Small distractions happen to all of us every day. They might throw you off course for a few minutes while you’re trying to get work done, but they generally aren’t major problems. This changes when you are suffering from sleep deprivation. At that point, those small distractions that would’ve otherwise been meaningless could actually end up causing big issues.
The Dangers, to Yourself and Others, of Sleep Deprivation
According to Futurity, sleep deprivation is a primary cause of human error in major situations (think: working in a nuclear power plant, performing a surgery, or driving public transportation). Scary!
Research that was published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology: General focused on finding the impact that sleep deprivation can have on someone’s ability to complete simple to complex tasks throughout the day. What experts found was that people who haven’t gotten enough sleep shouldn’t be performing any tasks if they’re going to be interrupted, and they should only perform tasks for short periods of time. Otherwise, major mistakes can lead to major problems.
Bottom line: errors are a lot more common among those who haven’t gotten enough sleep. Those who don’t sleep well can’t finish a task properly when there are multiple steps involved and they’re interrupted. Those mistakes, unfortunately, can be harmful to the individuals who haven’t been sleeping, as well as the people around them.
Make Sleep a Priority to Avoid the Adverse Effects of Deprivation
Ultimately, being sleep deprived can take its toll on your physical and mental health, even causing you to become distracted more than usual. Your memory could suffer, too, and you’ll likely find it more challenging to complete a variety of tasks. So, be sure to get plenty of shut-eye every night so that you can wake up refreshed and ready to take on your day.
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