is so tired that he does not even realise that he has missed a few seconds of wakefulness. He may feel temporarily spaced out and not react to external factors like a traffic light.
Though it is a matter of a few seconds, microsleep is very dangerous if it occurs insituations when the person has to be constantly alert such as while driving, flying an aeroplane, or operating heavy machinery. Microsleep is a common cause of car accidents when an exhausted driver falls asleep at the wheel while driving and wakes up too late to avoid a collision or negotiate a curve on the road. Microsleep can affect your performance in school too. If you are sleep deprived, it is possible that microsleep could spell trouble while writing the exam paper.
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