Why Do Feelings Come in Different Sizes?
This is the text version of the interactive 3D documentary. 한국어
Contents · Chapter 2 Why the difference?
After a sleepless night
Without sleep, the alarm rings louder
The day after staying up all night
The same thing happens to Byeol again. Only one thing is different: the pink line is the day after a night with no sleep at all. The wave climbs from 49 to 78 and lasts longer. If you feel extra grumpy one day, the cause may be your sleep more than what happened.
Why?Without sleep, the link between the alarm and the brake gets weaker. The alarm rings louder, and the brake works less well. So things you would normally shrug off can stir up big feelings. Sleep is one of the easiest ways to look after your feelings.
Go furtherIn a 2007 study in the US, people who had stayed awake for about 35 hours were shown unpleasant pictures. Their alarm, the amygdala, reacted more than 60% more strongly than in people who had slept. The link between the alarm and the brake was also weaker. The pink line follows that result and makes the wave about 1.6 times taller. It is an illustrative model.
View in 3D →Read more: Yoo et al. (2007), Current Biology — the emotional brain without sleep