Have you ever had this experience: when you were about to fall asleep in a daze, suddenly your whole body shook violently, it felt like you were falling uncontrollably from a high cliff, and then you woke up with a start.
What kind of dream is this?
Do you want to quickly check Zhou Gong's interpretation of dreams?
In fact, most of the time, this situation is a normal physiological phenomenon of the body, so don't worry.
However, not all limb movements during sleep are normal, and some may indicate some diseases.
A "sudden" dream or sleep startle
The "dream" that we mentioned above, in which you shake during sleep and feel yourself falling from a height until you wake up, is actually called "sleep startle", also known as "sleep twitch" or "pre-sleep myoclonus".
The brain is the general commander of all organs and tissues of the human body, and sleep is the process of resting the brain.
When a person first falls asleep, part of the brain is already asleep, but another part is not yet fully asleep.
With the deepening of sleep, the brain relaxes its control of the limbs. When the brain is stimulated by certain information inside and outside the body, there may be sudden twitching of the muscles of the body, which is called sleep startle.
It should be noted that most of the sleep startles are physiological manifestations, often incidental in nature, no more than three times a night, and the movement range is not too large.
If you have frequent limb twitches (more than five times a night) or disturb sleep due to frequent seizures and repeated awakenings, you need to be vigilant. It is necessary to visit a neurology department or a sleep specialist outpatient clinic to improve polysomnography.
This test can help differentiate sleep startles from other causes of limb movements that occur during sleep.
At the same time, other tests such as blood tests and imaging tests can also be improved to determine whether there are other causes.
'Stimulated' sleep linked to these lifestyles
Stress and Anxiety Excessive stress in life and work can lead to excessive mental tension and difficulty in relaxing. Even when you are about to fall asleep, you still maintain a certain degree of mental tension, resulting in sudden awakening or sleep shock during the process of falling asleep.
Long-term life pressure and excessive work pressure will lead to a significant decline in sleep quality, even insomnia and anxiety. Some people will experience continuous sleep shocks, and then fear sleep, forming a vicious circle.
Emotional stimulation Emotional stimulation can also lead to the occurrence of sleep startles.
Stressful events in daytime life can affect sleep onset and sleep quality at night.
In particular, emotional fluctuations such as anger and sadness before going to bed will affect the process of falling asleep and lead to the occurrence of sleep shocks.
Sleep deprivation, often staying up late and sleeping irregularly, disrupts our body's biological rhythms, resulting in poor sleep quality, difficulty falling asleep, and sleep shocks when falling asleep.
Excessive physical activity at night Regular physical activity during the day is good for health and sleep.
However, excessive physical exercise before going to bed at night can lead to brain excitement, affecting sleep, and may continue to sleep startle.
Excessive intake of caffeine or nicotine Coffee, strong tea contains caffeine and theophylline, and tobacco contains nicotine, which are substances that stimulate the brain.
Excessive intake can affect sleep quality and lead to the occurrence of sleep startles.
These body movements have nothing to do with sleep startles
In children and adolescents, sleep startles need to be differentiated from benign sleep myoclonus.
In children and adolescents, the brain is in the process of development, and occasionally benign sleep myoclonus occurs during sleep. This kind of limb twitching is often infrequent and does not affect sleep quality.
In adults, sleep startles need to be differentiated from hypersomnia fragmented myoclonus.
Hypersomnia fragment myoclonus refers to the twitching of the head, neck, limbs and other parts during sleep. The position is not fixed. In severe cases, it can affect the quality of sleep and is often related to stress and anxiety.
In the elderly population, sleep startles need to be differentiated from periodic limb movements.
Periodic limb movement during sleep refers to the periodic and regular twitching of limbs during sleep, which is relatively common in the elderly.
However, if there is discomfort such as limb numbness, pain, and ant crawling before falling asleep, you need to be alert to the possibility of restless legs syndrome.
To sleep more peacefully, try this
Although sleep shocks will not threaten our lives, they will interfere with our sleep to a certain extent and affect our sleep quality. Therefore, we can improve sleep quality from the following aspects, avoid and reduce sleep shocks. The probability of jumping.
Maintain a good attitude and actively face all kinds of problems in life, know yourself correctly; learn to self-regulate emotions, release pressure, and maintain a happy and healthy attitude.
Laws of life Maintain regular living habits, regular work and rest.
Go to bed at the same time every day and wake up at the same time.
Don't stay up late, don't go to bed early.
Weekends and holidays should also maintain a regular schedule.
Appropriate exercise can improve sleep quality, and physical exercise can be strengthened during the day.
However, it is not suitable to do too strenuous exercise before going to bed. You can choose items such as walking or jogging that are conducive to falling asleep.
Avoid emotional agitation before going to bed Avoid quarrels, excitement and other mood swings before going to bed, and avoid watching movies, TV shows, books, etc. that affect your mood.
One hour before going to bed should maintain a calm state of mind.
Stay away from electronic products before going to bed In order to ensure that you fall asleep as soon as possible and maintain a good sleep quality, avoid using electronic products one hour before going to bed.
Keep phones, tablets, and similar electronics out of reach before going to bed.
Drink plenty of warm water, insufficient water intake, imbalance of electrolytes in the body at night, and sleep shocks will also occur.
Drinking more water at ordinary times can promote the blood flow of the human body well, and at the same time avoid blood retention, which will make you sleep more soundly.
Beverages such as coffee and strong tea can stimulate the brain and affect the quality of sleep and sleep. Drink as little as possible.
Soak your feet with hot water before going to bed. Soaking your feet with hot water before going to bed can relieve fatigue, speed up blood circulation, and make the whole body warm, thereby promoting sleep and making people fall asleep faster.
You can also do some simple massage, or relaxation training before going to bed, to help relax the muscles of the body, and also help to avoid sleep shocks and improve sleep quality.
Text/Huang Chaoyang (Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University)