Violent Sleeper

[crazywillie]

I am a 64 yr old male, about 2 or 3 times a year for several years I have thrown myself out of bed, this is quick and violent, I have injured my shoulder, head, and ankle, one time I stabbed my ankle on a protruding curtain fitting that is used to hold curtains back.

I recently had one of these crazy attacks where I threw my leg in a fast and violent way, I could hardly walk the next day, my calf muscle was very sore.

This worries me for two reasons, one I sleep with my Wife and I am worried in case I hurt her, second Atenolol has reduced my heartbeat to about 54-60 bpm, it must slow down when I am sleeping I have been wondering  if my heart stops beating at night and these actions are my brains way of frightening the daylights out of me, thus getting my heart pumping again.

My doctor is happy with my BP and pulse, I was on Betaloc (Metropol) for about 8 years Atenolol about 4 months, any help would be much appreciated.

[noops01]

Hi,

You could be suffering from rapid eye movement sleep disorder (RBD) which can be diagnosed by a polysomnogram or sleep study.Please consult a sleep specialist.

[DrBhumikaMD]

Hi,
You need to see a neurologist and a sleep specialist. You will need a clinical evaluation and some investigations before a confirmed diagnosis can be reached. Also atenolol does slow the heart rate, but the fear of your heart stopping at night is baseless. You could ask your doctor to shift you some other antihypertensives like ramipril etc. ( non beta blockers). Goodluck.