It’s the end of a long day, and you finally crawl into bed for some much-needed shuteye.
Ah, sweet dreams!
Then, you’re jolted out of sleep.
The first thing you see is some stranger staring you in the face.
They’ve got their arms on your shoulders.
You notice you’re not in your bed – you’re not even in your house!
How do you react?
Well if it were me, I’d straighten out my pajamas and ask “Pardon me sir, do you have
any Grey Poupon?”.
Yeah, well most people won’t ask for mustard, but rather “what the heck am I doing here?”
Sleepwalking is probably one of the most bizarre and downright terrifying phenomena out there!
I mean, the human body is incredible, but it can be a real challenge too!
Imagine someone looks you straight in the eye and says that you were eating, cooking,
talking, walking, even driving (yes, there have been cases!), yet you don’t remember
a thing.
You might deny it just because it sounds like utter nonsense or perhaps out of embarrassment.
But if you’re a sleepwalker, there’s nothing to be ashamed of!
What causes sleepwalking varies from person to person, and experts still aren’t even
100% sure why it happens.
But some common culprits include depression, OCD, insomnia, sleep apnea, night terrors,
and problems with the nervous system.
What do all those have in common?
Yep, they’re all out of your control.
But before we delve further into the how, why, and what not to do if you ever come across
a sleepwalker, let me throw a quick test at you.
How much do you know about sleepwalking?
Question 1.
Who’s more likely to sleepwalk: kids or adults?
 If you said kids, you’re right.
Almost everybody who sleepwalked as a child grew out of it by the age of 18.
2.
What about in males versus females?
 Sorry, trick question!
But if you guessed either one, you’d technically be correct!
Among children, it’s more common in girls.
In adults, the number of men is a bit higher.
3.
True or false: sleepwalking runs in the family.
(or maybe walks in the family…)
 Ok, there might not be a definitive answer, but research seems to show that there is something
genetic about this condition.
Most people who sleepwalk as adults have relatives that do too.
Plus, a twin is 5 times more likely to sleepwalk if the other twin does as well.
4.
What’s the scientific word for sleepwalking? a) narcolepsy
b) somnambulism c) noctambulism
d) antidisestablishmentarianism.
 If you chose b or c, that’s right!
Both terms come from Latin.
Somnus means sleep and noctis is night.
Ambulism comes from the verb meaning to walk.
Put it together, and you get “sleep” or “night” walking.
Answer A, Narcolepsy is when a person has episodes of extreme drowsiness that causes
them to fall asleep uncontrollably.
And answer D is: I’m just messing with you.
But on to the final question!
5.
True or false: it’s easy to spot a sleepwalker.
 That one is false.
A sleepwalker may appear to be fully awake when they’re asleep!
They can get dressed, talk, answer your questions, you name it!
Yes, their eyes can be open, although they might look kinda glossy.
They may respond when you talk to them, but their words might not make sense, so there
are subtle hints.
But sometimes you can only really know that a person was sleepwalking by talking to them
the next day to see if they remember the conversation you had with them or the activities they tried
to do.
Ok, you’ve got your short facts down, but let’s keep diving deeper.
It’s mindboggling when you think about it.
A person is in this strange unexplainable state of being totally asleep yet moving and
appearing as if they were awake!
So, what’s going on in the body of a sleepwalker?
If you assume that they’re simply acting out their dreams, then think again!
Sleepwalkers aren’t usually dreaming because they haven’t yet reached that REM, or Rapid
Eye Movement, phase of deep sleep when people dream.
They’re in an in-between sleep state, not quite asleep and not quite awake.
The activity center of the brain may be awake, while the part that makes decisions is dozing.
It’s almost as if someone has switched on the autopilot in your brain.
In fact, your brain does stuff without your conscious mind’s involvement all the time!
When you walk up a flight of stairs, are you consciously thinking, “Ok, pick up the right
leg, step, now the left one a bit higher, step.”
Of course not!
Do you have to tell yourself to blink?
To swallow?
To breathe?
Nope, it’s all your brain doing its own thing!
So with sleepwalking, you can imagine that but on a whole ‘nother level!
A person is sort of being puppetted by their own brain!
While the conscious is asleep, the brain moves the muscles in the body, takes this person
down to the kitchen, opens the fridge, grabs the eggs, the frying pan, the milk (uh-oh,
that’s the orange juice!), and boom!
You’ve just made some funky-tasting scrambled eggs!
But that’s the scary part!
The brain was also able to turn the stove on!
Without the conscious there to stop and say, “Did I turn the gas off?” you can only
imagine how dangerous this condition can be.
Good thing a lot of us automatically turn the burners off when we’re done cooking,
but still…
Now on to the million-dollar question: should you wake a sleepwalker?
The short answer is no, not unless you have to.
I’m sure you’ve heard this before.
“Never wake a sleepwalker!
They might have a heart attack from the shock!”
But that’s an exaggeration.
You see, a sleepwalking person is no different from someone snuggled into bed under their
covers.
They’re just walking around.
Sure, you’ll give them a good scare, but they wouldn’t physically suffer any more
than a person who was awakened by a loud noise.
No heart attacks or seizures or anything like that – that’s the good news.
As for the bad news (yes, there’s always both!), it can still be dangerous to wake
them, especially if you’re not careful about it.
Remember how this video started out?
You wake up in a strange place, and someone is shaking you.
What’s your immediate thought?
“I’m in danger, I’m scared, I’m confused, and I need to defend myself!”
That might not even be your conscious thinking – that’s downright animalistic instincts!
So, if you try to wake a sleepwalker by shaking them or slapping their face or even just being
nearby, you’d be making a big mistake.
They can lash out, even if you’re a close friend or relative!
Remember, they’re not in their right mind at the moment.
They’re in survival mode.
And while they’re flailing their limbs or trying to run away, they can accidentally
injure themselves too!
Ok, that’s what NOT to do, get it? got it.
Good.
Now, what’s the best way to go about this?
You can guide them gently back to their bed and see if they’ll calmly lie back down.
This is the best-case scenario and the preferred method recommended by most professionals.
This way, you can avoid any dangerous or scary situations.
But, unfortunately, it doesn’t always go the easy way.
Some people don’t respond to the gentle guidance, and they’ll just keep doing what
they’re doing.
They might even unconsciously resist.
If you absolutely must wake them, make a sudden loud noise.
This could be shouting their name, clapping your hands, banging pots and pans together,
you get the picture.
Just make sure you’re at a safe distance away from them or they may lash out or lunge
at you.
There’s your Plan B.
Of course, the best plan is prevention altogether!
- If you or someone you know is a sleepwalker, consider doing a sleep study.
Doctors will monitor your brain activity and try to help you get to the root cause of this
thing.
- There’s also hypnosis, where a licensed professional will try to re-train your mind
to wake up if you get out of bed.
This way, you'll be alert as soon as your feet hit the floor.
- Stress-relief techniques like meditation may work too since stress can make you sleepwalk.
It could also help if you write down the problems of the day before going to bed.
If you have concerns about the next day, write those down too.
Jotting down your worrisome thoughts is a good way to get them out of your brain so
that it can rest peacefully!
- Find out what time of night you're getting out of bed.
(This is where that sleep study will come in handy!)
You can set an alarm for half an hour before that time to wake yourself up or have a roommate,
parent, or partner wake you at that time.
If you continue to sleepwalk, take steps to keep yourself safe.
- You should lock all windows and doors.
- If you live with someone, ask them to gently lead you back to bed in case you get up in
your sleep.
- You can put out a few safe items to bump into, and maybe they’ll wake you or others
up when you run into them.
- Lastly, you can set an alarm system that will go off if you try to leave the house.
The rule of thumb is to keep your safety and the safety of others in mind when dealing
with somebody who walks in their sleep.
After all, you never know where a sleepwalker may end up.
Whether they’re in the kitchen stirring up some scrambled eggs or they’ve found
themselves in the alligator enclosure at the local zoo – be careful out there!
How about you?
Do you know somebody who sleepwalks or even just sleep-talks?
Let me know down in the comments!
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