Last night I got up in middle of my sleep as I thought I heard someone muttering, to my surprise nobody was around, I tried sleeping again but this time I heard my sister was talking to someone, grinding my teeth I took my head out of the blanket and was about to yell at her when I saw she was in deep sleep.
In the morning when I told her that she was talking in her sleep she couldn’t believe me but that was a fact, she was going to have her ACCA final semester and that was the stress triggering her to talk in sleep.
We spend a third of our lives sleeping. Sleep is very important for the human body and the mind to function properly. Each night while we sleep our bodies do amazing things. They heal themselves from the activities of the day and release growth hormones into our system, (and this is the reason why infants sleep a lot). Our brains use this time to sort through the information that we have gathered during our waking hours. It is thought that we don’t actually learn anything until we fall asleep and our brains have time to process and store the information.
There are many disorders associated with sleep including sleepwalking, night terrors, and sleep talking. Sleep talking is pretty harmless to the talker but can be very annoying to the person sleeping next to them. Episodes of sleep talking can range from small mutterings to long winded conversations. Most sleep talking is calm and monotone. Though it is rare, some sleep talkers have been known to yell out and frighten those around them.
The medical term for sleep talking is somniloquy. Children are more apt to talk in their sleep than adults. The reason for this is the immature state of the brain and incomplete sleep cycles. Though a child’s sleep talking may scare parents, it is most often harmless. Most children will eventually grow out of this behavior. Children and adults that talk in their sleep never remember doing so, and are often quite shocked to be told of the things they said while sleeping.
Sleep talking is a part of the sleeping disorder parasomnia. This is caused by non-restful or unfulfilled sleep stages. People with parasomnia often display activities in their sleep such as sleepwalking, sleep talking, teeth grinding, and night terrors. They also may experience body jerking and they may thrash about in their sleep. The person is usually unable to fall fully asleep. This can cause drowsiness during the day and overall poor health.
Sleep talking that happens at a light sleep level tends to be more understandable. Talking during deep sleep is more likely to be mutterings or gibberish.
Somniloquy can also be triggered by stressful situations or occur in times of poor health. Stress and illness cause poor sleep cycles. A lack of proper sleep and eating near bedtime can also trigger sleep talking. To reduce sessions of somniloquy, take time to relax and de-stress each day. Make sure you are getting the proper amount of sleep you need each night.
Precautions:
– Make sure the sleep talker gets plenty of sleep every night, someone who is sleep deprived is more likely to sleep talk.
– Reduce the stress and anxiety levels
– Keep to a regular schedule of going to bed and getting up at the same time
– Don’t eat a heavy meal right before bedtime
– If an episode occurs, make sure the sleep talker is safe and gently soothe them
Treatment:
– Avoid or eliminate stress.
– Try relaxation techniques or meditation.
– Have someone awaken you
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