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Insomnia - Adult (Expert Forum)
'Night terrors' or something else?
Answered by
UMass Memorial Medical Center
Questions in the Sleep & Insomnia Forum are being answered by Dr. Gregg D. Jacobs.
'Night terrors' or something else?
by longleggedfly, Jan 17, 2009 09:58PM
I am now 22 and for the last 8 years I have been getting what I have called "night terrors". I know that that is not the exact term, but nobody I spoke to could relate or shed any light on what it could be.
When they first began, I would wake up after being asleep for sometime completely paralysed. Often there would be a roaring up and down my body, or I would feel as though I was being elecrocuted, coupled with things like frightening hallucinations and noises. As soon as the paralysis passed I would run to the wall and slam on the light, heart racing and sweating profusely. I am normally a very logical person but at the time I found it hard not to believe I was being attacked by demons. As time has gone by I've become more accustomed to it and so I am not as afraid when it happens, I can recognise what is going on but I have to try to 'break out' of it. If the pralysis is bad I become panicked and sometimes I can't breathe till I am 'free' and fully awake. These are difficult to go back to sleep after due to adrenaline and fear.
These 'terrors' come and go in cycles, sometimes 6 months at a time. At the moment things aren't aren't too bad and mostly I'm only having issues when I am initially falling asleep. The occurance happens almost immediatley as though I'm not yet asleep. Sometimes there is just a buzzing sensation that washes over me and then I'm paralysed and sometimes I can't breathe either. These are difficult to breakout of and often they are accompanied by vivid halucinations incorporated into the bedroom.
I am always, without fail, tired when I wake up in the morning regardless of how much sleep I get. Is there a logical explanation?
When they first began, I would wake up after being asleep for sometime completely paralysed. Often there would be a roaring up and down my body, or I would feel as though I was being elecrocuted, coupled with things like frightening hallucinations and noises. As soon as the paralysis passed I would run to the wall and slam on the light, heart racing and sweating profusely. I am normally a very logical person but at the time I found it hard not to believe I was being attacked by demons. As time has gone by I've become more accustomed to it and so I am not as afraid when it happens, I can recognise what is going on but I have to try to 'break out' of it. If the pralysis is bad I become panicked and sometimes I can't breathe till I am 'free' and fully awake. These are difficult to go back to sleep after due to adrenaline and fear.
These 'terrors' come and go in cycles, sometimes 6 months at a time. At the moment things aren't aren't too bad and mostly I'm only having issues when I am initially falling asleep. The occurance happens almost immediatley as though I'm not yet asleep. Sometimes there is just a buzzing sensation that washes over me and then I'm paralysed and sometimes I can't breathe either. These are difficult to breakout of and often they are accompanied by vivid halucinations incorporated into the bedroom.
I am always, without fail, tired when I wake up in the morning regardless of how much sleep I get. Is there a logical explanation?
Doctor's Answer
by Gregg D Jacobs, Ph.D., Jan 18, 2009 06:03AM
, Jan 18, 2009 06:03AM
To determine what is occuring, you should be evaluated with an all night sleep study at a sleep clinic. If this occurs when you are in non-REM (dream) sleep, it can be night terrors. If it occurs during REM, it can be REM behavior disorder. The treatments are different depending upon the diagnosis.
Dr. Jacobs
Dr. Jacobs
