Night terrors (or sleep terrors) differ substantially from standard nightmares and can be incredibly distressing for the sufferer and their family.
Although night terrors can be genuinely terrifying, they are not normally an indicator of anything more serious and tend to cease of their own accord.
Night terrors are nocturnal episodes where the sufferer experiences terror, the sufferer may flail their limbs and scream and shout. Bouts are often associated with sleep walking.
Night terrors are most common in children, but adults can also suffer from them. A normal attack generally lasts between 30 seconds and 3 minutes, but can be substantially longer.1
Night terrors are unpleasant for all involved, but in general they are not a cause for medical concern.
A study conducted in Norway looking at various parasomnias (a category of sleep disorders) asked 1,000 random participants how often they had experienced night terrors. The results showed that 10.4% of respondents had experienced night terrors at one point in their life and 2.7% in the last 3 months. 2
A similar study was conducted in the UK. Of the 4,972 participants, 2.2% reported having experienced night terrors. 3
Extrapolating from these figures we can estimate that more than 7 million people in the US will have experienced night terrors at some point in their lives.
Night terrors differ from nightmares. In a nightmare the dreamer may wake up, but during night terrors they will generally stay asleep.
This difference is most likely because of the phase of sleep in which they occur. Nightmares tend to happen during rapid eye movement sleep (REM), towards the end of a night's sleep.
Night terrors, on the other hand, occur in the first third of the night during deeper sleep, also called slow wave sleep or non-REM sleep.4
The signs of a night terror episode can include the following:
◾Scream and shout
◾Sit up in bed
◾Kick and flail
◾Heavy breathing, racing pulse, and profuse sweating
◾Dilated pupils and increased muscle tone
◾Difficult to rouse from sleeping and general confusion if successfully woken
◾Stare wide-eyed as if awake but be unresponsive to stimuli
◾Behave aggressively (more common in adults)
◾Get out of bed and run around the house(D again)
◾Amnesia of the event
◾Stress
◾sleep deprivation
◾Light or noise
◾An overfull bladder
◾Spending the night somewhere unfamiliar
◾Possible genetic component
Although night terrors can be genuinely terrifying, they are not normally an indicator of anything more serious and tend to cease of their own accord.
What are night terrors?
Night terrors are nocturnal episodes where the sufferer experiences terror, the sufferer may flail their limbs and scream and shout. Bouts are often associated with sleep walking.Night terrors are most common in children, but adults can also suffer from them. A normal attack generally lasts between 30 seconds and 3 minutes, but can be substantially longer.1
Night terrors are unpleasant for all involved, but in general they are not a cause for medical concern.
A study conducted in Norway looking at various parasomnias (a category of sleep disorders) asked 1,000 random participants how often they had experienced night terrors. The results showed that 10.4% of respondents had experienced night terrors at one point in their life and 2.7% in the last 3 months. 2
A similar study was conducted in the UK. Of the 4,972 participants, 2.2% reported having experienced night terrors. 3
Extrapolating from these figures we can estimate that more than 7 million people in the US will have experienced night terrors at some point in their lives.
Signs and symptoms of night terrors
Night terrors differ from nightmares. In a nightmare the dreamer may wake up, but during night terrors they will generally stay asleep.
This difference is most likely because of the phase of sleep in which they occur. Nightmares tend to happen during rapid eye movement sleep (REM), towards the end of a night's sleep.
Night terrors, on the other hand, occur in the first third of the night during deeper sleep, also called slow wave sleep or non-REM sleep.4
The signs of a night terror episode can include the following:
◾Scream and shout
◾Sit up in bed
◾Kick and flail
◾Heavy breathing, racing pulse, and profuse sweating
◾Dilated pupils and increased muscle tone
◾Difficult to rouse from sleeping and general confusion if successfully woken
◾Stare wide-eyed as if awake but be unresponsive to stimuli
◾Behave aggressively (more common in adults)
◾Get out of bed and run around the house(D again)
◾Amnesia of the event
What causes night terrors?
There can be a number of potential causes or contributing factors where night terrors are concerned. Here is a short list of some of them:◾Stress
◾sleep deprivation
◾Light or noise
◾An overfull bladder
◾Spending the night somewhere unfamiliar
◾Possible genetic component
Treatment and prevention of night terrors?
Generally, there is no need for any kind of medication for night terrors. With children, although it appears distressing, it does not permanently harm them and most children grow out of night terrors.
Gently restraining your child and speaking calmly can help shorten the episodes.
Treatment is only generally called upon if the episodes are having a significant negative effect on the sufferer or their family's safety or their ability to function during the day. If treatment is necessary it generally falls into these categories:
◾Treating an underlying condition - such as sleep apnea or a mental health problem
◾Improving sleeping conditions - if sleep deprivation is thought to be a major factor
◾Medication - drugs are rarely used, but benzodiazepines and serotonin re-uptake inhibitors have found to be useful in some cases5
◾Dealing with stress - therapy or counseling can help if stress seems to be a factor.
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