Parasomnia Definition, Reason, Symptoms, Treatment & Prevention
Understanding
Parasomnias are sleep quality disorders due to abnormal episodes during sleep. Some of the abnormal episodes referred to include sleepwalking, nightmares, or paralysis (which in layman’s terms is often called sleeplessness).
There are various kinds of sleep disorders including parasomnias. Some of the most frequently encountered disorders are:
• Sleepwalking disorder ( sleep-walking ), also known as somnambulism
• Nightmare
• Night terror
Other sleep disorders are paralysis during sleep, enuresis (wetting the bed), sleep hallucinations, or sleep talking. Parasomnias are more common in children than adults.
Symptoms
Parasomnia sufferers generally often complain of not sleeping well because of abnormal episodes that disturb sleep. Meanwhile, the typical symptoms of each disease included in parasomnias can be very different.
Sleepwalking disorder ( sleepwalking or somnambulism) is characterized by walking during sleep. Sufferers can walk out of the house, move things, and even run around. Usually, the sufferer’s eyes are open when doing these activities, but his brain does not realize it. Preventing sufferers from walking is generally not a good move because sufferers can show aggressive behavior such as hitting or biting if prevented from walking.
Nightmare is a sleep disorder characterized by nightmares that feel very real. Nightmare sufferers often wake up at night with fear because of the nightmares they experience. Usually after waking up, sufferers will find it difficult to sleep again.
Night terrors have symptoms of aggressive behavior during sleep. Aggressive behavior can be in the form of screaming, kicking, crying, and so on. Generally, night terror sufferers cannot remember the dreams they had while sleeping that caused them to carry out this aggressive behavior.
Sleep paralysis is often referred to as sleep paralysis. In this disorder, the sufferer cannot move his body at all even though he is conscious. These episodes of paralysis last from a few seconds to several minutes. Sometimes this disorder is also accompanied by hallucinations, which are usually considered scary by the sufferer.
Sleep talking is often called delirium. People with this disorder talk subconsciously while sleeping. Speech can be unclear, can also shout loudly. The content of the conversation is generally unclear or not essential.
Enuresis is the medical term for bedwetting. Wetting the bed while sleeping is normal for children, especially toddlers. Enuresis is considered abnormal if it occurs in children over the age of 5 years and adults. Usually, the trigger is due to certain psychological problems that weigh heavily on the mind.
A sleep-related eating disorder is an episode of eating and drinking addiction that occurs when you wake up at night. Sufferers are usually not fully conscious when awake. Unknowingly he will consume food in very large quantities. Because it is done unconsciously, it is very possible that the food they consume is a harmful substance.
Reason
Until now, the exact cause of parasomnias is not known clearly. However, genetic factors are thought to play a role because many cases of parasomnias run down the family history.
Several other things that can cause a person to be prone to experiencing parasomnias are:
• Being depressed or stressed
• Patients with post-traumatic stress disorder
• Side effects of certain drugs
• Drug users
• Habit of consuming alcohol
Diagnosis
Determination of the presence or absence of sleep disturbances is carried out by a psychiatrist. To find out if there is a possibility of parasomnias, the doctor will ask the patient to keep a sleep diary to record things that are experienced during sleep during the last two weeks.
If necessary, behavior during sleep can be observed in the ward with a polysomnogram examination. This examination uses techniques to detect brain waves, heart rate, and breathing during sleep. In addition, video recording is also carried out to detect abnormal behavior during sleep.
Treatment
Treatment for parasomnias depends on the type of sleep disorder you have. If the parasomnia you are experiencing is sleepwalking disorder, then the most important thing is to ensure that the environment around the bed is safe. In addition, families can install locks or alarms on windows and doors to prevent people with sleepwalking disorders from harming themselves.
In addition, in general, doctors can provide medicines to help sufferers sleep better. Most parasomnias will go away on their own with age.
Prevention
Until now there is nothing that can prevent parasomnias.