Why Do People Sleepwalk? And Can You Stop Yourself Sleepwalking?
Why Do People Sleepwalk? And Can You Stop Yourself Sleepwalking
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So, just why do people sleepwalk? What causes sleepwalking? And can you do anything to stop yourself from walking in your sleep?
It's generally thought that about one in every six people has been sleepwalking at some stage although most times it happens when we're young.
You may pace the room when you sleepwalk or you might find yourself further away from your bed. It's even more embarrassing when you find yourself wandering around a hotel corridor. And it can get positively dangerous if your sleepwalking takes you outside your house.
Sleepwalking happens when not all your brain is asleep. Normally, all of our brain sleeps at the same time (with the obvious exception of anything that carries out any vital body functions) but if the part of your brain that controls your motor movements wakes up and gets bored because the rest of your brain is asleep, you can find yourself wandering around a bit like a horror movie extra.
Stress is a big cause of sleepwalking. Which with all the stresses we experience in our hectic modern day lives actually makes the 1 in 6 people figure sound quite small. And if you react to stress by drinking alcohol, you could well be adding to the chance that you'll sleepwalk as alcohol is another cause of sleepwalking.
Sleep deprivation is another answer to the question why do people sleepwalk. Those restless nights where you can't get back to sleep could come back to haunt you in the form of wandering around at night once you do manage to get back to sleep.
The other scary thing to know is that walking in your sleep isn't the only thing you can do whilst you should be tucked up in bed. Sleep cooking isn't unheard of, although I'm not sure I'd like to be anywhere near a hot stove whilst I didn't have total control over my senses.
Some people even drive when they're asleep. Which makes it a worrying thought if you regularly drive whilst it's dark - you could be sharing the road with people who really are asleep rather than just those who appear to be driving badly.
So if you have a tendency to engage in sleepwalking, seek out some help sooner rather than later.