For anyone with multiple sclerosis sleep maybe last thing you're worried about. If you have MS fatigue you worry about getting too much sleep. The truth is people with chronic illness are often sleep deprived. Just by paying attention to when people are active on Facebook and other websites, it's not hard to see that some of us aren't getting enough sleep.All the good nutrition and supplements we are learning about and putting into practice won't help much if we can't get enough recuperative sleep.
There are some signs that you may be sleep deprived.

1. When you're very tired and unable to sleep it becomes very easy to have mood swings. Things that you might take care of normally seem more irritating. One study showed that children who slept less than 10 hours a day were 25% more likely to misbehave. Lack of sleep increases the chance of developing depression.

2. Sometimes your health can be a clue that you you aren't getting enough rest. Diabetics who experience sleep deprivation become less sensitive to insulin as the body's ability to metabolize sugar decreases. Sleep deprivation also can cause higher blood pressure lower body temperature, and arrhythmia. White blood cell count decreases and the remaining ones become lethargic. So the immune system is compromised. Your body will force itself to shut down to catch up on sleep so you won't die from lack of sleep however less than four hours of sleep a night puts you at higher risk of death within the next six years. ( National Sleep Foundation.)

3. Lack of sleep can cause relationship problems. If the sleep disorder affects one member of the family they can affect everyone. Napping in the daytime and staying up late at night throws off the whole family's activities. Poor memory, moodiness, agitation, and lack of sex drive can also cause tension.

4. After one night without sleep you are operating on the same level as someone who's legally intoxicated. You may have trouble communicating .Your speech will become slurred ,you can stutter and speak in monotone. Now we know that Multiple Sclerosis can cause those problems anyway, so it can be hard to tell the difference between one of your symptoms and simple lack of sleep.

5. The brain's prefrontal cortex is involved in judgment and impulse control and when it is feeling the strain of sleep deprivation you decision-making abilities feel the strain as well. If you missed a nights' sleep your brain has not had the opportunity to refresh  itself, so again your ability to make good decisions suffer. Those who lack sleep act more aggressively ,are more likely to impulse shop, and foregoes safe sex practices. You can assess risks better when rested.

6. The lack of sleep can cause vision problems resulting in  car crashes or accidents on the job. You may even begin to see things that aren't there. Your peripheral real vision is especially susceptible to being impaired.

7. Inability to concentrate; people who are sleep deprived in some studies have shown that they performed poorly on tasks that require concentration and are likely to overestimate their performance. The more sleep we miss the less chance we have to recuperate. Sometimes a cup coffee or a caffeinated soda can provide a quick fix and improve concentration that peaks in about an hour.

8. Without enough sleep, it is easier to become stressed out.Stress itself can lead to sleep deprivation.Research has shown that  people who sleep soundly during stressful times can remain more focused than those who respond to stress with insomnia. Studies have shown that stress hormones can be stimulating, especially in middle-aged men [source: The Franklin Institute).

9. Research has shown that deep sleep plays an important role in memory, because it facilitates connections between nerve cells [source: The Franklin Institute]. The less deep sleep you get, the fewer connections form between nerve cells. Both humans and animals perform worse on memory tests when deprived of sleep. REM sleep especially aids in the forming  and remembering emotional memories, which tend to be those that are most vivid to us in the future.