Why Do People ‘Yawn’ When They’re Tired and What’s the Connection to Others?

Yawning is like giving your brain a little shake when it’s sleepy or tired.

When you’re tired, your brain needs to wake up or stay awake. Yawning helps with that because when you yawn, you take in a big breath of air, this makes your body and brain feel more alert, just like when you blow out birthday candles and suddenly feel more excited.

Sometimes people yawn together, like how kids copy each other during games. If one person yawns, others might start yawning too, even if they're not tired. It's like when someone starts laughing, and soon everyone is laughing, it’s a kind of sharing or copying between brains.

When you see someone yawn, your brain gets a little message that says, "Hey, I'm sleepy too!" So it sends the same signal to your body, making you yawn. It's like when one kid in class sneezes and everyone else sneezes too, it’s just how brains talk to each other!