Sleepwalking, there are indeed many legends circulating in the rivers and lakes.
Some people say that sleepwalking is a supernatural phenomenon, possessed by ghosts; others say that once sleepwalking is awakened, they either die or go crazy; and some people worry that sleepwalkers at night will unconsciously kill people and set fires.
Let's start with the theory.
Sleepwalking, also known as sleepwalking. As the name suggests, it means that people get up in a sleeping state to walk indoors or outdoors or do some other simple actions.
Sleepwalking is actually a sleep disorder, which is a kind of insomnia.
(Source: Station Cool Helo)
First of all, to clarify, sleepwalking is not an act during a dream.
Briefly introduce you to the sleep cycle, complete sleep is divided into non-rapid eye movement sleep period (NREM) and rapid eye movement sleep period (REM), a complete sleep We will cycle through about 4-6 such sleep cycles.
Among them, there are 3 stages of non-REM sleep, namely just falling asleep, mild sleep and deep sleep.
Sleepwalking usually occurs during deep sleep, while dreaming often occurs during REM sleep, so sleepwalking and dreaming are two different things.
When sleepwalking, our bodies are in a half-asleep state and unconsciously do strange things.
In addition to walking around the living room, there may be complex actions such as getting dressed, moving furniture, or even trying to drive.
Of course, there is also the possibility of going to the refrigerator to steal food...
Previously, it was reported that an American girl, more than 20 years of weight gain of more than 120 pounds, she herself did not know the reason, until the final was found sleepwalking, only to understand that it was sleepwalking, quietly Mimi went to the refrigerator to steal food caused.
(Source: Yangtze Evening News)
There are also people who will turn on their mobile phones when sleepwalking, buy and buy like crazy, and buy until they almost go bankrupt.
(Source: China Daily)
However, these are extreme cases, and only a few people will do this.
Sleepwalking is not uncommon.
The lifetime prevalence of sleepwalking is estimated at 6.9%[2], meaning that nearly 7 out of every 100 people are likely to experience sleepwalking in their lifetime.
Moreover, children are significantly more likely to sleepwalk than adults. About 29 percent of children aged 2 to 13 experience sleepwalking, and the incidence of sleepwalking peaks at age 10 to 13 [3].
There may be several reasons for sleepwalking:
(1) Heredity
A 12-year study that tracked the sleep of 1940 children found that sleepwalking may be closely related to heredity.
The results of the study show that if the parent has a history of sleepwalking, the probability of the child sleepwalking is significantly higher [3].
(2) Lack of sleep
Studies have shown that sleepwalking is significantly more likely to occur with frequent sleep deprivation, and the form of sleepwalking is more complex [4].
(Source: giphy)
(3) Excessive pressure
Stress is not good at sleeping, which many people are deeply aware of, and stress may also increase the probability of sleepwalking [5].
Adults' desperate daily routine: today is Sunday, tomorrow is going to work, think about insomnia.
(Source: soogif)
In addition, a poor sleeping environment, excessive drinking, and certain diseases can lead to sleepwalking.
Next, we will enter the debunking link, there should be many people who have heard a saying, sleepwalkers must not wake up, once woken up is not dead or crazy.
Although this frightening scene is very suitable for urban legends, it does not make any sense at all.
Sleepwalking can wake up, and if done in the right way, generally doesn't have serious consequences, like waking up a person who is deeply asleep.
But if there is no danger, it is not recommended to wake up sleepwalkers in an over-radical way, because waking them up may make them feel frightened, especially small children.
Since sleepwalking episodes don't take long, most of the time it takes less than 10 minutes to complete, the best way to guide them back to bed to continue sleeping, for example, by gently turning his shoulders to let him walk back to the room on his own.
If you find the situation dangerous, such as finding that sleepwalking people are ready to pee (don't be shocked, there really is!). ), hanging out, or even frantically probing the edge of the balcony, then waking him up in time is a smart choice.
When waking up, be aware of the distance from sleepwalkers, try to be gentle, and if it doesn't work, according to the national sleep foundation's recommendations, you can also wake up with a loud, sharp voice.
Occasional sleepwalking does not matter, when a child sleepwalks, parents do not have to be nervous.
But pay attention to locking the doors and windows, putting away the sharp things in the house, and avoiding injuries to sleepwalkers.
If the child sleepwalks frequently, sleepwalking is generally regular, and you can wake up the child 15 minutes before sleepwalking according to the law and repeat it for a month, which can reduce the probability of sleepwalking [1].
Once dangerous behaviors are found during sleepwalking, such as self-harm or harm to family members, or frequent sleepwalking after adulthood, not sleeping on their own will also affect the sleep of others...
Well, it is still recommended to seek medical attention in time.
Finally, some words have been said ten thousand times, but again:
Going to bed early and getting up early and exercising is the right way to prevent various sleep diseases.
Review expert: Zhang Lili | Psychotherapist of the Department of Psychology, Southern Hospital, Southern Medical University
bibliography
[1] Arnulf I. Sleepwalking. Curr Biol. 2018;28(22):R1288-R1289. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2018.09.062
[2] Stallman HM, Kohler M. Prevalence of Sleepwalking: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. PLoS One. 2016;11(11):e0164769. Published 2016 Nov 10. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0164769
[3] Petit D, Pennestri MH, Paquet J, et al. Childhood Sleepwalking and Sleep Terrors: A Longitudinal Study of Prevalence and Familial Aggregation. JAMA Pediatr. 2015;169(7):653-658. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2015.127
[4] Zadra A, Pilon M, Montplaisir J. Polysomnographic diagnosis of sleepwalking: effects of sleep deprivation. Ann Neurol. 2008;63(4):513-519. doi:10.1002/ana.21339
[5] Szelenberger W, Niemcewicz S, Dabrowska AJ. Sleepwalking and night terrors: psychopathological and psychophysiological correlates. Int Rev Psychiatry. 2005;17(4):263-270. doi:10.1080/09540260500104573
[6]https://www.sleep.org/safely-wake-sleepwalker/
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