We’ve been hearing it for years . . . experts recommend seven to nine hours of sleep a night.

Yet, many of us are still getting shockingly less.

If you typically get less than six hours of sleep a night, here’s what’s happening to your brain:

1. Distractions are more prevalent – Since you’re lacking sleep, you get more easily distracted because your brain is looking for distractions in an effort to keep you wake, making it harder to focus on almost ANYTHING. You may think you’re just being prone to multi-tasking, but really you just need some more sleep.
2. Anxiety hits hard – Researchers at Berkeley conducted a study of volunteers who went a full night with no sleep, and found that, afterwards, their anxiety levels were 30% higher than normal. For half of the volunteers, their level of anxiety from lack of sleep was on par with having an anxiety disorder.
3. You’re more agitated – Your fuse gets shorter when you’re running on little sleep. Another study from last year found people who averaged 4.5 hours of sleep a night were more likely to be annoyed by minute things. (You’re also less patient with co-workers.
4. Risks become appealing – A 2017 study had guys aged 18-28 get five hours of sleep every night for a week, then put them in a scenario with gambling, and found they were much more likely to place high risk bets.

Now, when you are under slept and feeling exhausted, here’s what can help: Go get some  sunshine . . . take more breaks to stretch and move around . . . get some caffeine (but don’t overdo it) . . . take a 20 minute nap (it’s enough to make a difference without getting that groggy feeling when you wake up.