Why people talk in their sleep: reasons and how to stop doing it

What are talking in your sleep called?

Scientifically, this phenomenon is called somniloquy. A little less scientifically – dream talk. It is reliably known that such conversations last no more than 30 seconds at a time, but can occur repeatedly during sleep.

However, when studying this phenomenon, scientists noticed that up to a quarter of such episodes occur during the REM sleep phase, and the rest, respectively, during deep sleep.

By the way, these conversations can be both a monologue and a dialogue. Such a person does not remember the conversation itself the next morning. In rare cases, a person may speak a foreign language. This is usually explained by the fact that he grew up in a different language environment in very early childhood.

Speaking during sleep: features of the phenomenon

Somniloquy is a sleep disorder in which the sleeper talks while dreaming. After waking up, the “speaking” person does not remember what he dreamed and is not even aware of the night monologue. The attack of “talkiness” can be one-time (about 30 seconds) or repeated many times during the night.

It is important to know! This behavior often causes misunderstanding among others: unwitting listeners take what is said in a dream personally. This is an absolute misconception, since the sleeper reproduces individual vocal sounds, snatches of incomprehensible phrases completely unconsciously.

Moreover, the presence of such a feature can provoke a persistent fear in a person of going to bed outside his own home.

Why does a person talk in his sleep? Somnologists consider sleep talking a compensatory process that helps the transition between phases of dreams. It is known that slow and fast sleep alternate several times during the entire rest period. Unsolved "gibberish" usually appears during the shallow stage. It stops when moving to the next “turn of the spiral.” In this way, a person falls asleep deeper.

Manifestations of somniloquy

Among experts and researchers of dream problems, there is a conventional division of conversations in a dream. It is believed that depending on the nature and intonation of the tirade, a specific stage of peace can be determined:

• If the speech is articulate, logically connected and in understandable language, it means that the person is in a state of drowsiness or in the paradoxical phase of a dream.
• Vague interjections, repeated moans, screams, delusional phrases out loud indicate the peak of delta sleep (the deepest stage).

Some experts are inclined to believe that the meaning of what is said in a dream is directly related to the period of wakefulness. However, in practice, another, opposite theory is most often confirmed: scraps of words and sentences mean nothing and have no common meaning with a person’s life.

People who talk in their sleep

Statistics show that for about twenty adult individuals, there is one person who is talkative in their sleep. Most often this is a middle-aged man. Among young children, almost every second one can boast of nightly conversations.

It is important to know! Somniloquy is sometimes inherited by descendants from older relatives. Therefore, if your deceased great-great-grandfather was an oh, you need to mentally prepare for your own nightly “performances.”

The etiology of this fact has not been fully studied, but there is a direct connection between talking with closed eyes and daytime emotional shock. Moreover, stress can have the prefix “-di” (negative) and “-ai” (vice versa). This is explained by excitation in the center of the cerebral cortex, which occurs as a result of a strong “shake”. This area is associated with speech functions, which is why rich, varied literature appears.

Causes of sleep talking at different ages

Dreaming in itself is a normal phenomenon and is not a pathology. People talk in their sleep for a variety of reasons. Some of them are minor and easily eliminated. Others will not disappear without outside medical assistance. Depending on a person’s age, various conditions can serve as the basis for “talkativeness.” This table shows the possible relationship options:

It should be noted that babies who have not yet learned to talk often “chat” in their sleep. In this way they train and develop communication skills. As you grow older, the nervous system stabilizes and nighttime “tongue twisters” disappear.

Is it dangerous or not

In the vast majority of cases, somniloquy does not need to be treated; it does not entail serious consequences.

The exceptions are some variants of serious pathologies:

• Paradoxical sleep phase disorder. Manifests itself in excessive expressiveness, crying, sudden screams, and constantly calling someone by name. Sleepwalking with an eating disorder may develop. (This is when a person goes into the kitchen at night, opens the refrigerator and eats a lot, but in the morning he doesn’t remember anything like that).
• Epilepsy. Additional symptoms: regularity and accuracy of the timing of the seizure, aggressive reactions of the “sufferer”. There is significant confusion of consciousness (impossible to awaken). The famous foreign psychologist Louise Hay associates the appearance of regular attacks with a suppressed desire to escape (from circumstances, problems, unpleasant people). Therefore, it is necessary to analyze recent events, the patient’s environment and ensure maximum emotional comfort. This reason requires immediate medical attention. Treatment should be carried out by a qualified psychotherapist.

Isolated cases link talking in sleep with schizophrenia, psychopathy and other mental illnesses. Their diagnosis and identification is characterized by the presence of other specific signs. A sharp change in habits and behavior, constant doubts, excessive pedantry, perfectionism in small things is a good reason to contact an appropriate specialist.

Why do people talk in their sleep

Scientists cannot give an exact answer to this question, but they suggest that dream-speaking is often associated with past experience.

This phenomenon is usually common among children and teenagers - more than half of children aged 3 to 10 talk in their sleep. Typically, children begin to develop somniloquy after strong experiences or vivid episodes in life. Doctors believe that in this case, talking in a dream does not indicate any violations. This feature can be inherited.

The vast majority of people stop talking at night when they reach puberty. And only a few, about 5%, retain this feature. Episodes of somniloquy can be repeated every night, or they can occur rarely, for example, after a busy day at work or severe stress.

Be clearer!

Episodes of sleep talk most often occur during shallow slow-wave sleep. Therefore, if a person, falling asleep, begins to mutter something in gibberish, but soon falls silent and sleeps peacefully throughout the night, then there is nothing to worry about. Scientists suggest that when muttering in their sleep, some people are simply lulling themselves to sleep. In this case, the sounds produced are a kind of compensatory reaction that helps those who fall asleep move more easily from one phase of sleep to another.

It happens that people talk during the rapid phase of sleep, during which dreams occur. At the same time, the person actively moves his eyeballs, and in general can move: stand up, point a finger at some objects, sometimes even answer questions from a nearby partner. In this case, the sleeper’s speech is no longer muttering, but rather clear and clear words and phrases.

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The work of the subconscious: how dreams help solve problems and identify diseases Despite the fact that all this looks scary, sleep speaking is most often not a pathology. If, when waking up in the morning, a person does not detect excessive nervousness and hysteria, or, conversely, lethargy and lethargy, then everything is fine. It is not for nothing that, according to the international classification of sleep disorders from 2005, sleep speaking is classified as a conditionally normal manifestation. And if someone feels bad from talking in a dream, then it’s definitely not the person sleeping, but the one who is nearby.

To reduce the likelihood of chatting at night, you need to create a calm environment at home in the evening, do not watch horror films before bed, and do not read bad news. And try not to eat too much at night. The bedroom should be cool at night - stuffiness contributes to the appearance of sleep talk. And you should definitely spend as much time as possible outdoors.

Why are talking in your sleep dangerous?

In themselves, such conversations are harmless, but there are several disadvantages. First, as we have already said, somniloquy can scare the neighbors.

The second sleep disorder may be a complication of another sleep disorder, such as REM sleep disorder. This is when people repeat in reality some movements from their dreams, they can twitch, moan, scream in their sleep. This may be a symptom of somnambulism, or, in other words, sleepwalking. And also nightmares, yes, this is also a violation. Or a sleep-related eating disorder.

Scientists from the University of Helsinki, Finland, note that there is reason to talk about common genetic causes of some sleep disorders. In the study, they studied 815 pairs of identical and 1,442 pairs of fraternal twins and found strong correlations between sleep talking and sleepwalking, teeth grinding, and nightmares.

If a person suddenly begins to talk in his sleep as an adult, and previously somniloquy had not manifested itself in any way, this may be a sign of incipient degenerative changes in the brain, for example, Parkinson's disease or dementia. In this situation, a person should consult a doctor and undergo an examination.

When to talk... to a doctor

Unfortunately, for some people, sleep speaking is still associated with mental problems. Indeed, in addition to the most common neurotic sleep talk, there is also paroxysmal sleep talk.

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Pillows for healthy sleep: what are they and how to choose? Infographics It is different in that it occurs at the same time of night sleep and is accompanied by aggression on the part of the speaker when trying to wake him up. This can occur, for example, with epilepsy.

If you have such symptoms, you need to contact a neuropsychiatrist and undergo instrumental studies. First of all, do an EEG (electroencephalography) of the brain during night sleep.

You should not hesitate to visit a neurologist if, in addition to sleep talking, a person has some other neurological symptoms: enuresis, sleepwalking, teeth grinding in sleep, attacks of suffocation, drooling, nightmares.

Usually, for overly excitable and nervous patients, doctors prescribe nootropic or metabolic drugs that improve cerebral circulation and make sleep more restful.

curious

In the UK, a very popular blog is now created by Karen Lennard, the wife of 36-year-old Adam from Richmond, who often talks in his sleep. At first, Karen posted her husband's funny late-night sayings to amuse friends and family. However, over time, the blog gained more fans. The couple makes great money from their popularity: their online store quickly sells out souvenirs with Adam’s phrases. Here, for example, are some of the night's “statements”: You are sweet. Sweet-sweet-sweet. Now get out of here and be nice somewhere else. I'm sick of. Clack-clack, clink-clack. Make sure your hooves don't clatter! Who brought the horse into the bedroom? Aaaaah... Looks like I'm sleeping in a barn.

Is there any meaning in the words of the sleeping man?

Many people think that what a person says in a dream is his secret thoughts and desires, as if it works, like with that proverb about a drunk who has everything on his tongue. Now, this is not true. According to the International Classification of Sleep Disorders, talking does not reflect previous behavior or memories.

Not only is up to 60% of what is said incomprehensible, but the rest simply doesn’t make any sense. It’s as if a neural network randomly formulated phrases according to the syntactic norms of the language.

In any case, dream speaking has so far been studied very poorly; there are real fears that scientists will soon refute everything that they have claimed before.

Help with somniloquy

If a person speaks for a long period in a dream, this is bad. When “conversations” are accompanied by a violent sleeper, strong screams, increased sweating, sleepwalking, you should go to a therapist. The doctor will prescribe a detailed examination for the presence of concomitant diseases. An additional visit to a neurologist and somnologist will help you build the right strategy to get rid of the problem.

Polysomnography is the most primary study to which the patient will be referred. A thorough sleep analysis provides a detailed “picture” of the diagnosis. During the process, the smallest indicators are recorded: breathing, movements of the chest and peritoneum, body posture, motor activity of the lower extremities.

Health care providers may ask the patient to keep a special diary, which should include the following points:

• waking up and going to bed mode;
• duration and nature of rest;
• frequency and amount of alcohol consumption, as well as other tonic drinks (coffee, Coca-Cola);
• presence of stressful situations.

Advice! Close relatives are advised not to wake the sleeping person or talk to him during attacks. This should absolutely not be done due to the possibility of activating serious mental disorders. It is only necessary to carefully observe the details of the process in order to later describe them to the attending physician.

How to stop talking in your sleep

1. How to avoid talking in your sleep? First, before going to bed, you need to completely relax. You can reduce emotional stress through meditation or yoga. Try to avoid bad news, scary movies and books before going to bed. Don't forget to ventilate your bedroom before going to bed. Taking a hot bath before bed is also a great way to relax.
2. Do not underestimate physical exercise during the day, it helps improve the quality and duration of our sleep. Just don't start exercising right before bed. An evening walk in the fresh air also has a positive effect on the quality of sleep.
3. Before going to bed (2-3 hours before bedtime), avoid heavy, spicy and fatty foods, alcohol and caffeine.

If the above recommendations do not help, consult your doctor.

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Article updated 05/12/2021

How does pathology manifest itself?

Sleep pathology can appear in people with mental disorders. Most often it is depression or insomnia.

Healthy people who talk in their sleep usually suffered severe stress or overwork the day before.

Involuntary muttering at night also occurs in people with sleep disorders. This pathology is manifested by nightmares or stopping breathing for a few seconds.

In a healthy person, episodes of sleep talk are more common during periods of shallow sleep. He starts mumbling as he falls asleep. After silence, the person then sleeps peacefully.

Less commonly, sleep deprivation occurs during REM sleep. During this period, a person dreams.

During REM sleep, movements of the eyeballs, movements of the hands are observed, and sometimes the speaker can ask meaningful questions to the partner. The words at this time sound clear and precise.

How to treat sleep talking?

When choosing a treatment method for this disorder, one should proceed from why a person talks out loud in his sleep. If the reasons lie in some disease, it is necessary to be cured, thereby getting rid of its unpleasant symptoms. Many of those who have experienced some kind of stress, a difficult period or an illness that has undermined their health can turn to means of strengthening the nervous system:

• Vitamin and mineral complexes containing magnesium and vitamin B6. These microelements improve the functioning of nerve endings and help restore broken connections. Such drugs improve the quality of sleep, increase performance and relieve emotional stress.
• Herbal infusions with soothing herbs. Drinks with lemon balm and mint have a good effect on the nervous system. The well-known valerian, motherwort, and peony have a good calming effect. For people suffering from sleep disorders with nightly talking out loud, it will be useful to drink regular black tea with the addition of the listed herbs at night. If you have insomnia, you can turn to a collection of sedative herbs and undergo a course of treatment.
• Drugs to support the nervous system. If you have sleep disorders and irritability, you can ask your neurologist to select a suitable drug to relieve nervous tension - Afobazol, Novo-Passit, Persen.

Other measures that can remove the effects of stress will also give a good result in the fight against sleep-talking. If you often talk while you sleep, try changing your lifestyle: start playing sports, find time for rest and entertainment, don’t overeat, communicate with fun people who are interesting to you.

For those who inherited somniloquy from their parents and cannot get rid of it, our site recommends not to dwell on it. Do your late-night conversations bother your family? Give them earplugs or offer to drink a little decoction of soothing herbs with you before bed: those who sleep soundly are not disturbed by any sounds, and the feeling of closeness of a loved one only helps them calm down and get a good night's sleep.

Website www.sympaty.net – Beautiful and Successful. Author – Rybak Elena Nikolaevna. The article was checked by a practicing family doctor Elizaveta Anatolyevna Krizhanovskaya, work experience - 5 years. More information about the site's authors Copying this article is prohibited!

Is somniloquy dangerous?

Although somniloquy may seem scary at first, in most cases it is not dangerous.

If after waking up a person experiences a little lethargy and lethargy, this is normal.

Speaking during night sleep is dangerous if it is accompanied by aggression when trying to wake up the speaker. This may be a sign of epilepsy.

You should also consult a doctor if you have additional neurological symptoms, such as:

• enuresis;
• grinding of teeth;
• salivation;
• attacks of suffocation.

In this case, the doctor will prescribe medications that improve blood circulation in the brain. This will make your sleep more restful.

Assumption three

It concerns very young children who are just beginning to speak. For them, individual words and phrases spoken in a dream can be a reflection of new experience, new knowledge accumulated in reality. Scientists have noticed that puppies, for example, often begin to bark in their sleep before they first try to do it in reality. Likewise, babies can first pronounce new words in their sleep, and then pronounce them consciously while awake.

Advice to parents: in this case, you can only rejoice - the baby is growing, gaining knowledge...

Prevention

In order not to disturb others with late-night conversations, you should approach everything that happens around you with a smile. You shouldn’t pay too much attention to the negative moments in life.

Before going to bed, it is better to stop watching TV. An evening walk would be a good replacement.

Before going to bed, you should ventilate the room. It is advisable that there are no objects in it that have odors. It is better to move even your favorite flowers with a strong aroma to another place.

If a child often talks in his sleep, then you should not tell him scary fairy tales in the evening or allow him to watch science fiction films. It is better to fill this time with benevolent and calm information.

When a loved one mumbles in their sleep for a few seconds, take it with humor. After all, this phenomenon is not harmful to health, and you can hear some pretty funny expressions from the chatterbox.