Is sleepwalking a disease? Uncovering the truth about sleepwalking

For sleepwalkers, they will not remember what they did after they wake up. Sometimes they even go to another place when they sleepwalk. When they wake up, they are very surprised and confused. Although sleepwalking is not fatal, is it a disease? What causes sleepwalking?

Sleepwalking is a sleep disorder

Sleepwalking is also called "sleepwalking". It is a sleep disorder in neurology. The person suddenly opens his eyes from deep sleep and gets out of bed to do some strange things in a semi-awake state. His expression is blank and his movements are slow. After waking up, he has no idea of ​​his behavior. Some people just sit up and talk nonsense when they sleepwalk, while others can actually complete some difficult tasks, such as dressing, singing and dancing. There are also reports that sleepwalkers can cook, drive, jump off buildings... Dr. Li Yinghui also said that although sleepwalkers are in a sleeping state, they have a certain degree of consciousness and can hear others talking, so if someone communicates with him, he can talk.

Children sleepwalk more than adults

Since children's cerebral cortex is immature and the excitement and inhibition in the process of neural activity are unbalanced, sleepwalking is more likely to occur in them. This is mainly concentrated between the ages of 5 and 12, and adults only account for a small number of sleepwalking. The occurrence of sleepwalking is related to the following factors:

Somnambulism inheritance:

Studies have found that if a family member sleepwalks, others may also sleepwalk. For example, if a child's father or mother sleepwalked when they were young, then the child is more likely to sleepwalk than the average child.

Psychological stimulation:

Children may also experience sleepwalking after they are frightened, stressed, or have other psychological stimuli. For example, if they watch a horror movie before going to bed or are often scolded by their parents, it will leave an impression in their brains, but their ability to express and vent psychological pressure is limited, and they may express it in the form of sleepwalking after falling asleep.

Psychological quality:

Not all children will sleepwalk when they are frightened or stressed. This is also related to the individual's psychological endurance. Some children will be fine soon after being frightened, while others will be so serious that they will cause physical emergency reactions such as fever.