Almost everyone online has heard of the Russian Sleep Experiment. It’s a terrifying story about
a group of political dissidents forced to take an experimental chemical by the Soviets - a
chemical that takes away their ability to sleep. Over the following days and months,
the subjects of this brutal experiment go insane, many die, and some even take on otherworldly or
demonic qualities. Thankfully, the Russian Sleep Experiment is just an Internet creepypasta,
but the nine sleep deprivation experiments we’re discussing today are horrifyingly real.
Today, we’re going to explore all of them, from least to most crazy. Some of these impressive
acts of sleep-deprivation were done for science, others for more practical reasons, and some even
just because they could. And at the very end, we’re going to tell you about a real disease
which can cause you to never sleep again, to frightening and deadly results. So pour yourself
a cup of coffee and crack open the red bull: These are nine Horrific Real Life Sleep Experiments.
9. Peter Tripp’s 201 Hour DJ Set
The year is 1959. American Radio DJ Peter Tripp has decided he wants to raise money for children
in need, and what’s more, he’s thought of the perfect way to do it: Locking himself
in a glass box in the middle of Time’s Square and spinning records for 201 hours straight while the
general public looked on in. To save you the math, that’s over eight straight days of hardcore DJing.
How he planned to bathe or go to the bathroom in that time without breaking public indecency laws
we’ll just leave to your imagination. He entered his giant goldfish bowl on
day one in high spirits, ready to undertake this crazy feat of human endurance.
However, by day three, the lack of sleep was really starting to get to Mr. Tripp.
He began experiencing severe hallucinations, like believing there were spiders in his shoes.
He would also become irritable, paranoid, and confused, cursing at the people around him.
Sleep scientists observing this charitable act of masochism found that Tripp’s hallucinations
often occurred during the 90 minute REM sleep cycle, the stage in sleep that people
tend to experience dreams. Tripp was so sleep deprived he was literally dreaming while awake.
Many of his family and friends claimed the sustained sleep deprivation forever
changed Peter Tripp. Soon after, his marriage broke down, and he left the radio business to
become a traveling salesman. Think this is wild? It’s nothing compared to...
8. Randy Gardner’s sleep deprivation world record
These days, the Guinness Book of World Records doesn’t observe world records related to sleep
deprivation, out of fear that it could lead aspiring world record holders to commit
self-destructive acts. This was not the case in 1964, when high school student Randy Gardener
managed to achieve the highest universally agreed upon record for sleep deprivation:
11 days and 24 minutes. This particular study in sleep deprivation was so
special because it was closely observed and documented by a large number of researchers,
including a sleep expert from Stanford University.
Much like Peter Tripp, Randy began to experience confusion, paranoia,
and even hallucinations as his sleeplessness progressed. However, he managed to stay lucid
enough to win a pinball match against one of his observers on the tenth day of no sleep.
If that doesn’t make you feel insecure about your pinball skills, I don’t know what will.
But losing sleep on your own is one thing. What if, like the Russian Sleep Experiment itself,
a whole group of people were deprived? This brings us to...
7. Shattered - a Reality TV show from 2004
This sleep deprivation experiment brings us back to jolly old England,
the world’s chief exporter of morally-questionable reality TV.
Back in 2004, Shattered - a play on a common British expression for “tired” - decided to
pit 10 contestants against one another for a £97,000 cash prize. What was the challenge?
Stay awake for seven days, while completing a series of increasingly difficult challenges.
In the end, contestant Clare Southern took home the grand prize after remaining awake for 178
hours. The rest were probably at least a little happy with the consolation prize:
Getting the best night’s sleep of their entire lives. Thankfully,
none of the contestants experienced any kind of long-term negative side
effects for their participation. But for all the narcissists out there,
our next Sleep Experiment answers a more troubling question: Will sleep deprivation make you uglier?
6. Swedish “Beauty Sleep” Experiment
We’re in scenic Sweden for this sleep study, asking whether the old truism about needing
beauty sleep actually holds any water. And it turns out, according to a 2013 study
into the correlation between fatigue and facial expressions, it may actually be totally right.
They photographed 5 men and 5 women after a normal, healthy night’s sleep,
and again after 31 hours of sleep deprivation. An impartial group of 40 people were then asked
to judge the faces in the photos. They found that the sleep deprived faced had, quote,
“more hanging eyelids, redder eyes, more swollen eyes, darker circles under the eyes, paler skin,
more wrinkles/fine lines, and more droopy corners of the mouth.”
This actually leads nicely into our next, and even more anxiety-inducing study:
Will people want to avoid you if you look sleep deprived?
5. 2017 Swedish Sleep Experiment
For some reason, the Swedish are really interested in seeing how people react
to the sleep deprived. In 2017, they performed a study into how people perceive others with
sleep deprivation. 122 people rated photos of 25 people after 2 days of not sleeping,
and the scientists performing the study found an interesting cluster of results.
The subjects reported that they were less inclined to socialize with the sleep-deprived
people. The sleep-deprived people were seen as less healthy, and more sleepy. No surprise there.
The subjects also reported that they found the sleep-deprived people less attractive overall,
suggesting a good night’s sleep is key to protecting your mojo.
And in one minor positive for the sleep-deprived, there were
no reported changes in the trustworthiness of Sleep-deprived people. So at least there’s that.
But now it’s time to look at a much more horrifying and serious question: Can sleep
deprivation kill you? It’s a heavy question indeed, but thankfully, we have the answers.
4. Can sleep deprivation kill you?
Now, if we’re simply talking about people in a normal, healthy environment - I.e., somewhere
you don’t have soldiers with rather large, nasty guns keeping you awake at all hours - studies have
shown that humans have evolved some biological mechanisms that keep them from dying due to
sleep deprivation. The body literally forces you to sleep for brief, seconds-long periods
known as “micro-sleep”, allowing humans to survive prolonged sleep deprivation.
However, just because you can doesn’t mean you should. Chronic sleep deprivation has
been linked to everything from high blood pressure to dementia,
so make sure you’re catching those zees whenever you can. There are other ways you can die from
lack of sleep - one such way being the reason why heavy machinery has a “do not operate while
tired” warning. Tired drivers sadly cause a huge number of car crashes every single year.
While the answer to the question of whether sleep deprivation can kill humans is actually
pretty reassuring, our next set of studies sadly don’t have a very happy ending...
3. Can sleep deprivation kill animals?
It doesn’t get any less horrifying from here, folks. Two different studies - one
from 1983 and another from 1995 - basically performed the Russian Sleep Experiment on rats,
and found that they were extremely susceptible to its effects. Unlike humans,
the rats’ ability to micro-sleep is quarantined at any given time to a tiny part of the brain.
As a result, it isn’t nearly as effective at preserving vital brain functions. Rats die
as a result of this between 11 and 32 days, and they’re probably grateful for it at that point.
At the tail end of the nineteenth century, the Russians themselves got in on the action,
performing two studies in 1894 and 1898 - conducted by some scientists who definitely
weren’t dog people. With the help of a number of Italian scientists,
they kept a group of dogs awake by continually forcing them to walk. All
of these dogs died of sleep deprivation and exhaustion within a two week period.
Before we get into the darkest and most horrifying sleep studies of
all - and the disease that literally kills you with a permanent lack of
sleep - let’s take a quick break and look at a slightly more useful study.
2. Can controlled sleep deprivation actually alleviate depression?
That’s right. Typically, when you think of sleep deprived people, you think of
the kinds of people we’ve described: Grumpy, paranoid, and irritable. But for some people,
it seems that a little sleep deprivation can actually help combat depressive episodes.
A study has shown that a single 24 hour period of Sleep Deprivation Therapy (SDT) improves both mood
and behavior in people with treatment-resistant depression or bipolar disorder.
These periods of improved mood and behavior have been known to last up to 48 hours. Perhaps, with
further research, Sleep Deprivation Therapy can be a valuable part of treatment plans for people
suffering from severe depressive mental disorders. In 2017, a review into 66 similar studies
concluded: “These findings support a significant effect of sleep deprivation and suggest the need
for future studies on the phenotypic nature of the antidepressant response to sleep deprivation.”
And now from depressive to depressing. Let’s look at the most horrifying sleep experiments of all,
and perhaps the closest to the events depicted in the legendary Russian Sleep Experiment.
1. Sleep Deprivation as a form of Torture
Even if sleep deprivation can’t normally kill you, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t
suck to experience it against your will. And several world governments have taken
advantage of this fact to use sleep deprivation as a form of torture against their prisoners,
either in interrogation or just for sadistic fun. The most infamous user of this particular kind
of torture is actually the Central Intelligence Agency, on behalf of the United States of America.
In 2005, the CIA admitted to authorizing up to 180 hours of continuous sleep deprivation
during interrogations. That’s over a week without sleep. This was a common form of
torture used in the Abu Ghraib detention facility in Iraq. In 2014, the US was even
criticized by the United Nations for their use of sleep deprivation torture techniques.
Though in what seems like another nod to the Russian Sleep Experiment,
it’s likely that the US was inspired in their use of sleep deprivation
torture by the earlier actions of the Soviets. It’s a particularly grisly
example of cross-cultural exchange from two international superpowers.
And there you have it, folks, nine real sleep studies ranging from
weird to utterly terrifying. So you’re probably wondering:
What’s the horrifying condition that can cause you to literally die from a lack of sleep,
despite humans seemingly having biological defence mechanisms against such a horrible
fate? Allow us to introduce you to the rare condition of Fatal Insomnia - the disease that
keeps you awake until you go mad and die, just like the victims of the Russian Sleep Experiment.
There are two varieties of this chilling illness: Fatal familial insomnia and sporadic
fatal insomnia. The former is a familial genetic disease, and the latter could - in theory - happen
to anyone. The disease has no known cure, and nobody who has ever contracted the disease
has survived eighteen months beyond the first onset of symptoms. Much like Creutzfeldt–Jakob
disease, or Mad Cow Disease, this disorder is caused by misfolded proteins in the brain
known as prions. It’s unlikely you’ll even know you’re sick until it’s already far too late.
The disease occurs in four stages: In the first, the victim experiences prolonged insomnia,
paranoia, and fear. In the second, they’ll experience increasing hallucinations and panic
attacks. In the third, they’ll begin to rapidly lose weight as their physical health declines.
Finally, in the fourth stage, the victim will slip
into a state of severe dementia and lose their mind entirely. In this final stage,
they’ll essentially be locked into their own bodies, becoming completely mute and unresponsive.
Of course, things are well beyond the point of no return by this point,
and the victim of this horrifying disease will die shortly afterwards.
Sleep well. If you can...
Now check out “Russian Sleep Experiment - EXPLAINED”
and “50 Insane Facts About Sleep You Didn’t Know” for more!