I will be honest I do LOVE my sleep, and with getting up around 3:15 in the morning Monday-Friday....I really love sleeping in until maybe 630 on Saturday and til 6 on Sundays.  And an occasional afternoon nap is relished by yours truly.  But when it comes to sleep---check this stuff out. 

GettyImagesBruceBennett
GettyImagesBruceBennett
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Most of the time, we all go to bed and fall asleep and get an uneventful good night’s rest.  Sometimes, weird things happen in our sleep that are totally normal.  Here’s a few I found, and I could definitely relate to a few of them!

1)     Feeling Like you are falling- This is called “hypnagogic jerk” and happens while you are falling asleep.  Sometimes, you can start dreaming before your body is fully asleep.   With a hypnagogic jerk, you may act out your dream, like you are falling off a cliff or tripping.   This often happens when you are overtired or stressed out; your brain enters its sleep cycles, and your body hasn’t caught up. 

2)     Sleepwalking:  Most things you do in your sleep are harmless, but sleepwalking can be dangerous because you can trip, go outside, and even try to drive a car.  When you sleepwalk, you come out of sleep just enough for your body to move, yet your brain is not awake.  That’s why most people cannot remember sleepwalking at all.  In fact, some sleeping pills have been linked to people cooking, eating, and driving when they’re still asleep, because the pills keep their brains sedated while their bodies are acting out the movements. 

3)     Sleep-Talking:  Here’s a fact: about 5% of adults talk in their sleep.  Most of the talking only lasts about 30 seconds or less, and happens during the first hour of sleep, while your body is entering deep sleep. 

4)     “Exploding Head Syndrome” – This is when a person wakes up having heard a really loud noise, like an explosion, light flash, or a sense that their head is “exploding.”  In reality, nothing has actually happened; it’s a type of hypnagogic jerk, similar to the “falling feeling.”  You are heading towards a deep sleep, but your body hasn’t caught up yet, and your senses are still turned on.  Have you ever woken up with a start, thinking something made a loud noise, and then looked at the clock, and you only went to bed less than an hour ago?  This is more common than you think.

5)     Sleep Paralysis: You wake up in the morning and realize you can’t move or speak; this is a terrifying feeling, that usually only lasts a few seconds.  This is the opposite of a hypnagogic jerk, where your brain wakes up before your body comes out of its deep sleep. 

So, the next time you experience one of these things, know you are not alone!

Source: Men’s Health/ABC News

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