Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night and saw a stranger watching over you? It could have been a ghost that you saw, or maybe you just heard loud footsteps. You attempt to get out of bed, but you’re unable to move. You want to fight off this demon. You try and call for help but it doesn’t work. Your body won’t budge. Your voice won’t make a sound. You feel helpless. You are awake. You cannot do anything so you close your eyes again, hoping this spine chilling fear would just disappear. These could be a sign of a type of parasomnia: sleep paralysis, nightmares, or night terrors.
This is one example of a sleep paralysis. Sleep paralysis is a parasomnia, where you suddenly wake up, but you can’t move or speak. Your mind is alert but you have no control of your body. It’s a phenomenon that occurs when your body and brain aren’t in sync when you sleep. It sounds like a Halloween spook tale, but it affects people mainly between 18 and 35 years old.
During a regular night’s sleep, your brain sends a message to your nervous system that it is time to relax your muscles. This is necessary so that if you happen to move around while you are sleeping, you won’t hurt yourself. However, if you are seeing demons in the middle of the night coming towards you, you are waking up during the REM sleep cycle. REM or Rapid Eye Movement is the deepest sleep stage. You are mostly conscious, but your voice and body are paralyzed. The fear is overwhelming, as with most sleep disorders.
Experiencing night terrors, another terrifying parasomnia, are a really frightening sleep occurrence. They are most common in children between four and eight years old, although a small percentage of adults experience them. Relatively soon after falling asleep, people experiencing night terrors can begin screaming, trembling, and kicking. Other aggressive body movements also demonstrate these night terrors. Their actions suggest they are awake, but they’re actually in a stage of sleep called Slow Wave Sleep (SWS). SWS is the deepest phase of non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. When these people do wake up, they are often confused, upset, and usually sweating profusely. It could take five or ten minutes to go back to sleep. Usually, the person has no recollection of what was going on or even their own actions. Causes of night terrors range from sleep deprivation, stressful life events, and recent illnesses.
Amongst the most common sleep disorders, are scary or “bad” dreams. Nightmares occur when you are at your deepest level of sleep, unlike sleep paralysis or sleep terrors. Again, more common in children, but 85% of adults report having nightmares on occasion. During a nightmare, your mind is often filled with terror or other scary thoughts, disturbing your sleep. Whether it’s monsters under the bed or being stranded in the woods, your heart races and your anxiety heightens. Nightmares are often a result of what is going on or changing in your life. Going to sleep every night at the same time, reducing stress and anxiety, and only watching pleasant shows before going to bed can reduce nightmares.
If you have any of these parasomnias regularly and you want help, Gingras Sleep Medicine can help. Jeannine Louise Gingras, MD., practices sleep medicine exclusively and she can provide the treatment you need to have a relaxed and rested nights’ sleep. If you’d like to schedule a consultation with Dr. Gingras, please visit our website at http://gingrassleepmedicine.com/ or call our office at (704) 944-0562 to see if you have a sleep disorder.