Sleepwalking or somnambulism is a common sleep disorder or parasomnia in children, however, adults can also be affected with sleepwalking. One very common misconception about sleepwalking is that sleepwalking only involves walking and nothing else. What many people do not know is that sleepwalking can be associated with several actions or activities that can be done during an episode, which can be harmless to life-threatening. It will be best for the sleepwalker and other people who know someone who is a sleepwalker to know what actions or activities can be associated with an episode of sleepwalking.
Dream Misconceptions
Another common misconception of sleepwalking is that the actions or activities performed by the sleepwalker is him or her acting out what’s in his or her dream. Dreams are produced during the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) stage of sleep that occurs during the 5th stage of sleep. Sleepwalking typically occurs before achieving the Rapid Eye Movement (REM) stage of sleep, making it less likely for dreams to be acted out during sleepwalking.
Sleepwalker’s Routine Activities
Activities or actions performed during a sleepwalking episode are commonly associated with the sleepwalker’s routine activities, however, what makes it different from performing it awake is that routine activities during sleepwalking episode are performed with their eyes open but with a glassy stare. Routine activities are usually not life-threatening, such as doing chores, going and eating in the kitchen, changing clothes, or going to the bathroom. However, there are some cases that activities performed during a sleepwalking episode can be life-threatening, such as driving, climbing from windows, or even going up or down the stairs. Sleepwalkers can wake up in the middle of their sleepwalking episode and confused, or sleepwalkers can return to their bed and wake up the next morning without remembering anything that happened during the night.
What Will Happen if A Sleepwalker is Awakened?
One of the most common questions of people who know someone who is suffering from sleepwalking is that what will happen if a sleepwalker is awakened in the middle of a sleepwalking episode. It is difficult to wake someone in the middle of a sleepwalking episode and sometimes it can be dangerous as well. If you wake a person in the middle of a sleepwalking episode, there are tendencies that the person can become irrational or even aggressive to lash out unconsciously, since they will be very confused. Instead of waking someone in the middle of a sleepwalking episode, it will be a lot safer to guide the sleepwalker back to his or her bedroom.
