Trouble sleeping because of bad dreams, nightmares, night terrors, or sleep-eating?
Last week, in the middle of the night, I woke up to see a man walking down the slope behind our house (we live in a wooded area on an island; our bedroom window is level with the bed). He was heading toward the house. Since my husband is up in Nunavut, Canada right now I'm in our house alone.
As soon as I realized this guy was headed toward my bedroom window, I threw myself off the bed and plastered myself on the floor, hoping he'd think nobody was home. Then I realized I'd be visible from the side window, so I crawled over the the corner of the room and pressed against the wall.
After a few seconds, my heart thudding.......I slowly woke up. It was a dream. I dreamed that the guy was outside, but I physically responded by scrambling all over the room -- and I was incredibly confused and still scared when I woke up.
That was a sleep-walking nightmare. (I don't have insomnia, I have nightmares! Which is worse?)
Night terrors on the other hand are different in that people can't remember what terrified them. They can't be wakened from their experience -- the night terror can last from 10-20 minutes. Night terrors aren't dreams, they're sleep disorders characterized by an inability to wake up, extreme terror, and no recall of what exactly was terrifying them.
Sleep-related eating disorders are another form of sleep disorder, in which people eat in the night without waking up. Sleep-eating affects about 2% of the US population, and is becoming more researched -- more people are coming "out of the closet" as it were. Dr. Carlos H. Schenck wrote a great book called Sleep: They Mysteries, The Problems, and the Solutions -- I'll write a book review soon.
Right now I think I'll have a nap.
