Adult Night Terrors/Sleep Walking

[loehrlair]

I am a 43 yr old female.  Healthy - no meds.  I have suffered from night terrors/sleep walking since I was a toddler.  I usually scream bloody murder at least 3 - 4 nights a week.  I frequently run or walk through the house in a threatened state, and I usually do it two or three times each night.  When I wake, I remember very little if any. (My kids think it is hillarious)
It runs in definite cycles.  The more stressed or tired I am the frequency increases and the more the frequency increases the more tired and stressed I get.  It usually occurs within the first four hours of sleep. I never have any problem falling asleep.  Also, I have a fan run constantly to drowned out background noices because bells, whistles, or any distinct noices easily triggers a reaction.
Are there any treatments for this kind of disorder?

[Enoch Choi, MD]

Helpful tips:
Following a regular sleep schedule to prevent sleep deprivation
Treating other sleep disorders
Reducing noise or light in the sleep environment
Avoiding certain medications and alcohol
Avoiding stress
Avoiding fever

Anticipatory awakenings can help, where you're awakened 15 minutes before you usually sleepwalk for up to a month.

Hypnosis also helps.

Medications can help if these don't.  Medications include antidepressants or benzodiazepines.

Dr. Enoch Choi, MD
Palo Alto, CA

[Unhappilysleepwalking]

I am a 38 year old female with increasing episodes of sleep walking and activity.  I have been happier lately than I have been in along time but the  activity has increased as well. I woke up in my front yard the other day. I stepped into water and it woke me up.  I went back to my bed room to find that I had emptied all of the clothes out of my closet and dresser onto the floor of my room. I saw a psychologist when this started 2 years ago and had several sessions and they said that it was stress. I have no abnormal triggers or demons. I went on Anti-depressents for 6 months but it seemed to have no effect so they took me off of them.  I am concerned about my safety. What should I do? Is this normal?  I am exercising 3 times a week, I have tried to have a better diet, and have even given up caffeine and sodas but it hasn't made a difference. Sometimes I wake up screaming at the top of my lungs.  I just don't know what to do from here.

[Suri123]

Hi loehrlair, Hope you might be doing better now? There might be many reasons to have these night terrors like you might have witnessed a terror event which you keep recollecting, a very hard and havoc day with household chores/at work, going to bed late night, excessive caffeine or staying away from family and so on. Stress, either physical or mental does trigger them frequently. You are right by noting that sleep walking can be dangerous if associated with night terrors, as you may not be aware of the surroundings and can easily injure yourself. Try to relax and do morning-evening walk, stretches, have nutritious diet with lot of water or other liquids, have hot shower and listen to soft music before going to bed, these can be soothing to mind and body so it may be of some help. Mild dose of Alprax also can be tried. If nothing works, do consult a Neurophysician and a sleep specialist for a check up. Keep updating of doctor advises.  Take care

[mon567]

HI there, Ive been having this problem since i was very young. I would say early teens. Im twenty now and Im finally doing something about it. I have problems with sleep walking where I know im walking around the house but im looking for something or im afraid of something yet i dnt no wat. Ill wake up and be completely anoyed as ill be in the kitchen telling myself ive been asleep and im overreacting. I can deal with this to a certain degree, i just go back to bed. however i have another issue thats more terrifying. Sometimes, at least once a week I will wake up to a stranger in my room watching me sleep or even on my bed. i can see them in every detail. It seems so real its terrifying but then there gone just like that. I never see the same person twice and each person is unique. They could be an old lady a man a woman. Ive never seen any of them in my life so its not like i can link it to my every day life in some way. Im sick of it and i need to know what my problem is if anyone can help me.

[swampcritter]

A terrifying vision while you wake up happens to many. Swampy has it too, but only when he is under a large amount of stress. His technique is to learn at waking that if something strange is going on to just relax and let the vision pass. It does, and sometimes Swampy's body goes through one big shudder or twitch as the vision clears. Then all is well. It happens maybe once a year.

Swampy suggests that if you have the symptom often that you seek out a doctor who is used to treating narcolepsy, as this is one common symptom. Even if you are not narcoleptic, the doctor could probably advise a useful treatment.

[KatEyes]

I know night terrors and sleepwalking are specific sleep disorders that can occur independent of any other sleep disorders, but I'd like to highlight something Dr. Choi said when this thread began quite some time ago, "treating other sleep disorders".  

My father acted out his bad dreams, but back then there wasn't much attention to sleep disorders. He was a danger to himself and others. I now know that he also had sleep apnea - we used to joke about the only time we got a break from his snoring was when he wasn't breathing. Who knows how much treatment would have changed his life? By the way, he didn't fit the stereotype for sleep apnea - he was not obese and was very active.

I've had symptoms that seemed to be textbook narcolepsy, including cataplexy. I was also having scary dreams at night - dreams where someone or something was always suffocating and dying, or someone was in my bedroom with their arm across my chest putting so much pressure I couldn't breathe... on and on.

I knew my sleep was broken from limb movements, but finally after multiple sleep studies I was diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea. Once my limb movements were effectively treated and I fully utilized my prescribed cpap treatment, my brain seemed to progressively unscramble. I have not had the bad dreams or episodes of loss of muscle control for a few years.

A friend of mine used to see giant spiders on the wall when she woke up. She had sleep apnea and her oxygen dropped into the 60s. Her sleep doc said her hallucinations were from oxygen deprivation to the brain.

It seems to me that when one sleep disorder is evident, evaluation for other disorders could prove beneficial for some - not all, but some like me.

[mon567]

hey, thank you for your advice and i have also found out thru this sight the same information. Im so relieved to hear storys from people of experiencing the same thing. I thought i was crazy but aparently its quite common. Im making an appointment at the doctors as i belive i have depression or even bipolar dissorder and think maybe they might be related to the night problems. Thank you and i will keep you posted.

[Suri123]

Hi loehrlair, how are you? Hope you might be feeling better now? Have you been to sleep specialist to get a sleep study done? Usually sleep