One night, you laid your head on your feather pillow as normal and prepared for a deep sleep to relieve the tiredness of the day. During perhaps the most important part of your sleep, you woke up in a terrifying, out-of-control state.
Today, we will examine together with you the sleep terrors that every person experiences at least once in their lifetime, which can cause serious problems if repeated.
Word origin and general definition of sleep terror
Night terror, or more commonly known as sleep terror, is any involuntary behavior experienced or experienced during sleep. It is the most common example of defined parasomnia.
Parasomnia consists of the Greek words “para” and the Latin “somnus” and is translated into our language with a meaning such as “accompanying sleep”. The most common types of parasomnia are sleepwalking and sleep terrors.
Scientific definition and symptoms of sleep terror
Sleep terror, which is mostly seen in children and very rarely in adults, is the person’s screaming, shaking and trembling, usually within 2 hours after falling asleep. It is the name given to the state of waking up in fear.
Stages and developments of sleep terror
Although it varies from person to person, sleep terror usually lasts for a few seconds or a few minutes.
Sleep terror experienced in the NREM (non-rem) part of sleep, that is, in the phase between sleep and wakefulness; While it can be seen more than once in 40% of children, this rate is almost zero in adults.
Experiences during sleep terror
During sleep terror, the person; wakes up screaming or shouting, may find himself sitting in bed when he wakes up. After waking up, there is a marked increase in heart rate, pupils dilate, and sweating is common. Rarely, sleep terrors and sleepwalking can occur together.
Factors that cause sleep terrors
Although the cause of sleep terror has not been clearly explained until now, it is possible to talk about a few scientific theories. The most frequently put forward reason among the theories, as you can imagine, is psychological reasons. A person may experience sleep terrors if they have depression or anxiety – bipolar disorder.
The other theory is that the person is experiencing respiratory problems. If the person has respiratory problems, he makes an extra effort to breathe during sleep and may experience sleep terrors with the effect of the effort.
On the other hand, using stimulants, alcohol, antidepressants or drugs can also trigger sleep terrors. In fact, sometimes an innocent tiredness, sleeping during travel or sleeping in a new environment can also trigger sleep terrors.
Frequency of sleep terror in society and selective
Scientific studies have concluded that strangely, sleep terror is transmitted through genes, that is, genetically transmitted to children through parents. . If the child’s mother or father has a history of sleep terror; It is very likely that the child will also experience sleep terrors.
Studies show that at least 88% of children between the ages of five months and 6 years experience a sleep terror at least once. Sleep terrors that start in childhood generally decrease and end in adolescence.
Not every nightmare is a sleep terror, but every sleep terror is a nightmare
You may have confused sleep terrors with nightmares because of their symptoms or effects, but between the two. there are very obvious differences. The most basic difference is that when a person has a nightmare, he wakes up and when he wakes up, he remembers almost all of the nightmare he saw. In sleep terror, this situation can never be mentioned.
In sleep terror, the individual cannot wake up immediately, and when he wakes up, he usually remembers nothing or rarely remembers very small details. The possibility of remembering very small details is also very rare and only occurs in adults.
Again, although very rarely, sleepwalking is not seen in nightmares; Sleepwalking can be seen in sleep terror.
When is professional support needed?
We mentioned that every person can experience sleep terror at least once in their lifetime. It is not necessary to consult a specialist for sleep terrors in childhood, which is very rare (for example, 3-4 times a year), but if the frequency increases, it is definitely useful to consult a specialist.
In addition, adult sleep terrors may not be as innocent as childhood sleep terrors. Therefore, it is more important to hurry to get information from a specialist in sleep terrors seen in adults.
Before seeking professional support…
If you think your child is experiencing sleep terrors;
Regularly write down the time your child goes to sleep, the onset time of the sleep terrors, the duration of the continuation, and the waking times. Take note of this information for a while and consult the expert. In this way, you will further assist your child and specialists in the diagnosis and treatment processes of specialists. When you go to a specialist without this information, this data will be the first information the experts will ask from you.
Sleep terror warning for adults
We mentioned that sleep terror begins in childhood and ends in adolescence. This is not something we should worry about unless it happens often. If we do not experience sleep terrors in childhood but have sleep terrors as adults, or if the sleep terrors that started in childhood did not end in adolescence; Then it’s a good idea to consult an expert.
In addition to waking up with screaming, sweating, increased heart rate, especially in progressive adult sleep terror examples; Often, symptoms such as taking off your clothes during sleep, undressing, waking up in a different place than the sleeping place can be seen. In such cases, a sleep test called PSG (polysomnography) is performed at first and treatment is directed according to the results of this test.
Have you heard of sleep terrors before? Considering that you have experienced sleep terror at least once before; What effect did what you experienced at that moment have on you? Do you have an ongoing sleep terror? If you have received a treatment for sleep terrors, you can share your experiences about your treatment process, and if you have memories about sleep terrors, you can share your memories with us in the comments section.
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