What happens when you dont sleep for a long time

Question

I have really bad insomnia, and i havent slept without medication for over a year, and i dont ever get tired without the meds, actually its just the opisite i start to feel alot more wired when i stay up for longer periods of time, the most iv ever stayed awake for was about 60 hours. (monday morning to wenesday night), nothing really happened other than feeling bad and being alittle spaced out feeling kinda high. but i was wondering what would be the effects of staying up for 5 days or a week, maybe seeing things or something like that?

Answer 1

You crash, you can actually go mental from lack of REM [[rapid eye movement]] which is the rotation of your eyes inside your head when you sleep which makes you dream. I think you should get some sleep otherwise you might be in some serious trouble, see a doctor ASAP.  

Answer 2

Yes, you're right, sleep deprivation can lead to hallucinations as well as having other mental effects which vary from individual to individual but can include hyperactivity and impatience, which may be what you call 'wired', it can affect your memory, cause you to develop twitches and even cause you to gain or lose weight.

Aside from these less serious problems (which should go away with regular sleep), it can also decrease your immune defenses and has even been linked to an increased risk of diabetes.

However, on the other hand, the amount of sleep that is 'right' for each individual varies, some people feel well on as little as 3hrs a night, other people work best with 8 hours sleep, and everything in between.  If you do have a problem with insomnia though it may be worth getting a second opinion to see if an underlying cause can be found.