Is it possible to turn on lights while sleeping?
I guess that sounds strange... Let me explain. I fall asleep easier in light than I do darkness so, because I need to be on a normal schedule and not a nocturnal one, I just sleep with a light or two on. I have three lights in my room, only two I ever use when sleeping. One of this is right above my bed that has a chain to be pulled to turn on. I can reach it while laying down, but goodness, is it hard to find in darkness. The other sits on a my desk over an arm's length away, so I cannot reach it from my bed even though there's really no walking distance between my bed and desk(where the lamp sits) It is the kind one taps to turn on. Whenever I fall asleep/ nap in the afternoon/ evening and wake up after nightfall, the lights are always on. Honestly it dumfounds me because I know for a fact I don't turn them on while napping (on rare occasions I do, I remember it) and no one else could have because I keep my door locked and besides at the time I nap no one is at home who would force their way into my room. Is it possible to turn these lights on while I'm sleeping? If so, why don't I do the same thing while regular sleep and wake up with the lights off? If I fall asleep with lights on it is almost a guarantee I'll awaken with those two lights on. I'm sure there'd be someone to wonder "if not you or family member, then who?" well...that's where one considers the unordinary, which I'm tempted to do considering some other things anyway... (PS, no idea what category this should be under...)
Can I stop sleepwalkers from doing dangerous acts by switching off the lights? Since they kind of "see" while sleep walking.
Any change you make may be helpful on one occasion or another, yet, this will not stop them from doing dangerous things.Most often they are acting out the dreams they are having, which is exactly why we have sleep paralysis! So many people write in to try to stop sleep paralysis when they have no idea how helpful it is.So turning the lights off, closing the windows, etc. is not going to be of assistance long. They need other forms of practice.Investigation into sleep patterns, such as are they deprived of sleep? And also investigation into their emotional quality of life.Sleep deprivation, busy schedules, rigorous work requirements, stress, vitamin deficiencies, drugs and alcohol can all contribute to the need to get up and walk around.BUT, the body has the ability to recover from this and communicate with itself about the problem. And it requires some investigation into the inner being and taking a look at the potential causes.
Why is sleepwalking dangerous?
Sleepwalking can be extremely dangerous as the sleepwalker can do things that could result in their death or the deaths of others.I have posted this story here before and will post it here. Mom told me this story about a girl who used to sleepwalk and the mother of the family would hear her daughter go out and made sure to follow her to make sure that she was safe. The girl’s family would find her laying on top of the well cover in the morning. The family always had to make sure that well cover was on because of that.The girl’s sleepwalking out to the well did not occur in the winter as the cold air would wake her up. One night, the girl went out and the mother followed her as usual. The girl was not far from the well and was near a horse trough full of water when the lamp she was carrying came apart.Apparently, the top was not screwed on properly after the base had been filled with kerosene. The lamp base hit the ground and the burning kerosene splashed up onto the girl’s nightgown. The mother immediately pushed the girl into the horse trough which put out the fire. When the girl was helped out of the horse trough by the mother, her nightgown fell off her in pieces.After that, the girl’s sleepwalking came to an end. I said to Mom, that it might have been the shock of her landing in the cold water of the horse trough and finding out just how close she came to burning to death may have been what put a stop to the sleepwalking.
Sleep Walking - Sex?
I've known of some sleepwalkers, but listen- has he ever forcefully molested you in your sleep? I'm getting the impression that he hasn't. Unconsciously, subconsciously he identifies you as willing participant in a sexual act. And like you said, you've been able to 'brush him off' and put him back to bed. So he's not protesting and forcing himself on you right? Yes, I've heard of "sleep sex" and "sleep eating" but unless he has issues about child molesting in his past, I wouldn't be concerned about that specific issue. However, I can understand your fears for the unknown, and what might he do, putting the children in harms way even if he doesn't realize it. (Since he's bouncing around in closets, its reasonable to think he may go into your children's room and wake them or talk to them--- not meaning to of course!) There is therapy and some types of hypnosis that could be explored. I hope he would be open to that, because though he may not understand the huge distruption and worry its causing you, but also he may not realize that this is very disturbed sleep he's having and it could be effecting his daily life.
What could be done about a child sleepwalking?
I slept walked until my mid-20's. You need to understand the causes of sleepwalking to address it. During a normal sleep cycle, when you go into REM sleep (dreaming sleep) your brain will produce a chemical (the name of which I've forgotten) that makes it hard for you to move. That's why dreamers move their eyes but usually not their bodies. When you are stressed, over tired or over stimulated, your body perceives the need for greater amounts of deep REM sleep. The sleepwalkers brain will increase melatonin production but fails to increase the other chemical which keeps you from moving around that I never remember the name of. In extreme cases, you can take a supplement to equalize both brain chemicals, but your daughter isn't going to be considered extreme. Sleepwalking almost always resolves itself with age. I am a rare person who slept walked into adulthood and I was told that no one would prescribe me anything because I wasn't harming myself or others while sleepwalking. The best thing you can do is try to prevent it by not allowing her to become over tired or over stimulated. Make sure she's getting 8 - 10 hours every night, make sure she exercises regularly, don't allow her to fall asleep to the tv (tv images flicker and are incredibly disruptive to the brain), identify causes of stress and address them (is school work over whelming? Does she need to be better organized? I used to do better when my house was clean because that was a source of stress for me.). You don't have to get up with her. Make her room safe (I woke up with so many bloody knuckles, you wouldn't believe) and put a door alarm on her door to wake her up if she tries to leave her room and then let it play itself out. If you find her walking around, tell her to go back to bed. Contrary to popular belief, there's no risk to waking up a sleepwalker, they're just usually unresponsive. Play into the dream. Tell her the fashion show has been rescheduled and she needs to go back to bed now.
What are some symptoms of sleepwalking?
Sleepwalking (also called somnambulism or noctambulism) is a parasomnia or sleep disorder where the sufferer engages in activities that are normally associated with wakefulness while he or she is asleep or in a sleep-like state. Sleepwalking is usually defined by or involves the person affected apparently shifting from his or her prior sleeping position and moving around and performing normal actions as if awake (cleaning, walking and other activities). Sleepwalkers are not conscious of their actions on a level where memory of the sleepwalking episode can be recalled, and because of this, unless the sleepwalker is woken or aroused by someone else, this sleep disorder can go unnoticed. Sleepwalking is more commonly experienced in people with high levels of stress, anxiety or psychological factors and in people with genetic factors (family history), or sometimes a combination of both. Signs and symptoms Someone who is sleepwalking may: * Sit up in bed and open his or her eyes * Have a glazed, glassy-eyed expression * Roam around the house, perhaps opening and closing doors or turning lights on and off * Do routine activities, such as getting dressed or making a snack — even driving a car * Speak or move in a clumsy manner Sleepwalking usually occurs during deep sleep, early in the night — often one to two hours after falling asleep. Sleepwalking is unlikely during naps. Some sleepwalking episodes last only a few seconds or minutes. Others last for 30 minutes or longer. The person won't remember the sleepwalking episode in the morning.
Scissors and sleepwalking?
The other night I got up around midnight, turned on the bedroom light and started frantically looking through the sheets for scissors. I remember doing this - I think I was having a dream about using scissors in some kind of craft activity - and then leaving them in the bed. I said, "Well, they must not be here," then I turned off the lights and went back to bed. So, what does a dream about scissors mean? And does anyone know about sleepwalking you can remember? Or being half asleep/half awake?
Weird sleepwalking stories?
This was in the summer... Whenever I have a dream about my job, or working, I always end up sleepwalking. The funniest one, is when I walked into my wall. I took an order, and I went to go walk over to the register, and I took two steps (in my dream) and I walked right into my wall, I had a goose egg on my forehead for a couple days, hahaha.