Causes of sleepwalking include:
Who Talks in Their Sleep?
Most of the times sleep talking is harmless. It is an action brought forth by a few factors. One of them is stress. If you are having problems with sleep talking then try and avoid going to bed stressed out or just try and eliminate the situations that are making you nervous from your life altogether. Other times it can be cause by erratic sleeping habits. If you are sleep deprived then there is a good chance that that is the main reason for your somniloquy (talking in your sleep). Try to get plenty of sleep every night and also maintain a strict sleeping schedule by going to bed and waking up at the same hours. In some cases it has been shown that eating a heavy meal right before bed can also lead to sleep talking. If you see or hear someone that is talking in his sleep try to comfort and soothe the person. If he is calm and relaxed he is more likely to go in a deep sleep and not talk anymore.
However, other times sleep talking can be more serious as it can manifest as a symptom of other sleeping disorders. Two of the more common ones are sleep terrors and REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD). People who suffer from these will usually not only talk in their sleep, but they will scream with fear, thrash around and kick. It is hard to wake someone up from a night terror so these people should be monitored closely.
Other people that talk in their sleep are also sleep walkers. These two conditions can even work in conjunction with another one named nocturnal sleep-related eating disorder (NS-RED) which causes the suffered to eat in his sleep. In other cases, sleep talking can be brought on by a high fever, taking certain medications, abusing substances or mental health disorder.
How Can You Stop?
Like mentioned before, if the sleep talking does not interfere with your sleep or anyone else’s then there is no need for concern. On the other hand, if your late night monologues are keeping people awake you might want to getting used to sleeping alone. In these cases you might want to check in with a sleep specialist. Obviously, it you are a parent whose child is exhibiting the symptoms of somniloquy then you should consult an expert.
If the situation is more serious than that and it involves screaming, punching, kicking etc. then it can be a symptom of another sleep disorder and a medic should be consulted as soon as possible. Even though there is no way to test for somniloquy there are ways like a sleep study or a polysomnogram which can be used to determine if the talking is resulting from a more serious medical condition.
The first thing you will need to know when you are seeking professional help is how long you have been talking in your sleep. Since you are not conscious when you talk it is impossible for you to know so you will have to ask your wife, partner, roommate, parents etc. If you are talking like a tenor in your sleep you can even ask your neighbor. You could probably tell if you have been keeping him up at nights by the expression on his face when you ask if you are loud during bedtime.
Furthermore, provide the doctor with your complete medical history. Now is not the time to get shy. He needs to know about all your past medications as well as substance abuse as these are common causes of sleep talking. Maintain a sleep diary for a week or so and thoroughly document when you go to bed and when you wake up and how many times you have talked during the night. You will need some help from your sleeping partner to determine this, but it will provide valuable information to the doctor on your sleeping patterns and also give him ideas on how to treat it.
There is no guaranteed way to stop people from talking in their sleep. If the condition is not related to any other sleeping disorder then getting plenty of rest every night and avoiding stressful situations can be your best bet towards preventing you from spouting random gibberish. There will be plenty of time for you to talk without making sense when you are awake. Your best bet is to pay close attention to your sleep diary. That will tell you the reason why you are sleep talking. If you maintain it for a long enough period of time and you are accurate it should help establish a pattern of your daily routine. After that you can isolate the reason for your condition and eventually eliminate it or at least diminish its effects on your person.
Other than the times when you go to bed and when you wake up, there are a few other moments in your day that you should pay attention. Note the time when you exercise and for how long and notice all of the caffeinated drinks that you have over the day like coffee and energy drinks. Also pay attention to your alcohol consumption. Medications that you might be using can also affect your sleep so note those down as well.
As long as you are not cursing like a sailor or singing like a soprano there is no need for concern. If you sleep alone, then you will not know about it anyway. If you sleep with someone else, they should be able to adjust pretty quickly if it is not to obnoxious. Other than that, keeping a sleep diary is your best bet towards stopping your sleep talking.
SOURCE: WIKIHOW.
- hereditary (i.e., the condition may run in families)
- lack of sleep or fatigue.
- interrupted sleep or inefficient sleep (including from disorders like sleep apnea)
- illness or fever.
- certain medications.
- stress, anxiety.
- going to bed with full bladder.
What is sleep talking?
Sleep talking, formally known as somniloquy, is a sleep disorder defined as talking during sleep without being aware of it. Sleep talking
can involve complicated dialogues or monologues, complete gibberish or
mumbling. The good news is that for most people it is a rare and
short-lived occurrence.
What is a parasomnia sleep disorder?
Parasomnias are a category of sleep disorders that involve abnormal movements, behaviors, emotions, perceptions, and dreams that occur while falling asleep, sleeping, between sleep stages, or during arousal from sleep.
How does sleep walking work?
Sleepwalking. Sleepwalking,
formally known as somnambulism, is a behavior disorder that originates
during deep sleep and results in walking or performing other complex
behaviors while asleep. It is much more common in children than adults
and is more likely to occur if a person is sleep deprived.
How do you sleep walk?
Sleepwalking is a disorder that causes people to get up and walk while they're asleep. It usually happens when a person is going from the deep stage of sleep to a lighter stage or into the awake state. The sleepwalker can't respond during the event and usually doesn't remember it.
Can you remember what you do when you sleepwalk?
In adults, it is more common to remember some or all of a sleepwalking episode. Another popular myth is that sleepwalking is automatic. However, a large number of sleepwalkers remember
what they did and why. They are able to admit their actions were
illogical, but see that for each episode there is a hidden rationale.
What causes hallucinations during sleep?
Parasomnias can occur as a person is falling asleep or at any point in the sleep cycle. If they occur while falling asleep, a person may experience disturbing hallucinations or sleep paralysis, which is when the body is unable to move for seconds or minutes.
While sleepwalking, the eyes are usually open,
though the person will look straight through people and not recognize
them. They can often maneuver well around familiar objects. If you talk
to a person who is sleepwalking, they may partially respond or say things that don't make sense.
How many different types of sleep disorders are there?
There are more than 70
different sleep disorders, which are generally classified into one of
three categories: lack of sleep (e.g., insomnia), disturbed sleep (e.g.,
obstructive sleep apnea), and. excessive sleep (e.g., narcolepsy).
Most of the times sleep talking is harmless. It is an action brought forth by a few factors. One of them is stress. If you are having problems with sleep talking then try and avoid going to bed stressed out or just try and eliminate the situations that are making you nervous from your life altogether. Other times it can be cause by erratic sleeping habits. If you are sleep deprived then there is a good chance that that is the main reason for your somniloquy (talking in your sleep). Try to get plenty of sleep every night and also maintain a strict sleeping schedule by going to bed and waking up at the same hours. In some cases it has been shown that eating a heavy meal right before bed can also lead to sleep talking. If you see or hear someone that is talking in his sleep try to comfort and soothe the person. If he is calm and relaxed he is more likely to go in a deep sleep and not talk anymore.
However, other times sleep talking can be more serious as it can manifest as a symptom of other sleeping disorders. Two of the more common ones are sleep terrors and REM sleep behavior disorder (RBD). People who suffer from these will usually not only talk in their sleep, but they will scream with fear, thrash around and kick. It is hard to wake someone up from a night terror so these people should be monitored closely.
Other people that talk in their sleep are also sleep walkers. These two conditions can even work in conjunction with another one named nocturnal sleep-related eating disorder (NS-RED) which causes the suffered to eat in his sleep. In other cases, sleep talking can be brought on by a high fever, taking certain medications, abusing substances or mental health disorder.
How Can You Stop?
Like mentioned before, if the sleep talking does not interfere with your sleep or anyone else’s then there is no need for concern. On the other hand, if your late night monologues are keeping people awake you might want to getting used to sleeping alone. In these cases you might want to check in with a sleep specialist. Obviously, it you are a parent whose child is exhibiting the symptoms of somniloquy then you should consult an expert.
If the situation is more serious than that and it involves screaming, punching, kicking etc. then it can be a symptom of another sleep disorder and a medic should be consulted as soon as possible. Even though there is no way to test for somniloquy there are ways like a sleep study or a polysomnogram which can be used to determine if the talking is resulting from a more serious medical condition.
The first thing you will need to know when you are seeking professional help is how long you have been talking in your sleep. Since you are not conscious when you talk it is impossible for you to know so you will have to ask your wife, partner, roommate, parents etc. If you are talking like a tenor in your sleep you can even ask your neighbor. You could probably tell if you have been keeping him up at nights by the expression on his face when you ask if you are loud during bedtime.
Furthermore, provide the doctor with your complete medical history. Now is not the time to get shy. He needs to know about all your past medications as well as substance abuse as these are common causes of sleep talking. Maintain a sleep diary for a week or so and thoroughly document when you go to bed and when you wake up and how many times you have talked during the night. You will need some help from your sleeping partner to determine this, but it will provide valuable information to the doctor on your sleeping patterns and also give him ideas on how to treat it.
There is no guaranteed way to stop people from talking in their sleep. If the condition is not related to any other sleeping disorder then getting plenty of rest every night and avoiding stressful situations can be your best bet towards preventing you from spouting random gibberish. There will be plenty of time for you to talk without making sense when you are awake. Your best bet is to pay close attention to your sleep diary. That will tell you the reason why you are sleep talking. If you maintain it for a long enough period of time and you are accurate it should help establish a pattern of your daily routine. After that you can isolate the reason for your condition and eventually eliminate it or at least diminish its effects on your person.
Other than the times when you go to bed and when you wake up, there are a few other moments in your day that you should pay attention. Note the time when you exercise and for how long and notice all of the caffeinated drinks that you have over the day like coffee and energy drinks. Also pay attention to your alcohol consumption. Medications that you might be using can also affect your sleep so note those down as well.
As long as you are not cursing like a sailor or singing like a soprano there is no need for concern. If you sleep alone, then you will not know about it anyway. If you sleep with someone else, they should be able to adjust pretty quickly if it is not to obnoxious. Other than that, keeping a sleep diary is your best bet towards stopping your sleep talking.
SOURCE: WIKIHOW.
