The line between simply bizarre and truly worrisome sleep habits usually comes down to how frequent and disruptive the behavior is and whether it's explainable by something else.
Carlos had been a snorer his whole life. All the men in his family snored, too. Even after his wife began retiring to the family’s guest bedroom so she could sleep in peace, Carlos, 57, didn’t think much of his nighttime quirk; after all, he had bigger problems — including , diabetes, heart disease, heartburn and erectile dysfunction — to worry about.
It wasn’t until Carlos, whose story is featured in the American Psychiatric Association’s guide to its latest diagnostic manual, complained to his doctor about daytime sleepiness and a lack of focus — despite being in bed for eight to 10 hours each night — that he learned his of a very real, albeit common, disorder: , which repeatedly causes breathing to stop throughout the night.
“Years ago, we thought snoring was weird and funny, but we now know it’s a potentially negative symptom,” says , a psychiatrist who serves as medical director of the Jefferson Sleep Disorders Center in Philadelphia.
And while most snoring is harmless, it may be cause for concern if it involves a pause in breathing followed by a gasp — a typical pattern in sleep apnea, says Dr. Neil Kline, a sleep physician, internist and spokesman for the in Lititz, Pennsylvania.
In the case of many other nighttime habits, the line between simply bizarre and truly worrisome usually comes down to how frequent and disruptive the behavior is and whether it’s explainable by something else, like . “There are people who are following all of the rules and sleeping at the right time and not taking medications, and it happens on a constant basis,” Doghramji says. “Then we try to find out what’s causing the condition.”
When in doubt, seek an evaluation from a sleep specialist, who can help diagnose or dismiss your (or your partner’s) concerns. If it is a , effective treatments are available and important to pursue since untreated conditions can impair daily life and, at least in the case of sleep apnea, can raise risk of heart attack, stroke and deadly accidents. “Don’t dismiss these,” Doghramji says.
Here’s how to evaluate whether six other nighttime behaviors might be red flags:
1. Drooling
If you with a puddle on your pillow or spot a wet patch on your shoulder after nodding off on a plane, rest easy: While sometimes embarrassing, drooling in and of itself is usually completely normal, Kline says. 鈥淥ur mouth is always making saliva, and sometimes we sleep with our mouth open, so the saliva comes out and that鈥檚 what drooling is,鈥� he says.
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2. Sleepwalking
What if you could log some of your without even realizing it? For some people, mostly kids, it happens and is usually not cause for alarm, Kline says. Still, it鈥檚 worth taking precautions to keep your loved ones safe if they鈥檙e prone to sleepwalking by keeping them protected from dangerous items like knives or areas like windows that could be mistaken for doors. 鈥淭here are reports of people doing very complex actions during sleep, including leaving the home and driving somewhere and then awakening and having no recollection of what鈥檚 happening,鈥� Kline says.
Never try to wake a sleepwalker, warns , a psychologist who directs the Sleep & Health Research Program at the University of Arizona College of Medicine. 鈥淲hen someone is woken up from sleep walking, not only are they already disoriented, but [their negative reaction] seems to be exaggerated,鈥� he says. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 know who they are and where they are; they just lash out.鈥� To avoid catching the brunt of it, try to guide sleep walkers back to bed.
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3. Sleep talking
When Adam Lennard started saying uncharacteristically confident phrases like 鈥渉old me, I want you to feel greatness鈥� in his sleep, his now-wife decided to share the hilarity with the world by recording his habit in a blog called 鈥淪leep Talkin鈥� Man.鈥� Kline, too, says usually is merely a laughing matter and 鈥渘ot necessarily a symptom of a disorder.鈥� That said, it can also be associated with fragmented sleep, so if you鈥檙e a sleep talker who doesn鈥檛 seem well-rested even after being in bed for the recommended seven to nine hours, talk to your doctor or visit a sleep specialist.
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4. Screaming
Waking up to the uncontrollable screams of a seemingly terrified child is a parent鈥檚 nightmare, but if the sounds are night terrors 鈥� common episodes in childhood that the screamer has no recollection of 鈥� parents can at least take comfort in knowing their children are probably just fine. 鈥淵our kid is not in pain; your kid is not in danger 鈥� they actually don鈥檛 know it鈥檚 going on,鈥� Grandner says, since the screams don鈥檛 occur during the same state of sleep as dreaming and are different from . 鈥淥ne way to make a night terror worse is to hug them and calm them down and make them stop crying. The best thing to do is ignore it, and then it will go away.鈥�
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Thinkstock
5. Twitching
Do you keep twitching yourself or your partner awake? While a jerk or two while falling asleep is normal as your brain and body imperfectly shift into different phases of sleep, leg twitches in a limb like the leg that are rhythmic, happening every 25 seconds or so, may be linked to sleep apnea. Treating the apnea often eliminates these so-called 鈥減eriodic limb movements,鈥� Grandner says. If the twitches or discomfort in your legs happen while you鈥檙e still awake 鈥� and subside when you stand up 鈥� it may be restless legs syndrome, which is typically treated by to the diet or taking a very low dose of a Parkinson鈥檚 medication, which can help promote better muscle-brain coordination, Grandner says.
(Thinkstock)
Thinkstock
6. Kicking
First you kissed your spouse goodnight, but later in the night, you reportedly kicked her. What gives? It may be REM behavior disorder, a sleep disorder most common in older adults that can cause them to punch, hit and kick while sound asleep. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e essentially acting out their dreams,鈥� Kline says. 鈥淚t is not uncommon for the bed partners to get injured by this thrashing.鈥� If this behavior sounds like you, talk to your doctor since the condition is also linked to Parkinson鈥檚 disease. And, while there are medications that may help treat this and other , 鈥渢he focus should be on preventing injury to the patient and the bed partner,鈥� Kline says.
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