The sleep phenomena is different for everyone and often puzzling. Some people lash out at night, others have one sided conversations. Some wake up drowsy. What are the reasons for this and when it is dangerous ?

If you sleep deeply, you don’t necessarily lie there motionless. On the contrary. Some people are quite active at night. They talk, get up, go to the refrigerator, kick their bedfellows, grind their teeth or suddenly wince. The next morning they often cannot remember anything.

In cases such as this, a so-called parasomnia is often present. “These are undesirable abnormalities that occur during sleep. They can also have a negative impact on the quality of sleep and the restfulness of sleep,” explains Dr. Peter Geisler, Head of the Sleep Medicine Center at the Regensburg District Hospital. The reason that many people do not remember their nocturnal actions is that short-term memory is switched off while they sleep. Parasomnias can be embarrassing for someone, especially if they sleep in the same room with friends or strangers. Most phenomena are considered harmless, but some are also dangerous.

There are many sleeping lymphs

Sleep drunkenness: Confused at night, Sleep drunkenness is relatively common in children, and rare in adults. It is considered harmless and does not normally need to be treated. The person awakens from deep sleep. “But he doesn’t wake up properly, just incomplete,” says neurologist and sleep physician Geisler. The sleep-drunk is confused, he doesn’t know where he is, he talks slowly, he does nonsensical things. For example, he turns off the alarm clock without noticing it. In short, the one looks like “drunk”.

If someone is awakened from deep sleep at night, such a reaction is normal. “Anyone who is drunk in the morning after seven to eight hours of sleep has a parasomnia,” says Professor Michael Schredl, scientific director of the sleep laboratory at the Central Institute for Mental Health in Mannheim. Because in the morning the slumberiser is usually no longer in deep sleep. Researchers do not yet know exactly what causes this behavior. “But there is a smooth transition to sleepwalking,” says Geisler. Probably similar operations therefore play a role.

Sleepwalking: Not a Safe Deal

Sleepwalkers also only partially wake up from deep sleep, preferably in the first third of sleep. You get up, utter senseless scraps of words, look around aimlessly. You can haunt the apartment, even cook, or leave the house. Sleepwalking is sometimes dangerous, with up to 20 percent injuring themselves. “There is no such thing as sleepwalking security,” warns Geisler. So the image of the girl walking barefoot over the roofs of the house under the full moon does not apply.

Somnambulism, as this form of parasomnia is called medically, occurs primarily in childhood and only affects a good one percent of adults. Scientists have not yet been able to clarify what exactly leads to this. There are already first approaches: Certain factors probably wake up the part of the brain that is responsible for movement sequences. The one who is there for the conscious control of actions remains switched off. A lack of sleep and things that wake you up at night – for example stress, loud noises or unwanted movements during sleep – have a positive effect. Important: Do not wake the sleepwalker.

Firstly, this is difficult to do, and secondly, he can react aggressively. “Talking calmly, however, has a positive effect,” says Schredl. If the sleepwalker does not return to bed on their own, the partner should accompany them there. It is advisable to lock doors and windows in the evening.

REM Sleep Behavior Disorder: Dreams Realized

This bulky term means that the dormant behaves in an abnormal manner during a certain sleep phase, the REM sleep. He does not wake up, but actively lives out a dream. He can kick, kick or move jerkily. Those affected often report that they were attacked in a dream or had to flee from something. If you mistakenly mistake the sleeping person next to you for the attacker, you can not only injure yourself, but also your partner. Older men in particular experience such active dreams.

Overall, however, this nocturnal behavior rarely occurs. Usually, muscle activity is inhibited during REM sleep to keep you from moving. “In this parasomnia, however, the muscle blockade is switched off – presumably due to a dysfunction in the brain stem,” explains sleep expert Schredl. There is probably a connection with neurodegenerative diseases in which nerve cells perish. “A REM sleep behavior disorder can be a harbinger of Parkinson’s disease in the long term,” says neurologist Geisler. Anyone suffering from this phenomenon should see a neurologist.

Nightmares: waking up bathed in sweat

Almost everyone has had a nightmare, not just in childhood. “Stressful nightmares also occur in around five percent of adults,” says Schredl, who has been scientifically dealing with the subject for many years. He speaks of distressing when a person is plagued by a nightmare about once a week. This usually takes place in the second half of sleep, in what is known as REM sleep. The dreaming wakes up, is excited, the feelings of the dream continue to have an effect. Because the dream wakes him up, he can remember the dream well. “Nightmares disturb sleep and also have a negative effect during the day,” says the dream researcher. The person concerned is tired, unable to concentrate, thinks about the terrible dream, is worried.

Nightmares can contain different topics – for example persecution, death of loved ones, traps, paralysis – or they can be recurring about the same frightening or threatening situation. Possible triggers include stress, bad experiences, psychological problems and medication. Then a specialist is required. The first point of contact can be your family doctor, who may refer you to a behavior therapist. If you don’t have a serious mental illness, such as depression, you can try it on your own first. It is important to actively deal with the fear in the nightmare. In the first step the dream is written down or the most important scene is drawn. The second step is to find a solution.

What do I need to successfully deal with the difficult nightmare situation? This new solution is practiced for about five minutes once a day for two weeks so that it can affect the dreams. If this does not work in the first dream, the second dream can be worked on after two weeks. In the meantime, around 15 controlled studies show a good effect of this simple method.

Falling asleep: Like an electric shock

Many people are familiar with this phenomenon: You lie in bed, doze off slowly and suddenly your whole body flinches, sometimes just your arms or legs. It feels like an electric shock. This is sometimes accompanied by images in the mind’s eye – such as falling out of bed. Apparently, larger muscle groups contract in a flash, which is why sleep researchers also count this behavior as one of the so-called sleep-related movement disorders.

In other words: unnatural movements occur during sleep. One can only speculate about the causes of the twitching. Expert Schredl has the following theory: When you fall asleep, your body and mind relax and your muscles slacken. If the brain switches off more slowly than the rest of the organism, it tries to reactivate the muscles, which makes you wince. The phenomenon appears to be harmless, however – with one caveat: “If only arms or legs twitch, this can indicate restless legs syndrome,” says Schredl. In this case, consult a doctor!

Bruxism: grinding teeth

There are people who grind or clench their teeth at night. They rarely notice the noises they make. However, the jaw or head often hurts in the morning. Bruxism, as the phenomenon is called medically, can be caused by misalignments of the teeth or poorly fitting dentures. But even those who are stressed or mentally tense can take it out on their teeth. The behavior is one of the undesirable movement disorders during sleep. Anyone who grinds more often wears the teeth excessively over time and promotes dental diseases. Therefore, crunchers should see a dentist. If the problem only occurs occasionally, for example in stressful situations, anything that relaxes you before going to bed is recommended.

Speaking in your sleep: unconscious stammering

Many sleep talkers babble confused scraps of words. Some come up with understandable sentences or can even answer a question. Nevertheless, the nocturnal chatterboxes don’t notice anything. “Many speak incomprehensibly because the muscles needed to speak are relaxed at night,” says Schredl. Sleep researchers know very little about the phenomenon. “There could be a connection with dream content,” suspects Schredl. Factors such as stress, fever, or alcohol can encourage the babbling.

It’s also common among sleepwalkers, which is why experts see a connection. “Anyone who speaks in their sleep could also have a miniature form of sleepwalking,” said Geisler. Somniloquia, as the technical term for speaking in sleep, is not a parasomnia, it cannot be assigned to any category. Talking in sleep is considered harmless and is unlikely to have a negative impact on sleep. “Unless you say the name of your loved one,” jokes Geisler, a sleep doctor.

Colonic Hydrotherapy can be supportive on your journey to better sleep, as it cleanses the colon and thereby also helping the nervous system.