WEBVTT - BrainStuff Classics: How Does Sleepwalking Work?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of iHeart Radio. Hey, brain Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm more in vocal Bomb and I've got another classic

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<v Speaker 1>episode for you today from our former host, Christian Sager.

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<v Speaker 1>This one is about the phenomenon of sleepwalking. I myself

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<v Speaker 1>used to sleepwalk sometimes when I was a kid, but

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<v Speaker 1>I grew out of it, and as it turns out,

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<v Speaker 1>that's not all that uncommon. Here's Christian. Hi, I'm Christian Sager,

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<v Speaker 1>and this is brain Stuff. Have you ever seen someone sleepwalking?

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<v Speaker 1>It's creepy, right. They're just sort of shambling around like

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<v Speaker 1>a zombie, and not one of those super fast World

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<v Speaker 1>War Z type zombies, but more of the slow, clumsy,

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<v Speaker 1>walking dead type. They might even have glassy eyes or

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<v Speaker 1>a bland, blank expression, and when they wake up they

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<v Speaker 1>won't remember what happened. So what the heck is going

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<v Speaker 1>on with sleepwalking? How does it work, who does it affect?

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<v Speaker 1>And what are the common misconceptions about it? Well, first,

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<v Speaker 1>let's define sleep walking. If you want to get fancy,

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<v Speaker 1>you can call it somnambulism. It's a type of parasomnia

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<v Speaker 1>or abnormal disruptive behavior that occurs during sleep. This category

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<v Speaker 1>also includes stuff like bedwedding, and teeth grinding. Sleepwalkers may

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<v Speaker 1>also act out a number of activities during this process.

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<v Speaker 1>These could be simple things like eating to more complex

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<v Speaker 1>processes like driving a car, yeah driving. For centuries, people

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<v Speaker 1>have been trying to figure out what's going on with sleepwalking,

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<v Speaker 1>and while scientists haven't fully cracked the case, we do

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<v Speaker 1>know more and more about this phenomenon and it's helping

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<v Speaker 1>us bust some myths. One, sleepwalkers probably aren't acting out

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<v Speaker 1>their dreams. We know this because most sleepwalking occurs during

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<v Speaker 1>the first third of the night, when your body is

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<v Speaker 1>in n rem or non rem sleep. This is the

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<v Speaker 1>deepest part of your sleep cycle. It's a time when

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<v Speaker 1>your body repairs it self and releases hormones. You're not

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<v Speaker 1>dreaming while this goes on, and because your brain will

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<v Speaker 1>resist awakening in this state, it may be difficult to

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<v Speaker 1>snap a sleepwalker out of it. But don't be afraid

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<v Speaker 1>to try, because here's another fact. You can safely wake sleepwalkers.

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<v Speaker 1>Don't do it violently, of course, but you're not going

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<v Speaker 1>to kill them either. Now that we know some of

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<v Speaker 1>the facts, it's time to figure out who's taking these

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<v Speaker 1>midnight rambles. Weirdly enough, children tend to have a higher

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<v Speaker 1>likelihood of sleepwalking. This parasomnia appears to run in families,

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<v Speaker 1>and it occurs more often in boys than in girls,

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<v Speaker 1>and sleepwalking in general is more common than you might think.

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<v Speaker 1>A study at the Stanford University School of Medicine found

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<v Speaker 1>that one in five U S adults are prone to

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<v Speaker 1>sleep walking, and that twenty two percent reports some form

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<v Speaker 1>of it. Since childhood, parasomnias have been called errors in

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<v Speaker 1>timing and balance in the brain. More technically, it could

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<v Speaker 1>be called a disorder of arousal, meaning that something triggers

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<v Speaker 1>the brain into awakening from deep n REM sleep stage,

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<v Speaker 1>so the person is in a transition state between sleeping

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<v Speaker 1>and waking. So why do kids experience it more often

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<v Speaker 1>and why do they grow out of it? Some researchers

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<v Speaker 1>argue that kids brains aren't mature enough to fully comprehend

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<v Speaker 1>sleep cycles, or that areas of their brains don't develop

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<v Speaker 1>at the same pace, And since n REM sleep is

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<v Speaker 1>a period of hormone release, it's possible that hormonal releases

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<v Speaker 1>may have something to do with sleepwalking. Most adults who

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<v Speaker 1>walk in their sleep did the same as children, exhaustion, stress,

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<v Speaker 1>some medicines, illnesses, and alcohol can all contribute to sleep walking.

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<v Speaker 1>And there's one last myth to bust here. Sleepwalking really

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<v Speaker 1>can be dangerous. It's been linked to seizures as well

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<v Speaker 1>as disorders like Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Some people throughout history

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<v Speaker 1>have even argued successfully that they killed someone while they

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<v Speaker 1>were sleepwalking. Yeah. Today's episode was written by Christian I'm

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<v Speaker 1>Pretty Sure and produced by Tyler Clang. Brain Stuff is

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<v Speaker 1>a production of I Heart Radio's How Stuff Works. To

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<v Speaker 1>hear more from Christian, check out his pop culture podcast

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<v Speaker 1>super Context, and, of course, for more on this and

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<v Speaker 1>lots of other topics on the go, visit our home planet,

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<v Speaker 1>how stuff Works dot com. Plus for more podcasts from

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<v Speaker 1>my heart Radio, visit the heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

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<v Speaker 1>or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.