One year into World War I, a Hungarian soldier named Paul Kern was struck in the head by a Russian bullet. Under ordinary conditions, such a wound would have been fatal, but Kern survived and gradually recovered. In an unusual outcome, he retained both his hearing and vision, yet was reportedly left unable to sleep.
For the following four decades, Kern's case puzzled doctors, who found it difficult to account for how he could remain alive despite the claim that he had lost the ability to sleep entirely.
Paul Kern
Paul Kern was a Hungarian soldier who served on the front lines during World War I. After the death of Archduke, Franz Ferdinand, he enlisted and became part of Hungary’s elite shock troops, units assigned to spearhead assaults against enemy positions.
In 1915, during one such offensive, Kern was shot in the head by a Russian bullet that entered through his right temple, leaving him unconscious. He was taken to a hospital in Lemberg, where physicians treated what initially appeared to be a fatal wound.
The bullet is reported to have damaged part of his frontal lobe, a region of the brain involved in functions such as movement, planning, emotional regulation, and decision-making. Because of its importance in governing behavior and cognition, injuries to this area can lead to a wide range of neurological effects.
When Kern eventually regained consciousness, the full consequences of his injury were not immediately apparent. Over time, however, it became evident that he was unable to sleep, a condition that reportedly persisted for the rest of his life.
Although frontal lobe injuries can produce complex and varied symptoms, Kern’s case remained an enduring medical mystery that puzzled researchers for decades.
Kern never slept again
Kern left the military soon after and returned to civilian life. Not only had he lost the ability to sleep, but he had also lost any desire to sleep. Without it, his days were eight hours longer than usual, both a blessing and a curse.
To begin with, Kern tried to force himself to sleep but found this more tiring than simply staying awake.
Sleep is extremely important to maintain a healthy body, both physically and mentally. While asleep, your body rebuilds and restores vital systems including the brain, which is thought to be the main priority for restoration while asleep. Sleep also has a massive effect on a person's cognitive state. A lack of sleep can take a heavy toll on the body's health, and even induce hallucinations and entire changes in personality.
It is so important that an extreme lack of sleep is believed to be fatal.
For Kern though, none of this was a problem, which is one of the reasons his case is so extraordinary. In fact, it was the practical issue of being awake for 24 hours a day that Kern was most unhappy about. Kern was able to live a mostly normal life without ever going to sleep, and had no obvious detrimental effects. He spent his extra time reading and seeing his loved ones.
For about an hour each day, Kern would close his eyes to rest his optic nerves, something he had to do otherwise he would have headaches.
Naturally, many doctors were skeptical about Kern's claims, but he traveled around the world to whatever doctor wanted to examine him, puzzling them all.
One theory proposed was that he was having microsleeps throughout that day, that even Kern wasn't aware of. However, Kern was never observed to be in any state other than completely awake.
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Another idea was that the Russian bullet removed a specific part of the brain that required sleep. Regardless, most of the doctors believed that you can't get something for free, in this case, Kern's body functioning without recovery they believed would lead to an early death.
They were partly correct, as he would pass away in 1955 at a relatively young age. However, Kern had lived through the past 40 years without sleep, making it a truly remarkable case. He may have died earlier than expected but he also gained an additional eight waking hours every single day for 40 years.